Ranma and the Talismans Chapter 9
Sorry for the delay I have been busy since I last posted.
Before we begin I would like to thank my readers. This story has officially reached 101 watchers on spacebattles, and 51 followers on . Thank you all for the support, it is greatly appreciated. I hope everyone had a happy Mother's Day.
Disclaimer: I own none of these characters, Ranma 1/2 Is owned by Rumiko Takahashi and VIZ Communications. Jackie Chan Adventures is owned by Adelaide Productions, Sony Pictures, and probably Jackie Chan.
I recommend supporting the source material.
Random street Nerima
A happy redhead joyfully walked down the streets with a bag full of pork buns. It didn't take long for Ranma to realize in female form, they were as cute as a button and that boys would gladly give them free food if she gave these gentlemen the right look. If you paid close attention, you could even hear these exact words slip out of the girl's mouth as she was enjoying a pork bun. "Yep. When it comes to eating out, being a girl is the only way to go."
Sure it might not be honorable, or masculine to trick boys desperate for a date to give Ranma free food, but when a free meal is involved, the Saotomes' would throw away their pride, forget about honor and abuse their curses to high heaven. The pigtail girl could even swear that the fact she had it for free thanks to some googly eyes somehow made her snack even tastier. However, even with a treat in hand, Ranma was still able to notice a fight brewing from the corner of her eye.
The martial artist leaped onto a neighboring fence to see the situation. Three figures bandaged from head to toe were staring daggers at one beautiful black-haired schoolgirl. Each one brandished gymnastics clubs and wielded them as if they were going to pummel the girl to submission. Under normal circumstances, Ranma would have intervened, but with the girl looking as calm as ever the young Saotome decided to see how things played out before getting involved.
The schoolgirl as calm as ever said, "Pardon me, but are you from Furinkan High? I am looking forward to next week. Sure our schools may be rivals, but I hope we can still be friends. After you lose, I mean".
Despite this calm response, the mysterious assailants rushed forward and pulled a phrase straight out of Ryoga's threat book, "that's a big, huge lie, we weren't even friends, to begin with! We will finish you off here and now! Prepare to die, Kodachi"!
However, the black-haired girl pulled out her ribbon as swiftly as the wind and forced all of her assailants on the defensive with a few good slaps from the fabric. With a few more precise slaps she had two of the Furinkan students, completely overwhelmed by her offensive.
Kodachi with barely restrained anger evident in her voice said, "Now, now If I weren't a lady! I'd have to teach you a lesson"!
One of the mask attackers seeing this as an opportunity attempted to try to bash the ribbon wielder upside the head from behind. However, the girl was too quick. Within one fluent motion, Kodachi's weapon of choice wrapped itself around the assailant behind her and sent them flying into their other two teammates.
Kodochi proceeded to use her ribbon like a whip to attack her downed and disarmed opponents while continuing her line of dialogue, "If I was raised any less elegantly then all of you will really be in trouble! How lucky for you that I was reared better than that!" She spat out with disdain oozing from her lips.
Ranma laid down the remainder of her bag on the ground and figured it was time to step in. The anything-goes practitioner doesn't like interfering with other people's fights. Especially when it involves helping the attackers, who are getting their just desserts. However, Ranma Saotome hates bullies abusing their power even more! Within a blur of motion, the redhead caught the ribbon in her right hand and got into a relaxed defensive position between Kodachi and the three cowering mummies.
Kodachi tugged at her ribbon trying to get it free. However, Ranma's grip held strong when she said "C'mon, cut it out; I think you made your point already"?
The black-haired girl stood in shock and said, "You caught my ribbon as if it were nothing. You're no ordinary girl, are you?
Slightly flustered from the girls' comment Ranma answered, "Um yeah... I guess you could say that".
Kodachi as courteous, as ever replied, "It makes no difference to me!" She then kicked one of the discarded clubs up into the air and released her ribbon to snatch it up.
With slight anger, the schoolgirl then cried out, "Well then, I won't go easy on you!" The black-haired girl then attempted a powerful forward thrust with the club. However, just as suddenly Ranma ducked underneath her attack, and swept the girl off her feet with a ground sweep.
Kodachi instantly performed a makeshift, but flawless forward flip. The pigtail girl in response got into a counter-striking position ready for any counterattack the purple-eyed maiden might pull. Ranma might not have seen much from Kodachi, but it was evident this girl was easily the strongest female martial artist she has seen since coming back to Japan.
Genuinely impressed Kodachi smirked, and said, "You are quite formidable. Well done. I am the rising star of the gymnastics world Kodachi, the black rose. Please don't forget it". With her prompt to speech, complete the schoolgirl threw a black rose into the redhead's hands and grabbed her ribbon.
The black-haired beauty then let loose the most ear-piercing laugh Ranma had ever heard before vanishing. Kodachi didn't just run away, she just disappeared, with all visible traces of her instantly fading to nothing.
Ranma just stood there, dumbfounded. However, Ranma quickly regained her bearings, approach the three crying individuals, knelt down, and in a comforting voice said, "Hey, what's with the crying? You're safe now, and there's no point shedding tears over losing one fight".
At that moment, the three unwrapped their bandages revealing three girls from Ranma and Akane's class. With tears still running down their faces the three in unison, said, "We're the Furinkan High martial arts rhythmic gymnastics team and we are in big trouble"!
—-
Akane's Room
The four of them somehow moseyed their way into Akane's room to further discuss the events involving Kodachi. In this rush, Jade decided to tag along. Resulting in Ranma and Akane sitting on the bed, Jade taking the desk chair, and the gymnastics club sitting on the floor trying to drown out their sorrows with some tea and cookies.
With tears still running down their faces the 3 girls said, "Akane, we've been humiliated! The black rose defeated the entire club in a matter of seconds"!
Akane in disbelief asked, "So, one girl did all this by herself?"
The girl on the far right said "We were ambushed, and now we have to forfeit the tournament! To make matters worse we have to give up all our gymnastics equipment to Saint Hebereke"!
Jade cut in by saying, "If she ambushed you why didn't you call someone about it? As a side note. Why do you have to give all of your gymnastics equipment away"?
The girl in the middle answered Jade's question. "We have been experiencing some accidents lately. On top of this, we heard some rumors that every forfeit victory Kodachi has ever received was because she ambushed her opponents before the match. On my right, Araragi was juggling clubs, and all of them hit her on the head. On my left, Hinagiku dislocated her shoulder after falling off the balance beam. As for me, it's too embarrassing to say".
Araragi then bluntly said, "Ivy rubbed her hands with poison Ivy when gardening". The middle girl immediately blushed red in embarrassment".
Hoping to get the conversation back on track Hinagiku said, "Our gymnastics equipment is starting to break down from wear and tear, and we figured if the school gets new equipment we can get more members to join the club. So when we heard Saint Hebereke had an abundance of new gymnastics equipment we bet all of our equipment for some of theirs".
Ranma felt annoyed by this answer and said, "So you three have been experiencing some bad luck, and thought Kodachi was trying to injure you three? That's got to be the saddest excuse for chickening out of a fight I have ever heard".
The gymnastics club protested at the redhead's accusations. "We're not chickens! Besides, you've seen Kodachi use that invisibility trick of hers! She could've easily sabotaged us...".
The pigtail girl immediately cut them off, "You three don't even have proof Kodachi attacked you?! You three were well enough to attack the gymnast well before your match. Meaning, you three should be good enough to compete in the fight in a couple of days".
The girls at once, then pleaded, "Akane can you please substitute for us? You're the strongest girl in school and the only one who stands a chance at stopping Kodachi's winning streak. In fact, it is the reason why we came here".
Akane hesitated; she has never even heard of that style before. on the other hand, she isn't the type to ignore people in need.
However, before the youngest Tendo made up her mind Jade spoke up. "why not ask the redhead that saved you three? She did beat that human wrecking ball named Ryoga, and had the edge against the invisible gymnast earlier".
With this realization, the three girls then started arguing over which girl they would ask for help from. Ivy was in favor of Ranma thanks to her recent accolades. Hinagiku was still sticking to their original choice of Akane. Meanwhile, Araragi was verbally still wanting Akane over their hero, but Jade could tell she was thinking about switching to the redhead if given enough time.
Ranma then ended the argument by saying, "You can count me out. There's no way I am going to do something as girly as rhythmic gymnastics or wearing a leotard in front of a crowd. Besides, in recent days I have low sympathy for those who jump to conclusions"! Ranma even glared at Akane to emphasize her last point.
This action finalized Akane's decision. The fact that the gymnastics club chose her over her fiancé was music to the girl's ears. Plus, if the gender-changing warrior wouldn't help them, who would? With her thoughts made up the youngest Tendo hesitantly said "I don't know how good I'll be, but I'll give it a try."
The gymnastics club after hearing this cheered in joy. With their champion found they excitedly began thanking and praising Akane.
Unbeknownst to them a short buck tooth ninja was eavesdropping on their conversation. However, before the ninjutsu practitioner could get any more information he ran away when he saw a panda glaring at him. Under normal circumstances, this loyal servant of Kodachi would have stuck around, but he didn't want to fight a panda and a crocodile on the same day.
Night time, Tendo Dojo
The gymnastics club was more than willing to lend Akane some of their equipment. After successfully scanning the rule book and the items laid out Akane's confidence seemed to have risen. However, Jade and Ranma's confidence in the youngest Tendo seemed to have dropped.
Ranma while twirling a club with his fingers, said, "Akane you shouldn't have agreed so quickly. Do you even know how to use these things"?
Smugly the youngest Tendo replied, "It shouldn't be too hard to learn. Besides a martial arts nut like Ranma here probably knows a little".
The two onlookers began to laugh a little, but when they saw Akane wasn't laughing they stopped and gave the girl a questioning look. Ranma then said, "Akane there are over 180 different martial arts in the world. Each one comprises thousands of styles and techniques. That's not even adding in the hundreds of types of obscure or secret martial arts styles I haven't heard of. Even I can admit I could spend the rest of my life learning martial arts and probably not master all of them".
Akane let out a rough exhale and said, "I already said I'd do it, so I can't go back on it now. Besides, how hard can martial arts rhythmic gymnastics be to learn anyway"? Apparently, it was harder to learn than Akane guessed.
Akane first tried a pair of clubs. She leaped high into the air and flung the clubs planning on catching them. While her landing was graceful, the clubs unceremoniously landed on opposite ends of the dojo.
Ranma inquisitively asked, "Are you supposed to let those drop"?
His fiancé blushed red. Through restrained anger, she replied, "Very Funny. Maybe I'll have better luck with the ribbon". However, within a few seconds, Akane wrapped herself like a mummy in the cloth.
"Are you supposed to tie yourself up like that?" Jade asked, matching her pigtail sensei tone from before.
Akane clenched her teeth in anger and attempted to try the hula hoop. Yet she quickly got stuck in the hoop and broke it when she tried to wiggle out. In sheer frustration, the girl began stomping her feet so hard the room shook. She continued to fume in frustration until she heard a sound that made her blood go cold.
"Oink".
Immediately the youngest Tendo turned her head to the source of the sound and saw Ryoga in pig form setting by the entrance. Akane snatched a club and got into a position that promised pain to whatever she saw.
The pig began praying and squealing for mercy. When he saw this had no effect in soothing the temperamental girl's wrath, Ryoga attempted to make a break for it. Yet instead of running out the door, he accidentally ran straight into a corner and left himself with no chance of escaping from the club-wielding girl.
Seeing the danger Ryoga was in Ranma quickly ran in between them, and said, "Come on Akane you already beat the pig boy 1/2 to death once. Besides, he didn't ask to be your pet".
Akane angrily replied, "Really? He seemed overjoyed if you ask me"!
Ranma hoping to save face then said, "I am sure Ryoga is sorry for what happened". Akane looked unconvinced. Even when the pig was nodding his head up and down vigorously at his rival's words.
luckily Jade poked her head out the door and said, "Ranma's right. Ryoga's definitely sorry". Immediately after saying this Jade pulled out two baskets filled with chocolate chip cookies.
Taking a closer look at the content, they found a note alongside the baked goods. The letter read. "Dear Akane. Sorry for what happened the other day. To make up for it I got You and Jade cookies from my favorite bakery in Hokkaido. I hope you can forgive me, Ryoga".
After reading the letter Jade and Ranma took a bite of the cookies and were in immediate bliss from the sweet chocolate. Akane ignored the sounds of pleasure coming from the two, and said, "Even if he brought us cookies, that guy still deserves another..."
Before the youngest Tendo could finish her sentence Ranma put one of the cookies in his fiancé's mouth. After savoring the taste flowing through her mouth Akane said, "Fine I'll go easy on the dumb pig". However, to everyone's shock, the pig disappeared just as suddenly as it appeared".
Bathroom
Soun Tendo was enjoying a long warm soak in the tub. It may be easy to get the man upset, but when life gives the guy a good bath, all the stresses from his day vanish like snow on a hot day. He was so relaxed at the time he didn't even raise an eyebrow when a pig came into the room and dived into the tub.
However, the martial artist was surprised when the farm animal turned into a naked boy and walked out the door. However, since that wasn't even in the top 10 strangest things Soun witnessed when taking a bath, he decided to simply, shrug his shoulders and continue his soak as if nothing happened.
A few minutes later, Dojo
"Akane... I came here to say how sorry I am for what happened a few days ago. I should have come clean about the curse as soon as I could", a nervous Ryoga blurted out. However, it was evident those words and two baskets of cookies wouldn't be enough to earn Akane's forgiveness evident by her glare.
Luckily for the eternally lost boy, there is something that would instantly perk Akane's interest. Ryoga quickly shouted, "I know Martial Arts Rhythmic Gymnastics and I can teach you everything I know!"
The three simply gave the yellow-clad boy shocked, and skeptical looks. Seeing this Ryoga gave a further explanation. "My mother in high school was apparently a champion in this style and taught me the basics. In fact, my sword belt and razor bandanna techniques come from my experience in martial arts rhythmic gymnastics".
Akane's glare became less severe, but it was evident the girl was still not certain. The eternally lost boy saw this and added, "I was even worse than you at the style when I first started. So if I could figure out the basics of martial arts rhythmic gymnastics then you would be a master in no time".
Hearing these words, the youngest Tendo reluctantly said, "I guess I have no other choice. You can teach me, but you better not pull any funny business, P-Chan"!
Immediately Ryoga began to shed tears of joy and rapidly bowed in gratitude. He then said, "Thank you Akane, thank you for the opportunity. I promise you won't regret this decision".
The eternally lost boy once he got a hold of his emotions begin examining the tools around them and started his lesson by saying, "The first thing to keep in mind is despite the name, martial arts rhythmic gymnastics is a legit fighting style. When you get into a ring expect an actual fight. If you go in believing, it's simply a sport with a few martial arts moves to woo the crowd you might as well throw in the towel".
Ranma nodded his head in agreement and said, "No arguments here. I didn't see much from Kodachi, but she had the reflexes of a true martial artist and was skilled enough to win a three on one battle with a few strokes of her ribbon. If that girl isn't a strong martial artist, I will eat my right shoe.
Ryoga immediately after hearing Ranma's words then said, "By the sounds of it you are dealing with a master of martial arts rhythmic gymnastics. Luckily for you, I know all the strengths and weaknesses of the style. The greatest strength of this martial art is its ability to utilize any type of gymnastics equipment as a devastating weapon. The club, ball, hoop, and ribbon are the preferred weapons of this style. However, martial arts rhythmic gymnastics Achilles Heel is that it offers very little in the way of bare hands combat".
Jade excitedly said, "Then in that case all Akane has to do is remove all of Kodachi's weapons and corner her like a boxer"!
Ryoga shook his head from side to side and replied, "That won't work Jade. In an official match, bear hand attacks are prohibited, and if the referee catches Akane performing those types of moves she would be immediately disqualified. On top of this one can only use gymnastics equipment and a handful of other unconventional weapons during the fight".
Jade grimaced at this.
Before Akane could figure out just how over her head she is Ryoga brandished one of the ribbons and said, "Here's a basic demonstration of a simple, but effective technique involving the ribbon. And lucky for me Ranma volunteered to be my testing dummy.
The pigtail boy attempted to protest his rival's words, but before he could so much as get a word in edgewise he found himself in pain.
With a simple spiral motion, Ryoga created a continuous volley of whip streaks over his target's body. Before Ranma could even adjust to a proper guard Ryoga with one strong flick of the wrist sent his rival flying into the wall with the ribbon.
Ranma began vowing payback under his breath at the yellow-clad boy. Meanwhile, the girls with stars in their eyes simultaneously said, "That's... that's cool!"
With pride coursing through his being, Ryoga said shall we get started.
Meanwhile, at Saint Hebereke Gym.
The school's gymnastics team trained with precision and grace long past sunset. Easily, over 20 girls performed various stunts and complicated maneuvers under the watchful eye of their captain; Kodachi. Seeing the sweat drip down her team's faces after a long session Kodachi shouted, "That's all for today"! Many of the girls let out sighs of relief at this news and began gossiping with each other.
One of the girls said, "The captain was rough today".
"Oh yeah, that reminds me, who is she going to ambush tonight?" a second girl asked.
A third chimed in, "I doubt she will do it. Kodachi hasn't ambushed anyone, since she perfected that invisibility trick".
A fourth added, "You would think learning how to be invisible would embolden our captain's preemptive strikes, not stop them"?
One of the older members of the club laughed at this and replied, "Trust me if you have been part of the team for as long as me you would know Kodachi runs on a different form of logic compared to the rest of us. Besides, I think our captain is trying to find a worthy opponent. If you can beat your opponent without even calling the match a warm-up, why bother sabotaging the other team"?
Kodachi hearing someone gossiping about her was about ready to approach them. However, before she could her family's loyal ninja appeared in front of her in a kneeling position and said, "Mistress Kodachi I figured out who your next opponent is. Apparently, the Furinkan girls chose someone from outside their club to compete, and her name is Akane Tendo"!
The gymnast held her chin in contemplation
before saying, "That name sounds familiar, but I can't remember where I heard it before"?
Sasuke replied, "Akane Tendo is the dark haired girl, your brother fell in love with".
Kodachi nodded her head and said, "I see, in that case, you should know a lot about her. How much of a threat is she"?
Sasuke closed his eyes and contemplation before responding. "Akane Tendo is one of the top martial artists at Furinkan High and her punches have incredible power. However, based on some last minutes spying, I figured out her rhythmic gymnastics skills are borderline nonexistent".
Kodachi in a dismissive tone said, "Here I thought I would finally have an interesting fight, but it sounds like she'll get herself disqualified by the time things get interesting. Check up on the Tendo girl every once in a while, and tell me if she makes any good progress. You are dismissed Sasuke".
The next morning, Tendo breakfast table.
Hoping to start up a conversation Soun asked, "So how was your training last night Akane"?
Akane with a smile on her face chirped, "It was wonderful. That Ryoga guy might be a creep, but he is a 1000 times better teacher than my dumb fiancé. With his guidance, I'm sure I can win the match next week."
Ranma scoffed at this and replied, "You were tying yourself up at the end of his lesson last night. I can get Jade to complete stage three of her training before the Pig-Boy can get you to beating that Kodachi chick".
Akane smirked at this and replied, "Sounds like a bet I know I can win"!
Ranma quickly responded, "Same here. Come on Jade it's time for stage three of your training".
Koi Pond
The jump rope stands were still there. Although, all the logs have been removed from the Koi pond, and in its place, laid a single rope going from one end of the pond to the other.
Ranma in a stern voice said, "Jade for today's stage three exercise I want you to walk a crossed this tightrope without falling".
The girl from Hong Kong furrowed her eyebrows at this request and asked, "Is that it? No performing skipped ropes on it. No equipping buzzers. Not even some sort of distraction"?
The pigtailed boy chuckled at this before replying, "Sure I will be making it tougher tomorrow, but all I want you to do for tonight is walk across that rope without falling in a couple of times in a row"
Jade smiled at this and began steadily walking across the rope, and she couldn't believe how well she was doing. Sure she might not be moving across the rope that fast, but she wasn't losing her balance either. It was evident to the master and apprentice that Jade has made progress. Yet when she was only a few feet away from completing the challenge a strong gust of wind caused the rope to sway. Jade began swinging from side to side, in hopes of regaining her balance and appear to be doing it. Yet at the last possible second a Koi fish, bumped against the tightrope, and the girl fell into the water.
Jade continued her practice a few more times with varying degrees of success. Sometimes she made it a crossed dry, and other times she came walking out soaking wet. By the 40th attempt, Ranma said "Time for a break". This instantly caused Jade to fall onto the grass, exhausted.
After taking a few seconds of rest Jade had a realization, "You said break, as in there would be more training later"?!
Ranma in a nonchalant tone said, "Got to get you to complete stage three before Akane's big match. So expect a good 2 1/2 weeks' worth of training done in six days. Plus, I was hoping we could move onto some tightrope tricks by day three, or be able to cross a wet pipe by day 4".
Jade immediately lay on the ground, groaning from the anticipated exhaustion. If you listen closely, you could even hear her mumble, "Why did you have to make a bet with Akane"!
One day before the big match, Tendo Dojo
The house's occupants and Ryoga gathered to watch the fruits of Akane's training and she didn't disappoint. Within a week, the youngest Tendo was now gracefully darting around the room like an elegant dancer. All the while twirling and catching a set of clubs as if she has been doing the routine for months.
Nabiki quickly pulled out a small book, and wrote down the words, 'Ryoga is a really good teacher'. Curious Ranma took a glance at the book and laughed. In between giggles, the pigtailed martial artist said, "That's an understatement Ryoga here is a miracle worker. How else can you explain Akane's improvement"?
Immediately after Akane delivered a well-trained strike with her clubs. However, Ranma avoided the attack still in a seated position, leaving the club stuck in the floorboards. This did not slow Akane's routine in the slightest. As the girl seamlessly began using the other three weapons of martial arts rhythmic gymnastics against her fiancé. Without interrupting her demonstration for a single second.
Ranma seemed to be annoyed by this, but it was obvious his ire wasn't directed at Akane. Jade quickly notice her sensei's glare and began to protest. "Sorry, I couldn't when you that bet. In what world did you expect me to figure out how to hula hoop on a tight rope in less than a week"?!
Akane's barrage of attacks then stopped. "come on Ranma, I need you to stand your ground. Before my fight tomorrow, I want to have a sparring match with someone good at acrobatics". The girl said slightly annoyed.
Ranma confusedly replied, "If you wanted a sparring session with this junk why didn't you ask sooner? Although why not spar with Ryoga or the gymnastics club again"?
Ryoga overhearing this answered his rival's question, "I am not sure about Kodachi's fighting style, but I do know masters of martial arts rhythmic gymnastics are like hummingbirds when fighting in the air. Meanwhile, those girls in the club might be experienced in the art, but are a far cry from skilled fighters even with solid footing". The yellow-clad boy, then bit his lip before continuing. "As for me, I never really mastered the aerial aspect of martial arts rhythmic gymnastics, and you are better at aerial combat than me".
Ranma in a relaxed tone, then said, "I can't argue with yeah there. In that case, let's get this show on the road". While brandishing the ribbon.
Akane then charged at the pigtailed warrior. yet her attack never came. Halfway through her sprint the youngest Tendo stepped on a stray ball, and landed face-first on the floor. With evident pain coursing through her entire frame, concerned looks appeared on the onlooker's faces.
later that night, Akane's room
luckily for Akane her sister Kasumi has been borrowing some of Dr. Tofu's books for years and learned how to treat injuries. Within a flash Akane found herself laying in bed with her ankle neatly bandaged up. With the youngest Tendo safe the tension in the air drastically dropped.
This was proven by Nabiki's quick jab. "Man. My sister the klutz! Wasn't the first thing Ryoga taught you not to injure yourself with your own equipment"?!
Ranma hearing this suddenly had an idea, but before he could say anything, his brown hair fiancé interrupted. "Ranma I know what you're about to say, as the professional bet-taker I can confirm you and my sister tied in your little bet. And before either of you start complaining about the results no exact wager was set. At this point, it doesn't really matter who won".
With those words said the room fell into silence. However, before the realization Nabiki had successfully predicted her fiancé's words could sink in Kasumi spoke up in her normal, soothing voice. "I guess you have no choice but to withdraw from tomorrow's match".
Akane protested, "No way I can't let her beat me like this. Kodachi obviously went invisible and use the ball to trip me"! Ignoring the skeptical looks the others were giving her Akane attempted to get out of bed. However, her movements were halted by a massive surge of pain the moment her injured foot touch the ground.
Kasumi in a rarely heard tone scolded her sister by saying, You're in no condition to stand let alone fight! If you let your ankle heal, you'll be as good as new within a few days. However, if you try to fight tomorrow you will be moving around on crutches for a month! You'll just have to find a substitute".
Jade was quick to reply in a snarky tone, "Good luck with that. Who are you going to find that's good at martial arts, and at least knows the basics of gymnastics"?
Akane then added, "Not to mention looks good in a leotard. The girls from the club were insistent on that last part".
In unison, the four girls had a realization and began staring at Ranma. Realizing what they were about to say the young Saotome protested. "Hey cut that out, that's not funny. There's no way you can get me into a stupid leotard".
Jade could only smirk at this challenge, and in a calm and innocent voice said, "Oh, I guess beating this Kodachi girl is too much for you? Sorry for assuming you can beat someone as strong as the Black Rose".
The pigtailed martial artist angrily replied. "What is that supposed to mean"?!
Jade smirked at this reaction. Ranma might not know it yet, but the young Chan has her teacher around her little finger. Without missing a beat Jade said, "Here I thought a true master of anything-goes martial arts is supposed to help those in need? All the while someone as skilled in the art as you would, at the very least hold his own against Kodachi in her native element".
Ranma agitatedly replied, "I can learn Marshall arts rhythmic gymnastics easily, and can beat Kodachi anytime and anywhere".
Jade smugly replied, "Then why not uphold your honor and beat her in a fight tomorrow"?!
Ranma with a confident grin replied, "In that case, I will. By my honor as the heir to the Saotome school by this time tomorrow, I will be bragging about how I won the martial arts rhythmic. gymnastics.. match...". it was at that moment he realized Jade set him up. In a last-ditch effort to avoid his fate, Ranma hastily added, "Only if I can get a form-fitting gymnastics outfit"!
The boy's hopes were quickly dashed by the Chester grin Nabiki gave her fiancé. Pulling out a tape measure Nabiki said, "That shouldn't be a problem. I know a guy who can get you at least two gymnastics leotards tonight if I get some exact measurements. In fact, I might as well measure your male form too, to make sure your outfit doesn't break by accident".
Nabiki began to drool from that last comment, but before anyone could notice, she wiped it away and began pushing her fiancé somewhere more private. The last thing the room's occupants heard from the two was Ranma's soft grumbles of annoyance, and Nabiki saying, "Hurry up Ranma. I have been wanting to measure those melons of yours for weeks now, and I can't wait much longer"!
Later that night, dojo.
A female Ranma stood in front of Ryoga wearing a green leotard with a small black bowtie built in. Both brandishing gymnastics equipment. In a calm but stern voice, the eternally lost boys said, "The match is in less than 24 hours. You need to practice as though your life depends on it. Are you ready Ranma"?
The redhead replied, "HA! Get ready yourself".
Ryoga in response performed the come here gesture and said, "Let me show you a thing or- - Ah"! Yet before the boy could finish speaking his rival kicked him in the face.
A triumphant Ranma said, "That was too easy". Yet Ranma found herself being sent crashing to the floor a few seconds later. Taking a look the redhead saw her rival using a ribbon to pull her feet from under her.
Furious the bandanna-wearing boy shouted, "Use the tools, you idiot! If you don't, you'll be disqualified! Are you some kind of animal"?!
After getting up Ranma simply replied, "At least I'm not a pig"!
With those words said, their training session began in earnest. Although to their only onlooker Jade, it just looks like the two of them were simply trying to bash each other's heads in with impressive and flashy uses of gymnastics equipment. At least until the two of them started using their ribbons to spell out cursive insults to each other.
Amazed Jade asked, "How did you get so good at this sensei"?!
The redhead smugly replied, "I couldn't let you and Akane do all the special training. At this point I think I pretty much got the style...". However, before Ranma could finish Ryoga hit his rival in the head with a ball. Annoyed the pig-tailed martial artist simply replied, "Scratch that. Jade you should go to bed".
Jade looked like she was about to protest, but Ranma quickly put an end to it. "Jade it is past your bedtime, and trust me when I say this might take a while. Besides if you go to bed now I can surprise you with one or two new techniques when I fight Kodachi tomorrow".
Jade wasn't happy about this, but she walked out of the Dojo. When she was out of earshot Jade said to herself, "I'll go to bed, but not before seeing more of you and Ryoga fighting". With those words said Jade snuck back in, and watched the two spare while hidden in the rafters.
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I saw this chapter was starting to get a little long and figured it would be best to split up the chapter into two parts. This part represents the lead-up to the match, and the next one will represent the day of the fight.
As for the gymnastics club, I couldn't find their names, so I decided to name them myself. Ivy, Hinagiku, and Araragi aren't random either, they are a reference to another franchise. Let's see if any of you get the reference.
I am planning on mixing up Kodachi's Romance with Ranma a little. I was thinking about Kodachi first developing a friendship with the female Ranma and having that slowly develop into romantic feelings. However, I'm having trouble coming up with some ideas for this concept, any ideas?
Reviews:
1.) Paulthored- I don't see how the Tiger talisman is responsible for creating the Nanniichun spring, that's under the girl's locker room. Sure the tiger talisman might be able to turn the boy cursed spring into the girls spring, but that's it. Although affecting a curse now that's a different story.
As for Happosi using a tailsman to keep himself alive after being buried I will say your idea will fall under the jurisdiction of the dog talisman, not the horse. The horse will allow the old man to recover from the blast instantly, meanwhile the dog will allow Happosi to survive without food or water.
2.) djinn- Mousse will definitely use a talisman to get his revenge. Although I'm not going to spoil which one he's going to use, and where he gets it.
That's an interesting idea about the Ox I'll have to think about Ryoga using that one somewhere down the line.
3.) Negortin- Sorry to hear that.
4.) James Birdsong - Thank you.
5.) Halphas Greed- Thanks you for the high praise. One of my goals for this is to make this story number one in terms of Ranma 1/2 x Jackie Chan Adventures fanfictions. So reading your review made my day.
Agree. A decent chunk of the fun from Ranma 1/2 comes from Ranma turning into a girl with cold water.
So I can't remove Ranma's curse specifically willy-nilly, unless I bring in something to make up for it.
I wanted to keep the demon sorcerers and Jusenkyo's origin separate for this story. Although I will say the demon sorcerers and Jusenkyo do have some history together, I ain't going to spoil the details just yet.
Thank you. I wanted to add in the Jackie Chan characters as naturally as possible, and it appears that I am succeeding on that front.
I will admit I was originally trying to make Nabiki unknowingly Bi, although now that you mention it all the good scenes the two had have happened when Ranma is in female form. I'll have to think of some moments between her and male Ranma later on.
I want to give each of Ranma's possible love interests a shot after all. I don't want Nabiki to win the fiancé race simply because she was introduced first.
I hope you all enjoyed this chapter, and sorry about the wait.
Next time: Ranma fights the invisible gymnast.
Lastly, I expect the next chapter to be out in late June.