Disclaimer: Ranma 1/2 is the property of Rumiko Takahashi and all associated licensers. The King of Fighters and it associated series are the property of SNK-Playmore and all associated licensers. This is not a work for profit. I claim no rights to the characters. This is a work of fiction.

Continuity for Ranma is mostly derived from the manga, with some of the anime sprinkled in for good measure. Continuity for the King of Fighters is a modified form of the current story, how that is should be explained in story, but I am willing to explain for those with further questions.

Enjoy!

Chapter 4

Akane felt like smacking Ranma across the head. He really deserved it this time too, and God only knows it would have made her feel better. There was just that one little issue of the cops who were standing no more than a few feet behind her. She did not feel like testing the officers' patience after they had been so nice about the whole incident. Still, if Mr. Kusanagi and Mr. Sakazaki had not managed to convince Mr. Kuroki to not press charges, Akane would have almost certainly been joining Ranma for a night in the local police station's holding tank after her erstwhile fiancé had casually mentioned to the officers just who had brought him to the audience hall. Nabiki tried her best to deny any culpability, but she was probably saved as well by the actions of the two martial art champions.

Really, Mr. Kusanagi was truly gracious about the whole thing. Akane could see why his fans were so devoted to him. He even offered to give Akane the money for the train ride back home, seeing as how she had been forced to spend nearly her whole weekly allowance just getting to Odaiba. Akane respectfully declined however, she could not in good conscience take any money from a man who had been accosted by her fiancé and had saved her from being arrested.

Mr. Sakazaki on the other hand…

Well he had helped too, but now Ranma had to fight him as part of the settlement made by the two parties. Akane could understand where Mr. Sakazaki was coming from, Ranma had insulted his family's martial art school, and that could not be overlooked. If someone had insulted the Tendo's family dojo, she would have been furious as well, and demanded a match to restore her honor. But did Mr. Sakazaki really know what he was getting himself into? Akane had no idea how strong he was, but she knew just how powerful and destructive Ranma could be in a fight. Someone could get seriously hurt in this match, and Akane had no idea just who that would turn out to be.

Of course even more distressing was that the whole incident had been broadcasted on live television! Apparently Ranma, clueless as ever, had not bothered to notice that his challenge to Mr. Kusanagi was filmed in front of a crew of cameramen who were originally there to tape the contract ceremony on behalf of Tokyo's major broadcasting stations. Now the whole country had probably learned of the incident! Akane could have died of embarrassment, but she was even more worried how her father and Kasumi were going to react when she got home. She would probably get out of it in one piece, but all of her friends at school and her various rivals would know about this too, and the whole thought of it was enough to make her sick.

Ranma really did need a good beating for this.

Akane was broken out of her thoughts by the conversation behind her. She could hear Mr. Sakazaki yelling at Ranma.

"So you've got that straight kid? Three days from now at 10 AM at Shakujii Park. I'll have everything set up on my end. You just be sure to show up!"

"Shakujii Park? I've beaten up a lot of chumps over there!" declared Ranma, "I couldn't think of a better place to show you up!"

"Don't make any declarations about your power until you've witness Kyokugen Karate in action, tyro!"

"Tyro? What sort of word is that? Are your techniques as weird as your choice of words?"

Nabiki watched as the two newly minted rivals traded words with one another. Good grief, she thought to herself, those two are acting like a pair of pro-wrestlers going at it on a weekend show. It was all for the best though, she could make a ton of money off this feud. Maybe even as much as if Ranma had gotten a match with Kyo Kusanagi. Depending on how he did against Sakazaki, he still could.

Akane walked up next to her sister and made a motion to her watch, "It's getting late Nabiki, we need to get Ranma and get on the train back to Nerima now. We're in enough trouble as it is!"

"OK, no problem. I do hate breaking up the boys when they're having so much fun though."

"Nabiki…" Akane growled.

Off to the side, Kyo and Mr. Kuroki were having a conversation of their own.

"Are you absolutely sure this is okay Mr. Kusanagi?"

"Yeah, there's nothing to worry about. Robert said he'd cover for Ryo in the exhibition match, so everything's good."

"That's not what I meant, Kyo Kusanagi."

"Uh, I don't quite get your meaning."

"You came back to Japan on very short notice. I appreciate that you went through the trouble of doing all of this for us Mr. Kusanagi, but I have a suspicion that you had other motives for returning home, am I right?"

Kyo cocked a smile and shrugged a bit, "Well don't worry, I will honor my commitments."

"I will only say this; if what I think is happening again is true, then be very careful Mr. Kusanagi. Many people in this country care deeply for you. I will admit I am one of them."

Kyo's smile softened a bit at that remark. "I appreciate that Mr. Kuroki. Don't worry; I'll make sure that trust is well deserved." And with that he walked off to get some fresh air for himself. It really had been an interesting day.

The Tendo household was in a state of chaos by the time Akane came back home with her sister and fiancé. It was already after nine o'clock in the evening, and just as Akane had feared, the whole cast of usual suspects had shown up to wait for the return of the trio. There was Ukyo, Konatsu, Shampoo, Mousse, Cologne, the Kuno siblings (oh how Akane despised those two!), and surprisingly enough Ryoga. She had not seen him in Nerima for a while; he must have just gotten back. Ranma's mother Nodoka was there too. It could have been worse Akane supposed, there were no signs of Happosai or Hinako-sensei. Those two would have made a bad situation even worse.

"Oh horrors! What has that horrible delinquent of a son of yours done to my daughters now Saotome!" Soun Tendo exclaimed in his typically melodramatic fashion. The scary thing was that his tone (for once) was appropriate for the situation.

"My apologies Tendo; my idiot boy has really done it this time." Genma said, trying his best to look the part of a responsible parent. It really did not suit him, seeing as he had never done much to impress any sort of manners on Ranma while raising him, but he had to do something… his wife was here!

Nodoka was sitting next to Kasumi, their faces devoid of their usual smiles. For Akane that was terrifying. For those two not to be smiling, it must mean that she really was in a world of trouble.

"How do people think Airen is the one wrong?" Shampoo contributed in her typically garbled Japanese. "Maybe money girl is at fault. She do stuff like this all the time!"

"Shampoo, silence!" Cologne shouted to her great-granddaughter. "We are only here to observe, the final decision for punishment lies in the hands of others." Akane sighed in relief on hearing that, at least that took one group out of the equation.

Akane then noticed Mousse, who was sitting off to the side of the room. His expression was inscrutable; no doubt aided by those ridiculously thick coke-bottle glasses of his. Akane wondered what his view on all this was. She knew that he and Ranma had become sort of friends over the past several months, despite the fact that Mousse bitterly resented Shampoo's love for Ranma. Maybe he would be a hidden ally? Or perhaps Akane was giving him too much credit.

It was at this point that Furinkan High's resident kendo master and master moron Tatewaki Kuno decided to add his own thoughts on the issues.

"The actions of the foul warlock Saotome must be punished with the most severe means possible! I, Tatewaki Kuno, the Blue Thunder of Furinkan High demand it! And for the record, if I were the one given the honor to distribute said punishment, you would find no one who would be happier!"

"Oh for the love of God, who invited this guy here!" Ranma complained. Like he needed Kuno's theatrics after everything else that happened today. More than that though, who thought it was a good idea to invite a pervert like Kuno into the house?

"Consider it part of your punishment boy, for all the trouble you've caused us." Genma said, trying even harder now to act parental.

"And what happens if he decides to start chasing after the girls?" asked Ranma.

"You would accuse me, Tatewaki Kuno, of not treating the fair ladies in this house in anything less than an honorable manner? That is it Saotome! You have crossed a line that is beyond all normal ideas of morality! For your innumerable crimes against the fair Akane Tendo, the pigtailed girl, all other women in the world, and my own character, I shall smite thee with my power on behalf of the assembled!" Kuno then paused for a moment, if only to regain his breath. Then something else dawned on him. "By the way, has anyone seen the pigtailed girl? She seems to be missing from all this. Could it be? Could Saotome have done something horrible to her on top of all of his other heinous acts! This is unforgivable, and I for one will not stand…"

Kuno never got a chance to finish his speech. A well-timed dart slammed into his neck, the powerful sedative that it was laced with quickly put him into a deep slumber. Everyone else in the room watched as Mousse sat back down into his original spot, pulling his hands back into his flowing white robes.

"Mousse! Stupid boy! I told you not to interfere!" Cologne said as she angrily stared at her young charge.

Mousse was unfazed by her anger, which was unusual. "What? I have to suffer that buffoon's ramblings as well? Elder, I thought this was supposed to be Ranma's punishment."

Cologne huffed at Mousse's remark. That boy was getting too mouthy, to the point where the old woman had trouble keeping him in check even with violence. Life in Japan was making him ever more defiant to her authority with each passing day. However, the old woman concluded this was neither the time nor place to start making an issue of it. The fate of Shampoo's engagement to Ranma was in peril with these new developments, if for no other reason than Ranma having failed to inform Shampoo of his plans, and on top of that bringing the Tendo girl with him to Odaiba!

Mousse looked across the room towards Akane and Ranma. He noticed that Akane was looking at him, and hoping to assure the girl, he gave her a faint smile. She smiled back at him, encouraged by his support, even if it was indirect.

Of course Mousse did not approve of what Ranma had done, it was damn foolish, but he was an ally of sorts. They had started as fierce rivals, but over time Ranma had earned Mousse's respect both as a martial artist and a friend, not something that Mousse had much experience with in the past. Ranma had also helped save both Mousse and Shampoo's lives on a number of occasions, and for that Mousse gave his gratitude, even if was begrudgingly. So even if it invoked Cologne's wrath, he would do as much as he could do to improve the situation.

Mousse then looked over at Ryoga Hibiki. Ryoga's eyes were closed shut, his face tightened in a state of extreme concentration. Mousse could tell that Ryoga's thoughts were extremely conflicted, his concern for Akane in conflict with his friendship with Ranma. What decision would he come to?

By this time, Nabiki was trying to find a way to defuse the whole situation to her advantage. That meant getting Ranma off the hook as well, since she still had a lot riding on him fighting Ryo Sakazaki in their match at Shakujii. If Ranma ended up grounded in his room or barred from fighting, then everything was lost.

"Father, Mr. Tendo" Nabiki began, trying to muster as must respect in her voice as she could; through she was long out of practice. "You do realize that Ranma did this all for both of you?"

"Wha…" Ranma was ready to object, but Nabiki's hand shot out over his mouth before he could screw things up. This had to be dealt with carefully, and Nabiki had to have complete control of the situation.

"What Ranma was trying to say, and what I want to make clear, is that he did this not to bring shame to you, but to bring glory for yourselves and the school of Musabetsu Kakutou Ryu."

"And how would making a spectacle on national television do that?" Soun asked, stroking his chin thoughtfully.

Well at least I have my father's attention now, Nabiki thought. Now she just had to develop her case further, and she might actually come out on top of this.

"But do you not see? Our school now has more exposure then it has ever had in its long and glorious history. Its name is on the lips of all Japanese people! Through his actions, Ranma has revitalized Musabetsu Kakutou!" That's right, lay it on thick. Those geezers loved it that way.

"I guess that is true," Genma said, "but everyone now thinks we are a bunch of violent delinquents!"

Nabiki and Ranma both inwardly cringed at that remark. Like Genma had worked so hard to project a positive image of the school!

"Yes, for the moment that is true," Nabiki continued," but Ranma is now engaged to take on a martial arts master in an official match!"

"Another engagement?" Kuno mumbled as he began to regain consciousness. "It must be magic."

"It is not that kind of engagement brother." Kodachi hissed. "Stop acting like an idiot."

"Wait, the boy actually got a match out of this?" Genma's mood brightened considerably at this revelation. The news reports had not included this information. "Was it against this Kusanagi fellow he challenged?

"Not exactly, however the man that Ranma will fight is a rival of Kusanagi, and a martial arts champion in his own right. His name is Ryo Sakazaki and he is a master of Kyog… no, Koku…, wait a moment." Nabiki struggled to remember the name. All of those martial arts styles tended to blend in with one another for a laywoman like herself.

"Ah, the little brat's fighting a Kyokugen master, eh? Very interesting indeed."

All in the room turned their attention to the new voice. They all recognized it immediately. That reedy, crackly tone, it could only be…

"You know Ranma has no chance against an opponent like that," said Happosai, the diminutive founder of Musabetsu Kakutou Ryu. He was also a pervert and criminal of the highest order, but you probably knew that already. How or when he snuck into the house was not clear, but what was clear was he wanted his turn in taunting Ranma.

"He should pack it up now, while he still has the chance." The old martial arts master said with a sly tone.

"What would you know you dirty old man!" Ranma yelled, finally breaking free from Nabiki grip.

"A lot more then you boy! You're still not the master around here!"

"Sensei, what do you know of this Kyokugen style?" Soun asked. He was terrified of his old master, but he knew that the old fart was a valuable source of information for more exotic fighting styles.

"More than you ever will, my ever-foolish and ignorant pupils. It's an old style of Karate from Okinawa that was practiced by a family of warriors, the Sakazakis. It uses ki manipulation and intense physical conditioning as its cornerstones. It's nothing compared to my own style, too rigid and limited, but a novice user of Musabetsu Kakutou like little Ranma over there would have trouble fighting an experienced user of Kyokugen."

"Anything else you can tell us master?" Genma asked.

"Come to think of it, I remember hearing the last heir of the Sakazaki family moving to America. That was a long time ago though, before you fools sealed me up for a few decades." The old pervert's voice darkened at that memory.

"Yeah, Mr. Sakazaki is apparently from America." Akane finally spoke, feeling that it was now safe to do so.

"So they did take root in America, very interesting." Happosai mused as his stroked his chin. "It doesn't change my initial thoughts though. Ranma can't win this battle, he will lose."

"Don't underestimate me Happosai! I'm not losing anything yet!" Ranma was ever angrier now. To have his skills as a fighter dismissed, and by an obnoxious little troll like Happosai no less!

"You might have one chance of winning," Happosai said, his eyes turning dark with lust. "Change into that wonderful other form of yours and I will give you some training you'll never forget…" Happosai never got a chance to finish his licentious offer; a chorus of fists arose in perfect harmony to knock him out of the Tendo house in an instant.

"Well that's over, so can we get back to the matter at hand?" Genma asked, trying rather poorly to regain control of the conversation. No one was really interested though.

"Wait a moment," Kuno said with a bewildered look, "Other form? What did that old man speak of Saotome? I was right! You really are a warlock in disg…" Kuno collapsed as another dart hit his neck, again courtesy of Mousse.

"Thank God." said Mousse.

"Is old pervert right? Airen can no win?" Shampoo spoke up, clearly concerned about Happosai's words.

"No way! Ranchan's the strongest, end of story." Ukyo retorted. She had remained quiet until now, trying to contain her anger towards Ranma over being left out of the loop, but she promptly forgot that as she began to bicker with her Chinese rival.

"Now ladies, there is no need to start fighting over this." Soun said as he tried to calm down the situation. "Ranma's strength is not the issue here…"

"SHUT UP OLD MAN!" both of the teenage girls screamed in unison. Soun backed off immediately and nearly fell over himself trying to get away. The argument continued, and Kodachi began to get involved, and then her brother, and then Konatsu, and so on.

"Oh my, thing are getting out of hand quickly here." Kasumi commented.

"Works for me, I take whatever I can get." Nabiki said, confident that she was now off the hook. The whole house quickly began to descend into ever greater chaos.

"Please everyone, stop bickering." Nodoka Saotome finally said in a tone that was quiet, yet very firm. She grasped her ceremonial katana for emphasis, and everyone else got the picture. They knew that behind Nodoka's calm façade was a will as strong as the steel of her blade.

"Thank you. Since this meeting seems to be going nowhere, I politely request that everyone who is not a resident of this house please leave for tonight, and that all those who do live here please give me a few minutes alone with my son."

"But my dear wife, this situation..." Genma began.

"No exceptions Genma, not even for you."

"Yes dear." Genma respected (and feared) his wife enough not go against her wishes.

Everyone save for Ranma and Nodoka began to file out of the living room. As Ryoga passed Ranma, he looked his friend in the eyes sternly with an expression that said we will be talking about this later. Ranma was not happy about that in the least, but first he would have to survive his mother before facing off with Ryoga.

Once they were alone, Nodoka took a seat on the couch, and motioned for Ranma to join her. He promptly complied. For a few moments there was an awkward silence, and Ranma had to stop himself from squirming. After all, while his mother was not a powerful warrior, she still commanded tremendous authority over him.

"My son," Nodoka started to speak in a voice stern but sad, "What you did today can only be seen as selfish and wrong, and I cannot say that I am proud of your actions. However, I do not believe that Nabiki was completely lying when she said you felt you had good reasons to do so. As your mother, I feel it is my duty to punish you when you do wrong, but it is also my responsibility to understand you as best as possible. Please, explain to me why you acted the way you did. Allow me to understand why you felt it was necessary to risk so much in order to obtain this fight."

Ranma was silent at first, not really knowing what to say. It had seemed easy enough when he had explained it to Akane a few days earlier, but this was different, his judgment was being called into question by a person who he greatly respected. Had he really been that stupid? After about a minute or two of contemplating, Ranma realized he had nothing to lose at this point by just spitting the whole thing out, and so mother and son talked. The conversation went on for several hours, during which time Ranma explained to Nodoka all that which had been bothering him over the past several weeks, about the future of the school, about the stagnation which seemed to have overtaken his life since the failed wedding.

He was surprised by how easily it all came out. He had worked so hard over the years to build himself into his ideal of a great warrior who never exposed his true emotions to anyone, friend or foe. Then again, Ranma had to admit to himself that he had never really lived up to that ideal anyway. For Ranma, it had always been easier to fight then to talk, but maybe that was only because he had never seen the benefit until now, the witty banter he used to throw his enemies off their game during battles notwithstanding.

For her part Nodoka was surprised to hear her son was so troubled. Ranma always put on such a strong front that she had forgotten that while he was growing into a splendid young man, he was still not an adult. She cursed herself for not seeing it earlier. It was only natural for a seventeen-year old to have insecurities, and even though she had not had a chance to do much about it until recently, it was time to start acting like a mother and help her son come to term with his problems.

"Well now, I can certainly see why you came up with such an idea my son." Nodoka said thoughtfully. "I still feel that how you did it was wrong, to say the very least. However, I realize now that much of the blame lies with me as well."

"Mom, please don't go and say stuff like that. I mean, I'm responsible for what I did and all, you didn't know…"

"The fact that I did not know is why I am at fault. I will admit that I have been reunited with you for only a brief time Ranma, but any good mother should know what her child is thinking, what bothers them deep inside. Maybe I was so focused on seeing that you had become a "man among men," as your father promised to me so long ago, that I had forgotten all of the other things that make a decent person. Ranma, to be truly happy in life you need more than just a strong body and a will of iron, you need qualities such as wisdom and good judgment, and inner peace. If I had been more present in your life I could have taught you that, but I let myself go blind to your needs."

"Mom…" Ranma was trying very hard to keep himself composed at this point.

"For now, I am not going to punish you son. This was my disgrace first and foremost, and I will take responsibility for my mistakes as a parent. You however need to focus on getting past your own weaknesses, the weaknesses of character that will destroy any hope of you ever having a happy life if they are not corrected. Also, there is one other thing."

"What Mom?"

"You are going to fight that man whom you challenged, but you are going to do it for yourself, and not anyone else's benefit. If you want to be a man Ranma, you need to start taking responsibility for your actions. This upcoming match will be a lesson for you as much as an opportunity. Keep that in mind when you are fighting."

"I will, mom." Ranma Saotome said with a determined look on his face. "I won't lose. I'll win this for you, for myself, and for the art!"

Kyo Kusanagi rested in his seat as he looked out the window. It had been a while since he had ridden on a train; in the U.S. it seemed that unless your name was Terry Bogard, everyone preferred driving or flying. The scenery flew by at a remarkable pace. It would not be very long before he was back in Osaka.

That was when the real fun would begin, Kyo thought to himself. Having to reintroduce himself to family and friends after years of sparse and intermittent contact would be painful. Kyo had changed a lot in the past few years; he was not the same brash kid who had left the Kusanagi household in search of adventure and glory. He also wondered if Yuki would be happy to see him, or if he should even try to visit her, Kyo would not hold it against her if she had moved on.

This would be more than some stroll down memory lane though. There was something even more important than all of that. Kyo reached into his jacket's pocket and felt the envelope inside. How many times had he received one of these envelopes? Ten? Did it even matter at this point?

Whatever happens at the next tournament, I will finish this, Kyo thought with great determination. Still, there were so many opponents to deal with… it was going to take nothing less than a miracle to stop their sinister plans.

But Kyo Kusanagi was someone who always won the battle when it really mattered, even when it seemed impossible.

End Chapter

Well, it's a new day and a new year. The holiday break was pretty good if I say so myself, and very productive in terms of my writing.

There were some questions left in the reviews for the last chapter, so I guess I should address those.

Ushio: I don't want to downplay Ranma's strength, but let's keep things in perspective. Ranma still had not surpassed Happosai or Cologne by the end of the manga. Maybe in ten years he will, but not at this point. So it's safe to assume that there are others out there who can match or surpass him as well. In fact, there would not be much point to writing this fic if it was about Ranma just bulldozing everyone he comes across.

Still, you have a point about Genma's skills. I agree he might be able to hold his own against Saisyu (Kyo's father). However Kyo surpassed Saisyu a long time ago in canon, so Genma being able to defeat the elder Kusanagi still does not affect the balance of power too much. Takuma Sakazaki would be another story altogether. Takuma is the guy who produced a ki blast so powerful it deflected a giant laser beam from outer space. Don't remember that? See here:

you tube .com/watch?v=VAzlVHVov1E

More than that, Takuma is seen by SNK as being roughly equal to Akuma from Street Fighter. He's extremely tough, a true master, and only another master like Happosai or Cologne could fight him when he uses he full power. Good thing Takuma pulls his punches most of the time (because he's such a nice guy).

On a more general note, how many people reading this fic are familiar with the King of Fighters mythos? I know some of you are, but if anyone has questions related to the backstory from those games, please feel free to ask. Hopefully the plot will be clear anyway, but it never hurts to clarify.

That's enough for now. Until next week!