The Hero's Law And The Tengu Princess

Ranma yawned as he stretched his muscles the day after the big fight with the Golden Pair. He after stretching, he sat on his bed and took a deep breath. So much happened yesterday that he needed to process. He took the first step to patch things up with Akane and become friends with her, and then he promised Lum that he would train her in martial arts. But the biggest thing was that he flat out left the Musabetsu Kakuto Ryu.

He would still use the skills he acquired from his training with his bastard of a dad, but now he was dead set on creating his own style.

'Easier said than done.' He thought to himself. How could he go about creating a style all of his own?

'The best plan for that I could think of is to find another style that I like and try combining it with the Musabetsu Kakuto Ryu. But what style would be best for that?'

He would have to think about it later. Right now, he had to go down for breakfast and then start Lum on her training. As he walked down, he tried to think about how best to start Lum's training. He would have to see what she was like physically so he would have a better idea of what techniques to teach her. As he came down, he was surprised to see someone in a black suit drinking tea with his mom.

"Um...hello?" He said. The man in the suit got up and bowed to Ranma.

"Good day, Saotome-san. I'm sorry to disturb you on this Sunday morning, but I'm here to tell you that you have been summoned in front of the Emperor."

"Say WHAT!?" Ranma said as he jumped back in shock.

"HUH!? Why!?" Asked Lum as she flew in from the window. The man in the suit adjusted his sunglasses and cleared his throat.

"I'm sorry, but even I do not know the details of this summons. All I was told was to escort you to the Emperor for a personal meeting. The only other thing I know is that the Imperial government will be involved."

"Oh...crap..." Was all Ranma could say as he was escorted to a limo and driven to the meeting place.

He gulped. Why was the Emperor of all people asking to see him? Did his dad somehow screw him over yet again by somehow lying to and screwing over the royal family of Japan? If so, he was a dead man!

As they arrived at the home of the Imperial family, Ranma looked around and saw a bunch of reporters and news crews trying to get pictures of him or asking him questions. Lum and Nodoka walked not to far behind Ranma and the men in suits that were escorting him. Lum was worried and so was Nodoka, who was thinking to herself that if Genma had done something to screw Ranma over with the royal family, then she was going to shred him to pieces.

Ranma was soon standing in front of none other than the Emperor Naruhito himself. He gulped as he bowed to the man who ruled all of the country. He didn't really know what to say at the moment. He was sweating more than he could ever remember sweating in his whole life. What was he going to say? What could he say?

"Saotome-san, thank you for coming today. I'm sure you are wondering why I asked you here today." Said the Emperor. Ranma nodded his head.

"Hai, Tenno-sama. I admit, I was surprised. But um, if my father Genma did anything to offend you in any way, I apologize." Ranma said as he bowed. The emperor laughed as he waved his hand.

"No no, Saotome-san. You misunderstand, your being summoned here is not in retribution or anything of that sort."

"It's not?" Ranma asked, sighing to himself that he was safe from that at least.

"No. Actually, the reason why you were summoned here today is so that I can properly thank you for saving this world of ours from the alien invasion some time ago."

"Oh!" Ranma said, scratching the back of his head. "It was nothing Tenno-sama. I was just glad to be of service lord, country and world."

"Be that as it may, I wouldn't feel right if I didn't give you some kind of reward. But the thing was, that I wasn't sure what kind of reward would best suit the service you did for our world. So, I have had the members of the imperial government to find some way to thank you. And as it turns out, there actually exists an old law that hasn't been in effect since the days of the Sengoku era."

"The Sengoku era?" Ranma asked in shock. The Emperor nodded his head.

"Yes. The law itself is called 'The Law of the Hero's Reward'. It was created many centuries ago. The law itself states that if a warrior does a great service for both Emperor and country, then they shall be bestowed a reward that, at the time, was deemed fitting of service they made. Services such as saving the country or protecting the royal family from a great threat that no army could defeat on its' own. The law fell out of practice during the era of the warring states, mostly because no one had ever been able to perform such deeds that warranted the law. So, it was eventually forgotten."

"Oh. I see." Ranma said nodding his head. He had never heard of this law, but then again, he had never been much for learning law in general.

"So, Tenno-sama, what exactly does this 'Law of Hero's Reward' intel anyway?" He asked.

"Well," The Emperor smiled. "To start off, first you will be gifted with a patch of land in any location you desire. You will be sole owner unless you desire to share the land with whomever you choose."

Ranma smiled at that. He would have his own place anywhere he wanted, eh? He always did like the idea of having a place just outside of the city. Someplace quiet where he could train and have plenty of space to, who knows, raise a family, build a dojo, the possibilities where endless!

"Also, you will be given an annual commission from the royal treasury. Enough to provide for whatever necessities you may need as well as having money to provide for your family."

Ranma liked the sound of that. Maybe he could put that towards going to college. If he ever decided to go to college. It might even be enough that he may not have to get a boring 9 to 5 job. A lightbulb then went off in his head! He could use the money to pay for any sort of training that he might want to go through!

Studying martial arts wasn't free in this day and age, so if he wanted to learn other styles to help in creating his own, then he would need money to pay for teachers. This solved that problem! Boy, he bet Nabiki would be kicking herself HARD in the butt if she ever found out that she missed out on a guy who was being paid by the Emperor himself for saving the world.

"And then there is the final reward covered by the law. And to be honest, this one is why it took us so long to bring you forth to bestow this reward on you Saotome-san." The Emperor said, bringing Ranma back out of his thoughts.

"Oh? And why is that Tenno-sama?" He asked.

"Well son," The Emperor said. "This last reward is kind of...controversial in this day and age. So we have been in countless sessions to decide whether or not to legalize this. But, since no one has ever single handedly saved a whole world before in real life, we decided that you deserve all that this ancient law intells."

Ranma was really confused now, but he was also interested in hearing the rest.

"Very well then, what is this final reward under the Hero's law your excellency?"

"Well," The Emperor cleared his throat. "In accordance to the law, you are hereby given the right to marry whoever and however many ever spouses you see fit."

Ranma looked blankly at the ruler of Japan.

"...I mean no offense to you Tenno-sama but...Come again!?" He said, paling as his mother and girlfriend both leaned in to listen.

"In other words," The Emperor said. "I hereby extend to you the legal right to marry as many woman as you desire."

"WWWWWWHHHHHHHHAAAAAAAAAAATTTTTTTTTT!?" Cried out one VERY PISSED OFF alien who was shooting off lightning in all directions.

"I DON'T WANNA SHARE!" She cried as she went off like an atom bomb. Nodoka however was having 'other' thoughts.

"I'M GONNA HAVE LOTS OF GRANDBABIES!" She said as she danced around with fans in her hands. As for Ranma...he just stood there. Dead to the world.

The next day, a very pale and brain dead Ranma was walking to school, with a very pissed off Lum grabbing onto his back like she was a living backpack. Every time a girl so much as LOOKED at Ranma with flirty eyes, Lum glared at them and glowed with her electrical powers, scaring them off.

Ranma was trying to wrap his head around what had just happened. Did the Emperor REALLY just make him a LEGAL polygamist!? How did that even happen!? No wonder the law was considered controversial. But he REALLY didn't want to marry multiple women! He was happy with just Lum! For a moment he thought that the idiot fathers would try to use this law to their advantage and try to force him to marry Akane again. But he was sure Akane would knock that idea out of their heads. Literally.

"Hey Ranma! Hey Lum!" Called out Shinobu as she waved at her two friends. Ranma managed to say hi back but Lum just growled at the maroon haired girl.

"Oh, Lum still hasn't calmed down from yesterday, huh?" She asked. Ranma looked at her in schock.

"How did you know about yesterday?" He asked.

"Are you kidding?" She answered. "Everyone's talking about it. Why, on my way to school I heard a whole bunch of women talking about it and how cute you were."

"HE'S MINE AND I'M NOT SHARING!" Lum screamed as she came to life with electricity, shocking Ranma and scaring Shinobu.

"LUM! CALM DOWN! I don't like Ranma remember!? I like Mendo-kun!" She said. Lum cut the zapping but fell to the ground with Ranma as he collapsed from the zapping.

After helping the poor boy to his feet, the three headed for Tomobiki high, Lum doing her best to scare off any girl who dared to give Ranma any looks. As they arrived at Tomobiki high, the group known as the Storm Troopers, led by Ataru, came charging at Ranma with every intent to murder him!

"DIE RANMA! YOU NO GOOD BASTARD!" Was the battle cry that echoed throughout the school yard as they attacked. Ranma sighed.

"Welp, now I know how Akane felt having to deal with this crap every day."

Ranma and Lum attacked the group and as Ranma dealt with Ataru, Lum electrified the rest of the group of goons. Ranma knocked Ataru around a few times and then twisted his arm into a painful joint lock, taking him to the ground.

"Dude, what gives? Haven't you had enough yet?" He asked.

"SHUT UP YOU BASTARD!" Ataru screamed in pain. "First you snag a hot alien girlfriend, then you ruin my chances with Shinobu and NOW you get to have a freaking HAREM!? Go to HELL ALREADY AND STOP TAKING WHAT SHOULD BE MINE!"

Ranma shook his head and turned to Lum, who was sitting on top of the pile of wanna be Storm Troopers.

"Lum, blast this creep for me, please? I can't deal with him right now." Ranma asked. Lum thought about it for a moment.

"Sure, but only if you kiss me in front of the school and tell everyone that you don't want any other girlfriend but me!" She said. Ranma sighed.

"I'm too tired to argue. Fine I will." He said.

"OK!" Lum said with a smile and fried Ataru like Southern fried chicken. Ranma laughed at the sight but then Lum flew in front of him.

"Ok, pay up!" She said in a huff. Ranma sighed.

"Ok. I don't want any other girlfriend other than my Lum-chan." He said as he leaned in. But surprisingly, Lum stopped him.

"Hold it." She said. "Grope me."

"Wh-WHAT!?" Ranma asked, turning red as his sleeveless red shirt.

"You heard me. Group me. Group my breasts as you kiss me."

"NO!" Ataru screamed. "THAT'S SUPPOUSED TO BE MEEEEEEEEEEEYYYYYYOOOOOOOOOOOWWWWWWWWW!"

Lum growled at the pervy boy after frying him once again. She turned back to Ranma and grabbed his hands and shoved them onto her breasts.

"WHA!" Ranma said in shock.

"There! Now kiss me!" Lum said as she cupped Ranma's face and started French kissing him. After about a minute, Lum let go and started flying off.

"See you after school Darling!" She said as she flew off. Ranma was stuck standing in place, his mind still processing what Lum just forced him to do.

'S...So SOFT!' Was the only thought in his brain at the moment.

"Come on Romeo." Shinobu said as she grabbed Ranma and dragged him to class. Ataru and the rest of the Storm Troopers all glared at the retreating pigtailed boy.

"Romeo Must Die!" Was the shared thought they all had at the luckiest man Tomobiki had ever seen.

Later in class, Ranma was not really focusing on what the teachers were saying. He had something else on his mind, like trying to figure out just how he was going to create his own style of martial arts. He sighed, he talked a big game in front of his father, but how was he going to go through with it. During the brief break between classes, Shinobu saw the pigtailed boy looking troubled and decided to try and talk to him.

"Hey Ranma." She said as she sat next to him. "What's wrong? You seem distracted today. Still thinking about Lum?" She asked teasingly. Ranma smiled at the girl who might be his one and only friend at this mad house of a school and sighed.

"No. You see...it's complicated." He said, hanging his head.

"I'm pretty used to complicated. Remember, I used to date Ataru." She said. Ranma smiled again at her, shaking his head as he felt sorry for the poor girl.

"Ok, well," He started to say. "You see, my idiot of a dad was giving me guff about marrying this one girl who wasn't Lum to 'unite our two schools of martial arts' as he called it. But after blowing up at him for the who knows what number of times, I said that I was going to create my own style and separate from him and his school so I could get him off my back. But the truth is, I'm not really sure how to go about create a whole new style of martial arts."

"I see." Shinobu said. "You were right, that does sound complicated." She closed her eyes and thought for a moment.

"Well, I don't really know much about martial arts, but if you're trying to create something new, why don't you look at what your style has and what it doesn't have and try to find another style that offers what yours doesn't. After you learn that you can combine the two and bam, you've got your new style."

Ranma perked up and smiled.

"Hey! That's a great idea! Thanks Shinobu!" He said. Shinobu smiled at her friend.

"Well, you did make me class president so it's kind of my job to help out my classmates." She said.

"And I stand by my choice." Ranma retorted.

During lunch, Ranma spent most of his time thinking over the ups and downs of the Saotome Musabetsu Kakuto Ryu. He needed to do a deep dive to see how his style could be improved. He took out a sheet of paper and a pencil and decided to jot down all the styles that made up his brand of the Anything Goes.

'Let's see. The Saotome school is made up of: Karate, Taekwondo, Jiu-jitsu, Ninjutsu, Taido, Capoeira, Chang Quan (my favorite style of Kung Fu), Baji and Pigua Quan, Jeet Kune Do and the Five Animal Fist. As well as various weapons styles from Japan, Okinawa and China. Pretty well rounded when you put it on paper.' Ranma thought as he wrote down his notes.

'Let's see. The main downside of the Saotome Anything Goes is that it is very weak in crowd control. It's specifically built for one-on-one combat so multiple opponents is our downfall. So I should definitely look for a style that covers that. Also, while I do know Jiu-Jitsu, I only know basics to intermediate joint locks. It is one of my favorite things that I'm not the best at, so I should find a style to helps me with that. Aikido could work, but I have my misgivings about that. Maybe I should find another school of Jiu-Jitsu or maybe Hapkido.'

As Ranma was writing and thinking, Shutaro and Ataru were having very different thoughts as they watched him write.

'Wow. Saotome is more studious than I thought. He's studying even while on lunch.' Shutaro thought.

'That hypocrite! I bet he's making a list of all the hot chicks he knows so that he can add them to his harem! I should be the one who gets to live out that dream, not him! Why does he get to score with as many babes as he wants!?' Ataru thought as he bit through his desk.

After school finally let out, Ranma headed off home, thinking about what style he should look into in order to create his own style. But as he was thinking this, he remembered that he promised to start training Lum today. He took a deep breath and sighed. He had never trained someone before, so he REALLY didn't know how he should start her off.

As he got home and greeted his mom, she told him that Lum was outside waiting for him. Thanking her, Ranma headed out and saw Lum in a track suit stretching out. Upon seeing her Darling, Lum smiled and flew over to hug him.

"Welcome home Darling!" She said as she kissed his cheek. Ranma blushed at his girlfriends' show of affection but shook his head to get back into serious mode.

"Ok Lum, it's time to get serious. If you really want me to train you, then you've got to follow my instructions to the letter. Understand?" He said in a serious tone. Lum let go, stood up straingt and saluted Ranma.

"Yes sir, Darling." She said in a military type tone.

"And while I'm teaching you, call me sensei. Got it?" Said Ranma. Lum nodded.

"Hai sensei." She said. Ranma smiled and nodded.

"Ok then, let's get started."

And with that, Ranma started Lum's training. He started her off on the basics: stance work, kicking stretches, and basic punches and blocks. Lum did her best to follow Ranma's instructions, but sometimes she did mess up. But she didn't really mind messing up because when she did, Ranma indeed had to guide her by touching her and fixing her posture. It took all of Ranma's willpower not to lose his composure when Lum 'accidentally' snuggled up to him as he fixed her stance.

As Ranma gave Lum instructions on the basics and started her off on the first basic kata of Shotokan Karate, he suddenly had a thought. As he watched the way Lum moved, he began to wonder if maybe Lum would do well with learning Pigua Quan Kung Fu. He would put that in the back log of his mind for later with Lum had gotten good at the basics.

"Kids! Dinner time!" Nodoka called out to the kids. Ranma sighed and he and Lum went in.

"Boy, my muscles feel a little sore." Lum said. Ranma chuckled.

"That's only because you're not used to using those muscles in this way. Trust me, after training for a while you'll get used to it."

"If you say so Darling." Lum said as she leaned onto Ranma's shoulder.

'But I do wish Darling had gotten a little fresh with me while he fixed my stance.' Lum thought.

'Boy it took everything I had to keep form getting too hands with Lum while I fixed her stances. Why does she have to be so soft.' Ranma thought.

As they all sat down to eat, Nodoka looked towards Ranma.

"Oh, Ranma dear, remember that you have a field trip coming up next week." Nodoka said, catching Ranma's attention.

"Oh dang, I forgot. Thanks mom." Ranma said. Lum had a sour look on her face.

"What's wrong Lum-chan? Do you not like the food?" Nodoka asked.

"Huh? Oh no, it's not that mother-in-law. It's just that I don't trust those girls in Darling's class." She said.

"Lum-chan, we've been over this. You're the only girl for me. Can't you just trust me?" Ranma asked.

"Oh, I trust you Darling. It's the other girls that know about that polygamy law that I don't trust."

And so, another week passed at the Saotome household. Throughout the week Ranma went around to any local dojo he could find and then trained Lum when he got home. Lum was far from a natural at martial arts, but she tried her hardest to keep up with Ranma's instruction. Ranma couldn't help but smile when he started teaching Lum about the bunkai, or applications of the kata that he was teaching her. She lit up like a Christmas tree and started training even harder, wanting to impress her Darling by getting these moves down.

As happy as Ranma was for Lum's dedication to his teachings, he was sad about his search for a suitable dojo to train at. Some places looked good, but he was just too far above most of the teachers to feel comfortable. He figured he'd try looking again after the field trip.

He was happy that he was outside and enjoying the sunshine, but Lum had insisted on coming along, not wanting to leave him alone with other girls. Ranma sighed, as much as he liked Lum, she really needed to learn to trust him.

'I mean, I'm not a horn dog like Ataru.'

Speaking of Ataru, he was glaring at Ranma as Lum kept snuggling up to him. Then they got up and walked off somewhere, leaving him to growl at whatever it was that the happy couple were doing.

"I bet they're making out and getting busy with one another right now! GGRRRRR! DAMN HIM! And Shinobu wont even look at me, she's all over that Mendo creep. Say..." Ataru said to himself as an evil idea came to his head.

"Hey, Mendo!" He called out to the slicked back rich kid. Shutaro looked over to Ataru and sighed.

"What do you want Moroboshi?" He asked in annoyance. Ataru slung an arm around Shutaro's shoulders and whispered to him.

"Look, I want Shinobu and you want Lum. Why don't we work together and we can get the girl we want away from ol' Kung Fu jerk." Ataru said.

'And when I can, I'll steal Lum from you too.' He thought. Shutaro thought for a moment. On one hand, he didn't want to try and break up a happy couple. But on the other hand, he did hate Ranma for making a fool of him during the election. Maybe if he went along with Moroboshi's idea, he could show Lum that he was the better man!

"Alright. I'm listening." He said.

As for Ranma and Lum, Ranma had decided to take advantage of Lum being with him on this field trip and decided to continue her training. Lum wasn't as enthusiastic about it, but when Ranma said he wanted to teach her something cool, she started to look interested.

"Ok Lum, today I'm going to teach you about a style I think might fit well with you called Pigua Quan." He said. Lum tilted her head in confusion.

"Picka...chan?" She asked.

"No, Pigua Quan. It's a style of Northen Chinese Martial arts. It's a style that focuses on using open instead of closed handed techniques." He said as he did a little demonstration for her. Lum watched as Ranma swung his arms in wide motions.

"It almost looks like you're using your arms like whips." She said. Ranma smiled.

"That's exactly right. That's the whole point of this style. Instead of using straight line punches like in Karate and other styles, you're using your using the heel of your palm to attack from different angles. I think until you toughen up your knuckles for punching, you should learn some of the strikes from this style. Using open palm strikes are usually more powerful than closed fists. At least when you're a beginner."

And with that, Ranma guided Lum through the beginner movements of Pigua Quan. As they practiced, Ranma found it hard to keep the smile off his face. For some reason, he found it enjoyable to teach Lum. And as he showed her what to do, he saw that same cute smile that always hit him in the heart.

But their moment was ended with they heard the sound of Shinobu's voice coming from a little way off. They turned and saw her, Ataru and Shutaro walking towards them.

"Hey guys. What's up?" Ranma asked.

"Well," Shutaro started. "We found these interesting looking caves and thought we'd invite you guys to check it out."

"Why?" Ranma asked with a raised eyebrow. Ataru knew that Ranma wouldn't trust them if he knew that it was his idea, so he tried to play to the pigtailed boy's weakness, Lum.

"Oh come on. We just thought that you and your girlfriend might like to check out a nice little spot," He paused as he got close enough to Lum to whisper to her. "Where you might be able to get some alone time with your guy."

Lum didn't trust the creepy boy, but the idea of getting lost and alone with Ranma did appeal to her. She smirked and grabbed onto Ranma's arm.

"Come on Darling, let's go!" She said. Ranma blushed.

"Um, ok." He said.

And with that, the group of teens found themselves in the cavern that Ataru and Shutaro had mentioned. As they were walking, they all were having different thoughts. Lum was thinking about staying close to Ranma in the dark in case the light went out, Shinobu was having similar thoughts, but they were about Shutaro, and Shutaro and Ataru were scheming ways to separate Ranma from the group so that the girls would be alone with either one of them.

'Of course, once I've gotten rid of Ranma I'll get rid of you too Mendo! Then both Lum AND Shinobu will be all mine!' Ataru thought to himself. He was brought out of his musings when Shutarou tapped him on the shoulder.

"Are you sure this plan of yours is going to work Moroboshi?" He aske. Ataru smirked and nodded his head.

"Alright, when we get to that split in the road, I'll lead Shinobu one way and you lead Lum the other, and we'll leave Ranma in the dust." Ataru said. Mendo nodded.

"Ok." He said.

"OH! Would you look at that! It appears the cave splits off here." Shutaro said.

"Oh! You're right! Which path do we take?" Ataru said. Ranma just sighed and raised his eyebrow at the two.

'That was so fake.' He thought to himself. Just then, the flashlight Shutaro was using turned off.

"Oh no! The flashlight died!" He cried.

'Yeah right.' Ranma thought.

A mess of voices son broke out as the five teens struggled to find who they wanted to get lost with and head down one of the two split roads. Ranma managed to feel his way down one and found that someone was holding onto his arm. From the feel of the grip he could tell it was female. And from the...feeling...of...her...breasts...

"Lum-chan? Is that you?" He asked in the near total darkness.

"What do you think, sweety?" Came the voice of the alien beauty, in a lower and more seductive tone. Ranma was soon up against a wall as Lum leaned in.

"It's so dark. And romantic." Lum said as she tried to find her way to steal a kiss from her Darling.

"Um, Lum-chan? D-Don't you think we should look for the others?" Ranma said in a nervous panic. Lum chuckled and closed all but the last inch of distance between them.

"They can wait. Darling." She said as she tried to kiss him...

"RANMA!" Came the voices of Ataru and Shutaro as they came around the corner, flashlight working again, and they were glaring at the pigtailed boy as Shinobu was happily gripping onto Shutaro's arm.

"Heh heh...hi fellas." Ranma said in a sheepish voice.

"Grrr. Couldn't you guys wait another minute?" Lum asked in annoiance.

"NO!" Both boys exclaimed.

Later, the five teens were walking down the cave again, the two angry boys fuming and wondering how the other managed to screw up the plan, Shinobu hoping that the flashlight went out and she got to glomp onto Shutaro again, Lum grinning and hoping to get more alone time with Ranma, and Ranma just wondering how he got roped into this crazy mess in the first place.

"This time, get it right Moroboshi!" Shutaro whispered.

"You just keep your hands off of my Shinobu" Ataru said.

"OH! Another fork in the cave!" Shutaro exclaimed, followed by the flashlight going out again.

"Oh, battery died!" He said. And once again the five teens, or rather four since Ranma was still playing it cool and not really buying what the other two men in the group were selling, all scrambled about trying to get alone with the person they wanted.

"Oh Mendo-kun! I'm so happy I'm with you!" Said Shinobu.

"Uhhhh...Wrong guy." Came a voice that did NOT belong to Shutaro.

"Huh?" Shinobu said as a cell phone's flashlight turned on and she saw that the person she was holding onto was Ranma. And a seemingly mad Lum was holding onto his other side.

"HUH!? Ranma!? But...where's Mendo-kun!?" She asked in shock.

"I don't know but get off my Darling MISSY!" Cried Lum as she gripped Ranma's arm harder.

Meanwhile...

"AAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHH!" Cried Ataru and Shutaro as they realized that they had grabbed hold of each other.

"YOU IDIOT! HOW DID YOU SCREW UP THIS BADLY!?" Screamed Ataru.

"ME!? You're the jackass who went down the same path as me! Not once but TWICE!" Shutaro shot back as the flashlight dropped form his hand and turned off...and he started gripping onto Ataru and screaming like a scared child?

"What the!?" Ataru said. "Get off jackass!"

"NO! I CAN'T! I'M SCARED!" Shutaro said, causing Ataru to look at him in confusion.

"What?" He asked.

"Well, you see..." The other boy started. "I suffer from both nyctophobia and claustrophobia!"

"What!? Then how the hell did you even have the courage to go down here?" Ataru asked.

"Well, you see," Shutaro started to answer. "I can manage when girls are around, but now that I'm stuck here with your barff bag of a face I can't stand it!"

"Ok, I'm so leaving you here." Ataru said as he tried t pry the scared boy off of him. As Shutaro tried to plead for Ataru not to leave him alone, Ranma, Lum and Shinobu all showed up.

"Yo! That you guys!?" Ranma called. Shutaro suddenly shoved Ataru out of the way as Ranma and the two pretty girls showed up.

"Oh, there you guys are!" He said as Ataru just looked at him, astonished at the sudden change in personality.

'What the? It's like his pride somehow gave him superpowers or something.' He thought to himself.

"We thought we heard what sounded like a grown man crying and we followed it here." Shinobu said, causing Shutaro to laugh nervously.

"Oh that? Um...that was Moroboshi!" He said.

"HEY!" Ataru cried out in defiance. Suddenly, Ranma's phone light went out.

"Oh crap! I forgot to charge this thing!" Ranma said.

"What!? Ranma/Darling!?" Shinobu and the others cried out.

"Hey, cut me some slack! I've never had a cell phone before!" Ranma tried to defend himself.

"Oh great now what!?" Shinobu cried.

"IT'S SO DARK!" Cried Shutaro.

"I can't see!" Said Ataru.

"I'll shed some light on things!" Cried Lum as she flew up above the others and fired off her electricity, lighting up the whole cave. But it wasn't so good for Ranma and the others as they had to dodge the blasts of lightning.

"LUM! CHILL!" Ranma shouted.

But unbeknownst to them, Lum's lightning had arched off to hit a spaceship that was hidden within the cave! As the young oni girls' lightning charged up the ship, its automated computer prepped it for an emergency launch! The ship started to rise, causing the cave to shake and and rumble as it started to collapse onto the five teens.

"What the HECK!?" Ranma cried out as he saw the ship.

"HEY! HEADS UP!" Lum said as she flew around the falling debris.

Ranma, using his speed, leapt into the air and started punching and kicking any falling rubble that came too close to him or the others. As he kept doing his best to keep everyone safe, Lum noticed a way out and called out to everyone.

"Quick! Everyone this way!" She cried out over the sound of the ship and the collapsing cave.

"Follow Lum!" Ranma shouted as he smashed more of the falling debris. Soon, everyone was out of the cave, and just in time, as the strange spaceship took off into the sky. But just as they were looking up at the flying ship, it started falling right back down!

"HEADS UP!" Cried Ranma and Mr. Onsen as everyone started running away from the falling ship. As the ship made a crash landing, Ranma and Lum were the first to walk up to the now downed ship.

"What the heck? Say Lum, have you ever seen a ship like this before?" Ranma asked. Lum shook her head.

"I don't think so." She said. Suddenly, a hatch opened up and out came what looked like a stasis pod being carried by...a couple of small anthropomorphic crows?

"What the? Are those..." Ranma started.

"Karasutengu?" Lum finished. Ranma, Shinobu and the other two boys, who had just caught up to them, all looked at the oni girl.

"Wait Lum, how do you know what a tengu is?" Shinobu asked.

"Well, the Karasutengu are a species I've heard about from another planet." Lum answered.

"Wait, I thought tengu were a yokai species here on Earth?" Ataru said. Ranma stroked his chin as he thought.

"Well, when I first met Lum-chan's dad, he mentioned something about some Earth yokai possibly being descendent from certain alien species." Ranma said. His musings were cut short when the stasis pod fell out of the hands of the small tengu and fell right for the five teens.

"Scatter!" He said. They all split as the pod landed in front of them. Ranma was the first to walk over to it as Lum followed.

"Wow, it's one of those stasis pod things. I've only seen these in old sci-fi movies." He said as he took a closer look and saw what was inside the pod.

"Hello." He said. What he saw was a human looking girl, very pretty, in a leather unitard that exposed some of her cleavage and black boots. She had black hair that seemed to be fashioned to look like wings on the sides of her head.

"Who the heck is she?" Ranma asked, trying to hide a slight blush. Lum shrugged.

"Beats me." She said, only for her and Ranma to be pushed aside by a hormone crazed Ataru.

"HOT DAMN SHE'S SEXY!" He cried. "HELL! She's even sexier than Lum!"

"You little bastard!" Shutaro shouted. "What is with you!? Have you no..." His words trailed off as he got a good look at the girl in the pod.

"OH MY! Who is this gorgeous girl!?" He said as he dashed forward and pushed Ataru out of the way. Ranma just shook his head at the pair in front of him.

"Is it just me, or do you think that these idiots may be cut from the same cloth?" He asked.

"Well, now that you mention it..." Lum said as she tilted her head. Suddenly, the very flying tengu that they saw moments ago flew down to the pod below.

"PRINCESS!" They all cried out. The birds knocked both Ataru and Shutaro aside and checked on the girl in the stasis pod. After seeing that she was alright then turned back and saw Ranma and Shutaro.

"HEY! One of these two could work don't you think?" One crow said. The others took a look at the two boys and thought for a moment.

"Yes, these two are right up the princess' alley. Either one would work." They all nodded and turned to face Ranma and Shutaro. One of the crows, seemingly the eldest and wearing a red hat, stepped forward and knelt before the two.

'I can't help but notice that their outfits and mannerisms remind me of old school Japan. Maybe similar cultures can happen across the stars, I mean, plenty of cultures here on Earth overlap in some ways.' Ranma thought to himself as the, what he assumed was the elder of this little group, cleared his throat.

"Good day my kind young sirs. Allow me to introduce myself. I am the elder of a tribe of alien beings that have a direct ancestry to what your planets' people call the Tengu. We have traveled far across the stars to this planet to seek aid in a dire situation regarding our young princess."

"Princess?" Shutaro asked. "You mean that beautiful lady in that stasis pod there?"

"Precisely." The elder answered. "You see, on our planet, we sadly have been suffering from a decline in humanoid male tengu, and as such, most men on our planet are not exactly, genetically compatible with our humanoid princess, Kurama. So, we have come to Earth in search of a humanoid male to complete an ancient tradition of our people."

"Ancient Tradition?" Ranma asked, tilting his head. "What's that?"

"Well, you see, the tradition is that once the princess comes of age, she must be put into a state of suspended animation and can only be awakened by a kiss. Once she has been awakened, she and the man who awakened her will be wed and engage in a night of amourous congress."

"A NIGHT OF AMOUROUS CONGRESS!?" Ranma, Ataru, Shinobu, Lum and Shutaro all cried out in shock.

"Um...Lum-chan...? What exactlly does (gulp) 'amours congress' mean?" Ranma asked.

"It means SEX!" Lum cried out in rage as she grabbed onto Ranma and pulled him close.

"Well you can FORGET IT! This man belongs to ME!" She said, her hair glowing red with rage.

"Um, yeah. What she said. Sorry guys but I'm spoken for." Ranma said. The crows sighed and then turned to Shutaro.

"Then it will have to be you." The elder said.

"Yeah, the princess loves certifiable hotties. And your looks get a passing grade." Said another crow.

"Yeah! Just go on and kiss her." Said another crow as they started pushing Shutaro towards the sleeping princess.

"WAIT! HOLD ON! I'm not really into public displays of affection! Give me a second!" He tried to protest. Suddenly, Ataru was pushing past everyone and tried to pry the hatch open.

"Screw you! You get to have ANY girl in our class you want and Ranma already has a sexy alien hottie! THIS ONE'S ALL MINE! ONE KISS AND IT'S A FREE TICKET TO POUND TOWN BABY!" He cried in joy of having sex with the hot alien tengu, only for Ranma to punch him in the back and pulled him into a head lock.

"Oh no you don't!" Ranma said as he pulled the horny boy back. "I'll be damned if I let some poor girl be stuck being married to you for the rest of her life. HEY SHUTARO! Hurry up and kiss sleeping beauty over there awake!"

"Well...ok. Thank you, thank you very much Ranma." Shutaro said as he walked over to the pod...only to be yanked back by Shinobu, who was choking the poor boy to death!"

"Don't you DARE MENDO-KUN!" She cried. Ranma and Lum both looked at her in shock and confusion.

"What the heck!?" Ranma cried.

"Who's side our you on Shinobu!?" Lum shouted at the maroon haired girl.

"Whatever side that makes sure Mendo-kun doesn't kiss anyone but ME!" She shouted as she choked and yanked the poor rich boy away.

"Thanks Shinobu-chan!" Ataru said as he broke free of Ranma's grip and went for the sleeping princess again.

"LET ME AT HER!" He said, only to get electrocuted by Lum, who then grabbed Ataru and threw him backwards into Shinobu and Shutaro.

"Geeze! No wonder we Earthlings can't have world peace, we take every opportunity to stab each other in the back." Ranma said.

"RANMA!" Came a very familiar voice.

"SAOTOME!" Came two other familiar voices.

Ranma and Lum turned and saw to their shock, three figures that they didn't think they'd have to deal with. Ryoga, Kuno and Mikado were all charging at the pigtailed boy and his alien companion with all the furry of Hell at their backs.

"WHAT THE HECK!?" Ranma shouted in shock and horror.

"OH COME ON! WHY ARE THEY HERE!?" Lum said in exasperation.

"Ranma! Prepare to die!" Ryoga said as he headed straight for his most hated rival.

"Vile villain! You thought you could run from my righteous wrath forever!? Now I shall smite thee where Yee stand!" Cried the blue robed samurai wannabe.

"RANMA SAOTOME! You ruined my LIFE! Now I shall avenge myself AND redo my 1000th kiss!" Cried Mikado. Ranma pinched the bridge of his nose.

"Aw geese. What else could go wrong today? And how the heck did these idiots even know where to look for me?" He asked. Meanwhile in Furikan High, Nabiki was counting her new stack of money as she sighed in satisfaction.

"Well Ranma, let's see how you deal with all three of those boneheaded jocks." She said with an evil snicker.

Back with Ranma, he got into a fighting stance, ready to face his three rivals as they came charging at him. He sighed, he had two problems to deal with now. 1. Make sure Shutaro kissed that girl and Ataru didn't, and 2. Deal with three people that REALLY wanted to kill him.

"Lum-chan, back me up. We've got to take these guys down fast. Shutaro! Hurry up and kiss that girl! Worst case scenario, either Ataru or one of these idiots beats you too it. NOW HURRY!" Ranma shouted at the slicked back haired boy.

"Right!" Shutaro said before he got a good look at one of the three boys charging at Ranma.

"Wait...COUSIN TATAWAKI!?" Shutaro said, Causing Ranma and Kuno to stop.

"Cousin Shutaro?" The samurai said. Ranma looked back and forth between the two.

"Wait! You two are related!?" He said, only to get tackled by Ryoga.

"Forget about that and fight me you jackass!" The bandana wearing boy said as he tried to pound Ranma's face. But Ranma bobbed his head to the side to avoid the attack and used Ryoga's momentum to kick him off and then rolled to his feet to face his rival.

"Geeze dude, can't you give it a rest?" He said, only to barely dodge the attack of Mikado.

"NO! Not until we see you dead and humiliated! Especially for what you did to me you mongrel!"

Ranma sighed, this was NOT how he wanted to spend his day. He got up and prepared himself for the fight that was to come. Suddenly, all three of his foes were blasted by bolts of lightning. He smiled as he looked up to see Lum growling at the downed enemy martial artists.

"Back off my Darling you jerks!" She shouted. "HEY! Shutaro! Get moving and kiss that girl already!"

"R-Right!" He said as he broke free of his shock and dashed for the sleeping princess, only to have his legs tackled by both Ataru and Shinobu.

"No you don't!" Ataru said.

"No kissing any girl but ME Mendo-kun!" Shinobu shouted. Suddenly, the three downed boys shot up and looked to the arguing teens.

"KISS WHAT GIRL!?" They all said. Then they saw the opening stasis pod and saw the sleeping alien beauty.

"WOW!" Said both Mikado and Kuno. "WHO IS THAT!?"

"This is princess Kurama of the Karasutengu race!" Said the elder after seeing how handsome Mikado was and thinking that he would be a good groom for the princess.

"We are here to find a man to kiss and awaken our princess in accordance to our traditions. And the one to awaken her will be her husband in engage in a night of amorous congress."

"AMOROUS CONGRESS!" They both shouted. And then Mikado, seeming to forget all about Ranma, dashed at top speed to the sleeping girl.

"THIS IS IT! My chance to redeem my 1000th kiss! And to have my first sexual encounter as well!" He said, only to meet Ataru's elbow.

"Like Hell! She's mine!" He said as he prepared to dive for a kiss, only to be struck by a flipping axe kick from Ranma. He then threw both Ataru and Mikado as far as he could.

"Stop treating that girl like she's some piece of meat you bastards! Shutaro! MOVE IT!" Ranma screamed, scaring the slicked back haired boy into moving fast.

"NO!" Screamed Shinobu, only to be tripped by Ranma.

"Get over yourself already, will ya?" He said to the maroon haired girl.

"Some friend you are!" She screamed. Their argument didn't last long as Ranma was grabbed from behind by Ryoga and throw backwards.

"Who cares about some dumb girl!? I'm only here to make you pay!" Ryoga said as he did a flying side kick to his hated enemy.

Ranma saw the kick coming and dived to the side to avoid it. He got up and readied himself for whatever his rival might try next. As the wild child came at him again, Ranma blocked Ryoga's low round house and countered with a back fist.

Ryoga blocked the backfist and tried to pull Ranma into a reverse punch, but Ranma managed to bring his arm up to block the attack and struck Ryoga with a headbutt before pulling his arm free and grabbing at Ryoga's legs and yanking them out from under him. He then spun around Ryoga's legs and tried to put him in a leg lock, only for Ryoga to spin free and strike out with another kick.

Ranma dodged and as soon as Ryoga got up, he did a low Capoeira spin kick to counter. He then did a cartwheel kick that struck Ryoga in the shoulder and as soon as he landed, he struck Ryoga with a few punches before ending his assault with an uppercut and a haymaker.

"Darling!" Lum cried out as she flew to Ranma.

"No Lum-chan!" He shouted back, causing her to stop. "I'll be fine, protect that girl from the other idiots and get Shutaro to kiss her already!"

"Ok. But be careful." She said as she flew back to the others. And just in time to, because Kuno was now closing in on the sleeping crow princess.

"AAHHH HA HA HA! Of course! As if it weren't any clearer. Destiny has meant for me, Tatawaki Kuno, age 17, the Blue Thunder of Furikan high to claim the lips of this maiden and claim her as my bride! Fear not my dear, for IIiIiIiiiiIIiIiI..." He was cut off by Lum's lightning.

"Man you talk too much!" Lum said. She then heard a scream and turned to see Shinobu hugging herself in embarrassment as a grinning Ataru sprinted for Kurama.

"Thanks for the grope Shinobu-chan! Now the girls' lips are...UGH!" Now Ataru was cut off my the backfist of Mikado.

"Scum like you doesn't deserve to grace the lips of this gorgeous woman! OR MINE for that matter!" He said as he side kicked Ataru into a charging Shutaro. He then turned to face the girl in the pod.

"And now, my REAL 1000th kiss." He said, only to be grabbed from behind and flipped by Lum!

"Oh no you don't you little creep! You're as bad as that Ataru bastard!" Lum shouted. She then kicked Mikado in the chin and struck at him with the very open palm strikes that Ranma had been teaching her earlier. She then gave a loud kiyai and did a spinning back kick that sent the stunned pretty boy flying.

Over where they were fighting, Ranma and Ryoga's attention was drawn towards the sounds of more fighting and were surprised to see how Lum handled herself against Mikado. The two boys could only whistle to show their impressment.

"Wow. I didn't know she could fight." Ryoga said wide eyed. Ranma smiled and nodded.

"Yeah, I've been teaching her." He said.

The two then glared at each other and pushed away to continue their fight. Ranma went in with a 1-2 punch combo that went into a crescent to spinning hook kick combo. Ryoga blocked the punches and crescent kick but Ranma's spinning hook kick nailed him in the head. Ryoga staggered, but he came back with a shuffling side kick and backfist that Ranma parried. But Ryoga turned the blocked backfist into a grab and struck Ranma in the ribs before wrapping his arm around Ranma's in a lock and bashed him with his elbow.

Ranma reared back from two elbow strikes to his face from Ryogas strikes and managed to get his free arm up to block the next blow. Ranma struck Ryoga's eye with an open palm strike, free his trapped arm and managed to step behind Ryoga and do a takedown. As he mounted the wild boy, Ryoga kicked Ranma off and they faced off again.

Ryoga did a forward jumping double snap kick to close the distance between them and shot out a straight punch and hook punch to his rival. Ranma avoided the kicks and blocked the punches before punching at his foe again. Ranma snapped out a front kick and a jumping back kick that sent his rival into a backwards roll.

As the pigtailed boy went in to finish the fight, Ryoga kick flipped up and shot out his own front kick. But Ranma parried the strike and punched at Ryoga's face. Ryoga stumbled but managed to shoot out a back kick that nailed Ranma. Ryoga spun around and round house kicked Ranma in the side before punching him repeatedly.

Ranma did his best to block the strikes but some of them managed to get through. Seeing an opening, Ranma managed to parry two of Ryoga's attacks and struck out with a knee strike followed by a few punches and one cross elbow to his face followed by a thrusting elbow to the chest and backfist to the face. Ranma then side kicked Ryoga and followed up with a jump spinning crescent kick.

Seeing Ryoga stumble, Ranma then did a jumping double snap kick that struck home followed by an elbow, punch, hook punch, another hook punch, and then dropped into a scissor sweep to the legs. He then cartwheeled over the downed boy and slammed his knee into Ryoga's solar plexus, causing him to cough up the air in his lungs.

"Had enough, P-chan!?" Ranma said as he got up. Ryoga growled at his rival and tried to do a sweep kick to Ranma's legs, which he avoided.

"DON'T CALL ME THAT YOU BASTARD!" Ryoga said as he flipped to his feet and charged at Ranma.

"Because of YOU Akane hates me!" Ryoga said as he threw punch after punch and kick after kick at Ranma, who skillfully dodged every attack.

"How is that MY FAULT you IDIOT!" Ranma said as he side-stepped another punch and kicked Ryoga in the ribs before doing a spinning heel kick that sent him stumbling back.

"GRRR!" He growls as he charges at the pigtailed boy again. "It's because of you that she found out about my curse! Because you weren't there to cover for me when she made me take a bath with her!"

Ranma sighed as he blocked Ryoga's strikes and punched wild boy in the face and chest before doing a jump sinning back kick to knock him back.

"Geeze man! That's your fault! And I warned you that something bad would happen one of these days around that tomboy." Ranma said.

"Shut up and die!" Ryoga said as he and Ranma clashed once again.

As the two martial artists kept fighting, Shutaro made a break for the sleeping Tengu girl.

"Alright, I'm almost there. I need to hurry before one of these other idiots steels this girls' lips." He said as he slid to a stop in front of her.

"Oh no you don't!" Came the voice of Kuno as he swiped his sword, nearly hitting Shutaro in the head. Shutaro managed to dodge and roll away in the nick of time and glared at his cousin.

"Don't try to interfere with my destiny dear cousin! This woman is destined to be mine and I don't wish to smite my own relation." Kuno said in his holier than thou attitude.

"Grrrr! You're just as bad as the last time I saw you! Why must I be the only saine member of my family!?" Shutaro said as he pulled out his own wooden sword and charged at his insane cousin.

"You'd dare attack your own family!?" Kuno said as he clashed blades with Shutaro. "Have you also fallen under that vile Saotome's influence!?"

"Shut up!" Shutaro said as he parried and struck at Kuno. "Ranma is practically my enemy as well! I'm just siding with him in a temporary alliance against you and Moroboshi!"

As the two swordsmen continued to clash in a fierce duel, Ataru tried to make a break for it.

"HA HA! THE HOT CHICK'S MINE!" Ataru said, only to get bashed aside by Ranma and Ryoga crashed into him and flattened him right in front of the stasis pod.

"Just give it a rest will ya!?" Ranma said as he punched Ryoga in the face and the two rolled back to there feet.

"I will when your dead!" Ryoga said as he and Ranma punched each other again and again.

Seeing his chance, Ryoga grabbed Ranma by the wrist and pulled him close so he could grab the back of his head. Ryoga then began to bash Ranma's face into the stasis pod. As he did however, the pod opened up and...

SMOOCH

Ryoga accidentally bashed Ranma lip first into the lips of the sleeping Tengu princess. Everyone stopped what they were doing and gaped at the sight. Ranma's eyes went wide as he saw that HE was kissing the sleeping princess. Ryoga went slack and paled at what he just did.

"Uh..." Was all he could say.

"WHAT THE HECK!" Ranma said as he broke free and punched Ryoga as hard as he could. Lum growled and glowed with electric energy.

"DARLING! YOU CHEATING CREEP!" She cried as she fired her lightning at Ranma and Ryoga. The boys managed to dodge just in the nick of time as Ranma tried to calm down his enraged girlfriend.

"LUM! CHILL! It's not my fault! Ryoga knocked me into her honest!" Ranma tried to say. Just as he was talking, Kurama started to twitch and open her eyes. Ranma heard a groan, turned and came face to face with the second prettiest girl he had ever seen.

"Um...(Gulp)...Hi." He said. Kurama blinked and then...

"AW HELL YEAH!" She exclaimed as she shot straight up.

"He's a total stud! Good work boys, you found the perfect man for me! Even if his fashion sense needs work." She said, pointing at a scared and confused Ranma. Ranma then looked down at his clothes.

"What's wrong with my outfit?" He asked, only to have the beautiful Kurama wrapped her arms around Ranma and pulled him close!

"Now come my beloved husband, it's time to go and engage in amorous congress!" She said in a voice full of lust. Ranma paled and dashed backwards to put distance between himself and the lusty beauty.

"NO NO NO NO NO NO!" He cried in fright. "I-I ain't ready to be a dad yet! I'm only 16!"

"DARLING!" Cried out a very pissed off Lum. "HOW DARE YOU KISS SOME OTHER GIRL IN FRONT OF MMMMMMEEEEEEEEEE!"

With that, Lum fired off random blasts of lightning in every direction, causing everyone to try and avoid the random blasts of pure electricity that rained from the sky. The poor group of teens and Tengu sadly had no chance, and they all soon found themselves let up like Christmas trees. As the rain of lightning ended, Ranma found himself lying on the ground with the rest of his friends and rivals. Kurama, seeing this, ran to Ranma and placed his head on her lap.

"OH! My poor husband! Are you ok?" She said, only to get kicked by Lum.

"GET YOUR HANDS OFF HIM YOU HUSSY!"

Kurama got up and growled at the Oni and got right in her face.

"Look here you bitch! This man kissed me awake in accordance to MY people's traditions! Therefore, he is MY HUSBAND!" Kurama shouted at the multicolor haired girl.

"NO! It was his stupid rival that smashed him into you so that kiss DOESN'T COUNT! And he's MY DARLING HUSBAND! NOT YOURS!"

Ranma just laid on the ground, watching the two girls argue and fight over him, feeling for some odd reason a feeling of déjà vu.

"How in the heck did this happen to me?" Ranma asked as he just closed his eyes and tried to let unconsciousness take him.