Chapter 3: Akane gets Kidnapped/Ryoga Joins

As the three of them made their way to the school, Akane noticed an unusual sight—a blimp perched on top of the school building she pointed at it and asked, "Huh, what's that blimp doing there?"

"It must be part of the Red Cat Gang's plan, and it's probably where they are taking the people they kidnapped, including Pop." Ranma deduced as the three of them approached the gates, using the key to open them, and as they entered the school, they were met with a surprising sight. Gosunkugi was sitting on the floor with a blank expression on his face.

Ranma rushed over to him and tried to snap him out of it by slapping him, asking, "Gosunkugi! What happened here?"

Gosunkugi spoke up with a trembling voice, "E-Everyone's b-been taken away… every last one of them… even Kuno… but the principal left me behind, said I was too weak."

"Even the damned principal is involved in this!?" Ranma exclaimed in anger.

Gosunkugi looked down sadly, saying, "I still want to go with them…"

Ranma reassured him, "Don't worry! Instead of you going with them, I'll bring them back to you… you can count on it!"

Gosunkugi's spirits lifted, thanking Ranma, "Wow, Ranma… you're such a great guy."

"We should find that blimp now, Ranma," Akane suggested, bringing their focus back to the mission.

"You're right, let's go," Ranma responded, his face turning serious.

As the group made their way to the roof of the school, they encountered and swiftly fought off more members of the Red Cat Gang which barely slowed them down,as they finally approached the door leading to the rooftop, only to find the Principal waiting for them, dressed in his usual Hawaiian clothing.

"What the?" Ranma muttered in surprise as they came to a halt.

"Hahaha! Aloha, my students!" The Principal greeted them with an eerie grin.

"Let everyone go!" Ranma demanded.

"Oh, you be very brave fighting the Red Cat Gang, bruddah! I be giving you this special reward!" The Principal tossed a pineapple bomb at Ranma, who caught it, puzzled, before it exploded.

Ranma awoke and found himself locked up in a cell. "Ah, so you're awake now, boy," the principal said with a casual smile, standing before Ranma in his Hawaiian shirt.

"What's going on here? Where's Akane and Shampoo! What have you done with them?" Ranma demanded.

"Oh, you mean the girls? Those be some good questions, yeah," the principal replied, still maintaining his relaxed demeanor. "But first, I be askin' you to lend a hand to the Red Cats! Then maybe you get your girlfriend, Akane, back, no?"

"She's not my girlfriend! And no way! I knew it! You're working with them!" Ranma retorted.

"Well, there be other ways to make you join," the principal hinted, a mischievous glint in his sunglasses.

"You're gonna brainwash me?!" Ranma exclaimed.

"Correct," the principal confirmed, checking his watch. "Ah, it be lunchtime now. I'll leave you here and wait 'til dis afternoon to make you understan', yeah," he said, before leaving the cell.

'Damn! I gotta find a way outta here!' Ranma thought, inspecting the concrete walls. "Maybe there's a weak spot in one of the walls so I can escape," he muttered, and to his surprise, he found a weak spot right then. "Alright!" Ranma exclaimed, delivering a powerful punch to the weak spot, causing the wall to crumble. He took the opportunity to escape through the door and found himself in a peculiar village.

"Where the heck am I...!?" Ranma wondered aloud, looking at waterfall before proceeding towards the village. As he made his way, he accidentally bumped into Ryoga.

"Ranma? Is that really you?" the bandana-wearing boy asked.

"Ryoga! What are you doing here!?" Ranma asked, taken aback.

"I've been searchin' for your old man since I last saw ya. Next thing I know, here I was..." Ryoga explained.

"Why am I not surprised?" Ranma sarcastically remarked, knowing Ryoga's horrible sense of direction.

"And why are you here?" Ryoga inquired, prompting Ranma to feel a little embarrassed before explaining what had happened.

"What! You mean to tell me Akane got kidnapped?! What the heck were you doin'?" Ryoga yelled at his rival for letting Akane get snatched.

"Shut up! I was taken by surprise! What was I supposed to do?" Ranma yelled back.

"That's a pathetic excuse, Ranma!" Ryoga couldn't believe how weak Ranma seemed.

"Think whatever you want. There's no time to argue," Ranma retorted, pushing Ryoga away.

"Hey...wait!" Ryoga shouted, following him.

"What is it now, Ryoga?" Ranma turned to see what he wanted.

"I'm comin' with you! I'll help rescue Akane!" Ryoga declared.

"Well, why didn't you say so before!?" Ranma said, patting Ryoga on the back. "Okay, let's go!" he added, before pausing. "Er…I don't know where to start lookin'..." he admitted sheepishly as Ryoga facepalmed.

"Do you have any ideas where to start, Ryoga?" Ranma asked his rival.

"When I was askin' around this village, people mentioned a panda in the spa. Maybe it's your old man?" Ryoga suggested.

"Well, it's better than havin' no leads. If he's there, it might also lead us to the Red Cats," Ranma said, shrugging. "Alright, let's go then." Ranma said as they both set off towards the village spa.

Chapter 3 End

A/N: I know that in the game Ranma wakes up and finds himself in a different village than the one where he meets Ryoga but that village has nothing narrative wise other than telling the player where to go (the village where you encounter Ryoga) so I decided to just make that even happen in the same village instead. Also in the game at this point Shampoo is not mentioned in any way (not until later on when you rescue her).