Chapter 6: When He Left Nerima
Ranma looked at the ground, deep in thought, as he walked down the street back in the direction of the Tendo Dojo. Now that his best possible hope for an easy fix was officially a no-go, he now needed to figure out what his next move would be. Luckily, he had all the time in the world to stroll around and give this matter as much attention as he could. He didn't want to risk putting himself in harm's way again, so he would need to be extra careful.
"Okay, time to see what options I still have left." he thought. "The Old Ghoul was pretty much my best chance at finding an easy cure, but she ultimately proved to be of no help. I mean sure, she did promise to keep Shampoo and Mousse off my back until this blows over, but that's not going to be of any help in finding a cure any faster. What else is there?"
Ranma walked around for several more minutes trying to think of an answer, but ultimately came up with nothing. In frustration, he rested the front of his head against a nearby lamppost.
"Urgh, this sucks." he groaned. "All of my usual go-tos are completely exhausted. Normally, whenever I wind up in such a scenario, some bizarre event and/or person appears in my life to cause mischief and offer up a solution at the same time. How ironic; the one time that I actually want something like that to happen there's none to be found. What am I supposed to do now?"
Ranma wiped his eyes in an effort to fight back the tears that he knew were coming on strong. As he finished, he suddenly noticed that his surroundings appeared to be very familiar.
"Huh, that's strange." he thought. "Where am I?"
Because Ranma had been so deep in thought, he hadn't paid any attention whatsoever as to where he had been walking. Looking around, he realized that he had, completely by accident, stopped right outside the abandoned office of Dr. Tofu. Ranma began to smile.
"Hey, this is where Dr. Tofu had his clinic." he said. "Been quite a while since I came here."
Truer words had never been spoken. When Ranma and Genma first came to stay with the Tendos, Dr. Tofu's clinic had been a regular stop for both of them. Genma came here due to the part-time job he acquired as Dr. Tofu's medical assistant, and Ranma ended up here on a regular basis for a larger variety of reasons. There were many times when he ended up severely injured, either due to his battles or when he was on the receiving end of one of Akane's outbursts, and would require the doctor's assistance to get well again. There were also several times when Ranma became afflicted by some sort of mystical technique that modern medicine had no answer for. Luckily for him, Dr. Tofu was well versed in all areas of medicine, including ancient and forgotten fields of it. He had in his possession a vast collector of ancient tomes and textbooks, and spent much of his free time studying them in the hopes of discovering long-forgotten methodologies and techniques for various afflictions.
It was for this reason that Dr. Tofu had proved to be the only one capable of helping Ranma out during these very specific scenarios. He had managed to figure out a one-time cure for the Full-Body-Cat's-Tongue which had left Ranma unable to turn back into a guy, and was instrumental in helping reverse the Moxibustion-Point technique which had left Ranma without any of his usual strength. Despite the insurmountable odds stacked against him, Dr. Tofu had never given up and managed to beat the odds more than once. Remembering these times caused Ranma to frown, especially as he noticed that lack of light coming from inside the building.
"Sucks that he's not around anymore." he thought. "Knowing him, he would've found a cure for this bizarre scenario for sure."
Ranma was right to feel this way. For reasons that were not clear to anyone, Dr. Tofu had abruptly closed his clinic and disappeared in the middle of the night. Nobody knew where he was, or why he had left, and nobody had heard from him since. Now, the building where he had treated so many people sat vacant. No new tenants had bothered to move in, and given how hectic Nerima could be at times, this wasn't surprising in the least.
Out of sheer curiosity, Ranma walked up to the building and began to take a closer look at the front door as well as each of the windows.
"I know that it's a long shot, but maybe he left some kind of clue as to where he was going." he thought.
Ranma checked and double checked everywhere around the perimeter, but couldn't find anything of value that might point him in the right direction. He even tried to get in through each of the windows and doors but found them all to be sealed shut. In any case, it turned out that there wasn't much of a point in doing so anyway. The inside of the building was completely devoid of furniture and equipment. Nothing had been left behind whatsoever. It was clear to Ranma that wherever Dr. Tofu had ended up, he obviously worked hard to make sure that nobody would be able to discover where he went. As disappointed as Ranma was by this turn of events, he was still impressed by Dr. Tofu's effort.
"Leave it to him to find a way to successfully leave all of the madness of Nerima behind." he said. "I may have lost someone who might have provided me with a way to change back, but there's true respect for what he was able to do."
Ranma took a deep breath and let out a long sigh as he exhaled.
"Looks like I'm back to square one then." he said.
"Looking for Dr. Tofu, Deary?" an elderly woman's voice called out.
Ranma jumped a bit out of surprise and turned around. Standing behind him were two older women, one with grey hair, and the other with very pale brown hair. Even though they had bright smiles on their faces, Ranma felt a bit uneasy at their presence.
"Where did those two come from? And how were they able to sneak up on me like that?" Ranma asked. "I must be getting soft."
"Um…yeah. Kind of." he answered. "I know that he's been gone for quite awhile, but I thought that maybe there would be some kind of clue here as to where I could find him. You see, I have this problem of sorts and he's the only person I know of who might've been able to help me fix it."
"I feel that." the grey-haired woman said. "In all my years of living here, there really was no better doctor than him. Before he left town, I used to come here once a week to get my back adjusted. These old bones really have it in for me, but he was always able to make me feel better. Provided that that lovely girl Kasumi wasn't around that is."
"That's for sure." Ranma chuckled nervously. "More than once I had the misfortune of him treating me right when she decided to pay a visit."
"Yeah, she was such a sweet girl who always managed to drive the doctor crazy." the brown-haired woman said.
Both women, as well as Ranma, laughed for a few seconds over just how true that statement was.
"It was definitely difficult finding a new doctor who could perform as well as he did." the brown-haired woman continued. "I was never quite able to do so, but at least I have an excuse to see him every so often."
Ranma blinked in confusion over what he had just heard.
"Hold on, are you telling me that you've actually seen Dr. Tofu since he moved away?" he asked.
"Well, I've only been able to go to him once or twice, but yes. I have seen him since then."
Ranma's mouth fell open in shock. Not all hope was lost. Dr. Tofu was alive and well, and there was someone who apparently knew where he was.
"Well…I just…how?" Ranma stuttered out.
"My sister, Deary." the brown-haired woman answered. "You see, she lives in a different part of the city and I still travel to visit her every so often. I found out about Dr. Tofu's new clinic during one of my visits a few months ago. Since then, I've made it a point to schedule an appointment every time I go there."
"That's great." Ranma said. "Where is this new clinic of his? Do you have an address, maybe?"
The brown-haired woman began to pat Ranma on the top of his head.
"I'm very sorry." she answered. "I didn't see the address, and I didn't grab a business card either. So I can't give you a specific location."
Ranma's head slumped forward in defeat.
"Oh, I see." he said.
"Though if it helps, I might be able to point you in the general direction you need to go to get to it." the brown-haired woman continued. "While I can't give you a specific location, I can tell you that Dr. Tofu's new clinic lies somewhere in Himawaridai Town."
Ranma looked back up with a confused expression on his face.
"Himawaridai Town?" he asked. "Isn't that on the other side of Tokyo or something?"
"Yes." the gray-haired woman answered. "At least three and a half hours by train, provided that there aren't any delays to speak of."
Ranma began to look at the ground. His face contorted into a large grin as his excitement began to swell. He stayed like this for a few seconds before looking back up at the women.
"Can you get there by taking a train from the Furinkan Station?" he asked.
"Yes, you can." the brown-haired woman answered. "Lots of different lines stop along those routes, but I'd say that the best way to make it there is via the brown line. The final stops in each direction via that particular train are the Furinkan and Himawaridai Town stations, so you wouldn't even have to worry about accidentally getting off too early or too late."
Ranma could hardly contain his excitement upon hearing this. Not only was Dr. Tofu alive and well, but now Ranma actually knew where to find him. Sure, he still didn't know the specific address as of yet, but such a thing was hardly of consequence for him. The modern world was a very connected place, so it likely wouldn't be very hard for him to search around and figure it out in no time at all. He felt like jumping for joy. Thanks to these kind old ladies, he had been given one more chance to find a cure, and a very good chance at that.
Ranma quickly grabbed one hand from each of the ladies and shook them in rapid succession, throwing the ladies off balance out of surprise.
"Thank you thank you thank you so much." he blurted out. "I thought that I would never have a chance to see Dr. Tofu again, but you just gave me a way to do so. There's no way that I could possibly ever repay this other than saying how grateful I am to the two of you for letting me know about this."
The two women smiled brightly at this.
"We would never need anything more than that." the grey-haired woman said.
"One of the best joys that can come out of life is knowing that you made a child smile because of something that you did." the brown-haired woman added.
Ranma let go of their hands and continued to smile. After a few seconds had passed, he gave a quick bow to the women before running right by them. He briefly turned around to look at them as he began to make his way down the street.
"Seriously, thanks a bunch." he said. "Because of you, I may actually have a chance to become my old self again."
Ranma turned away from the women and began to focus on the path ahead.
"Dr. Tofu, here I come." he said triumphantly. "At this rate, I'll be cured in no time."
Ranma soon leapt into the air and began to jump rapidly across several structures. He knew which way he need to go to get to the train station, and this route would allow him to get there as quickly as he could. As he disappeared from sight, the two women looked at each other.
"Such a strange child." the brown-haired woman said nonchalantly.
"Well, not really when you think about it." the grey-haired woman said. "So many bizarre things seem to come out of this town these days that I'm not surprised by anything anymore. I can't blame the good doctor for apparently wanting to get away from it all."
"That's for sure." the brown-haired woman said. "Although, when you get to be our age, a little excitement on a daily basis is good to keep the old bones going, especially since Dr. Tofu isn't around to help flex them out anymore."
The two women laughed at this for a few seconds before continuing on their way.
Ranma continued to leap between the tops of buildings for several minutes before he arrived outside Furinkan Station. As soon as he landed on the ground, he smirked and began to walk straight ahead.
"It's go time." he thought.
Despite all the hype, there wasn't that much to be excited about at Furinkan Train Station. It could hardly be called a station given how archaic and outdated it appeared. There were only two rails that ran through the station, with elevated platforms framing them on both sides of the station. Besides that, there wasn't much else to speak of. There were a few wooden structures designed to provide shelter from the elements, but they were so old and decayed that water would leak through the tops of them frequently whenever it rained. There had been some attempts to modernize the station which involved adding ticket machines and an information counter, but it otherwise looked very much the same as it had been when it was constructed a few years after the end of the second world war.
Glancing around, Ranma noticed a large map of Tokyo on a panel and walked up towards it. Before he did anything, he wanted to make sure that the info he had received from the two old ladies was accurate. Normally he would just rush in blind as he did for practically everything else, but he was determined not to do so this time. Given how this was likely his last chance at a quick and easy cure, he needed to tread carefully to avoid making any mistakes. Looking it over, he noticed a large red marking which indicated the location of the station.
"Let's see, they said that taking the brown line would lead me to Himawaridai Town." he thought. "Time to see if they were telling the truth."
Looking at the map more closely, Ranma noticed a brown line that ran east from the Furinkan Station and smiled.
"Okay, there it is. Now where does it lead?"
Ranma reached up and placed his finger on the brown line. He slowly moved it along the trajectory of the line all the way to the other side of the map. When he reached the end, he noticed that he had landed on the Himawaridai Town Station.
"Perfect, now to see when I can catch a train to Himawaridai Town." he said.
Ranma looked up and down the map and started to become confused. Despite the extremely detailed outline of all train routes leading through Tokyo, there wasn't a single area that referenced any kind of timetable as to when these trains were running, or when they would be expected at each stop.
"Well that sucks." he said. "How does anybody ride these things if they don't know when they're coming?"
Looking around for more clues, Ranma's eyes fell on the information counter on the far side of the station. It was a relatively small enclosed space with only a clouded glass window separating the inside from the outside. Inside, there was a middle-aged man reading a newspaper which was placed on the counter next to him.
Seeing as how there was no line, Ranma quickly rushed up to the counter and pulled himself up on the counter just enough so that he could look directly through the window.
"Um…excuse me." he said.
The man behind the counter looked up from his newspaper and leaned forward so he could speak with Ranma.
"Yes, how may I help you little boy?" he asked.
"Can you tell me the schedule for the brown line?" Ranma asked. "I'm planning to head to Himawaridai Town and need to know when I should expect to catch the train here."
"Hmmmm…" the man answered. "Maybe you ought to take one of these."
The man reached over to the side and grabbed a thick brochure out of a slot on the wall. He slipped it under the window so Ranma could grab it. Unfolding the brochure completely, Ranma saw a map identical to the one that he had just looked at a few seconds ago. He looked back at the man behind the counter and frowned.
"And how is this supposed to help me?" he asked.
"Turn it over." the man answered.
Ranma did as he was told and gasped at what he saw. On the other side of the brochure was a series of detailed times related to the stops on each line. Every single line on the map had a dedicated page in the brochure, with each one divided into two sections that listed the stations on each stop of the respective line depending on the direction that the train was going. Next to each stop was a series of times that represented the estimated arrival time of the train at those stops throughout the day. For example, the Furinkan stop of the brown line was listed as departing at 5:13, 5:45, 6:22, as well as several other times leading up until 22:47. There were also details about which platform to catch these trains at each station.
"Thanks, this is awesome." he said. "With something like this, I can take the train to anywhere in Tokyo."
"And what might a young thing like yourself be doing riding the train at this time of night?" the man asked.
Ranma immediately froze in panic. He had completely neglected to consider his newfound age. Of course it would be strange for a six-year old child to ride a train by themselves this late into the evening. He had to think of a valid excuse, and fast.
"Um…well I…you see…" he stuttered out. "Pops and I were planning to head back home earlier, but our appointment here ran late and we missed the train that we intended to board. He's picking up some dinner not far from here and sent me ahead to figure out when the next train would come through. He really isn't that good at making backup plans, so he neglected to grab any kind of map or brochure like this before we came here."
The man didn't respond for several seconds. Ranma began to tremble slightly at the uneasy silence hanging in the air.
"Please." he thought. "Please let him believe it. If he doesn't, there's no telling what may happen."
After a few more seconds, the man smiled softly.
"Okay, I guess that that makes sense." he said.
Ranma breathed a sigh of relief, though he was careful to turn around to ensure that the man didn't see him do it.
"Okay, thanks for that." he said. "I'll just go and um…let Pop know then. Have a nice evening."
Ranma jumped down and started to walk away when the man quickly pulled open the window.
"Wait, hold on there a minute, kid." he said.
Ranma immediately froze in place before turning around slowly.
"Um, what is it?" he asked with a hint of panic in his voice.
The man noticed Ranma's expression and immediately shrugged.
"Sorry about that. I didn't mean to scare you or nothing." he said. "I just wanted to tell you that you and your father might be able to take an alternate line to get back home sooner."
"Huh?" Ranma asked.
"You asked about the brown line before." the man explained. "While it is true that taking that path will get you where you need to go, it's not the only means to do so. In this case, it may actually be in your best interest to take the blue line instead."
"Blue line?" Ranma asked.
Ranma quickly opened up the brochure and looked at the large map once again. He saw that the blue line rail also ran through the Furinkan station, though its endpoint was much further west. Tracing the line, Ranma noticed that even though it went down an alternate path, it still ended at the Himawaridai Town station just like the brown line. Ranma started to put two and two together.
"I get it now." he said. "If you leave from Furinkan, it doesn't matter what line you decide to go on because both of them will still end up at Himawaridai Town as their final destination."
"Exactly." the man said. "It's just like how when people ride public buses and shuttles in the city. Even if you miss the one that you intended to go on, there's likely at least one more which will still take you where you need to go. If you know the routes of each line, you can catch that other one without having to wait for the first one to cycle back around."
The man quickly popped his head back into his booth to check something before looking back towards Ranma.
"The fact is that you and your father will have to wait at least forty minutes for the next brown line train to pass back through here." the man explained. "Fifty, if there are any delays. Given how late it is already, I doubt that you or him would want to wait around for so long, especially since it's a school night. However, as it just so happens, there is a blue line train arriving in about seven minutes. Take that, and the two of you won't have to wait whatsoever."
Ranma stared at the man for a few seconds before giving him a small wave.
"Okay, I'll go and tell him then." he said weakly.
The man waved off Ranma as he turned around and began to walk back towards the tracks.
Ranma felt a bit conflicted about this revelation. On one hand, he was now being given an opportunity to reach his destination right away. On the other hand, heading there right away was not what he had in mind when he had first come up with this plan. He came here simply to scope out which lines went to Himawaridai Town and figure out the general schedule so he could head there first thing in the morning. Even if he had planned for something like this, the idea of going to a strange new place at this time of night sounded pretty outlandish, even for someone like him.
"Should I really do it?" he thought. "I mean yes, the sooner I look for an opportunity to get cured, the better. Even so…"
A thought soon entered Ranma's head and he let out a sly smile.
"What am I thinking? Of course I can't go tonight. I haven't had any time to prepare. For a long journey like this, I'd need to stock up on food beforehand. Plus, there's also the issue of money. What little money I have is still back at the dojo. Without it there's no way I can…huh?"
As Ranma had been thinking this, he had instinctively placed his hand into one of the pockets and began to rummage around. When he did, he became surprised to find that there was something inside, multiple objects in fact. Pulling them out, Ranma realized that there was a large handful of coins in his pocket. He blinked a few times in confusion.
"What the…?" he asked. "Where did these come from?"
Ranma stared at the money for a few seconds before noticing that it looked familiar. Counting up the total value of the coins, Ranma realized exactly what this was.
"Oh, so it's my stash. Cool." he said.
Just like his father, Ranma always kept a small stash of money hidden away in a safe place in his room. It consisted mostly of spare change that he had been able to find on the street, as well as leftovers from whatever money other people gave him to pay for various goods and services. Because Ranma and Genma had spent so many years living on the street, they had become adept at locating and holding onto whatever money they could find. Unfortunately, this had also made the two of them very selfish in this regard. If they saw a coin at the same time, it would usually result in an all out brawl between the two over who would get to keep it, even if it was a measly ¥10 piece. Because Genma was always trying to steal from him, Ranma kept his money hidden away and carried it whenever he left the house. If he ever forgot to bring it, he would usually find the contents gone by the time that he made it back home. As a result, the amount inside was always quite low. Even so, seeing it now of all times was leaving Ranma very confused.
"It's nice to know that I still have some money, but how did it even get here?" he asked. "The Last time that I had it on me, it was back before Ryoga forced that mushroom down my throat."
Ranma suddenly slammed his hands together when he realized what had happened.
"Of course, it's so obvious." he said. "Kasumi. Who else could it be? After I first became like this and was put into some of Akane's old clothes, Kasumi said that she was going to get started on the laundry. She must've found it and put it back on me while I was recovering from my fight with Ryoga. That was awfully nice of her."
Ranma smiled a bit at this. Of all the people that he lived with at the Tendo Dojo, Kasumi was the one whom he liked the most. Her warm and motherly attitude was a refreshing contrast to all of the chaos that ensued on a daily basis. On top of that, she was hardworking and honest, never complaining or stealing anything. Anyone else would've likely taken the money for themselves, but she had not only saved it, but also returned it to Ranma without even telling him. Given how he had to recover and be changed into new clothes at least twice, it appeared as if she had moved it into those new clothes each and every single time.
"She really is the best." he thought. "I'll have to thank her once I make it back."
Not wanting to waste any more time, Ranma opened up the brochure again and looked to see which platform to catch the blue line train at. He saw that it was meant to depart from Platform #4, which was all the way on the other side of the station. Looking carefully to ensure that there were no trains coming in either direction, Ranma quickly ran through the rails and leapt up onto Platform #4.
"Okay, now to get a ticket." he said.
Ranma had noticed a ticket machine on this platform before he had run across the tracks. He figured that it would be less suspicious if he purchased it this way, given what he had told the man in the booth. He had said that his father was coming back for him, so if he just asked for a ticket himself the man might start asking more questions, and that was the last thing Ranma needed right now.
Unfortunately, Ranma hadn't actually been able to make out just how high up the buttons on the machine were. They were designed to allow an average-sized adult to purchase the tickets without a problem. Because of this, from Ranma's new perspective, the buttons were way too high up for him to reach comfortably. Ranma didn't see this as a defeat though, merely another obstacle that he would have to overcome. Seeing a small platform near the buttons where he could balance, Ranma quickly leapt up and grabbed onto it tightly. Pulling himself up a bit further, Ranma reached for the buttons and began to input his intended line and destination. When this was done, the ticket type popped up onto the screen. Ranma at first reached for the adult ticket button before stopping. He smiled and quickly hit the children's ticket button instead.
"Well that's a nice perk." he thought. "And with it only costing ¥700, I'll have much more left over afterwards."
Ranma inserted the necessary coins one at a time into the machine to complete the purchase. As he did this, he heard a train whistle sounding off into the distance several times. The ticket soon printed out of the machine and he grabbed it into his hand. As he turned around to face the tracks, the train began to pull into the station. As it ground to a halt, he couldn't help but feel a strange sense of deja vu.
"Funny." he thought. "Seems like just yesterday that I was in this exact same situation with Pop. Although, what actually came about because of it was much less funny."
The train doors soon opened. No one bothered to get off of the train though, and this didn't surprise Ranma in the slightest. Who in their right mind would actually want to come to Nerima at this time of night? Nobody that Ranma knew, that's for certain. After a few seconds, the conductor stepped off the train and signaled that anyone waiting was allowed to get on. Ranma quickly slipped onto the train and took up an empty seat by the window. He noticed that the train was mostly deserted, and this brought him some comfort. The fewer people around to ask him unnecessary questions, the better.
After a few minutes had passed, Ranma could feel the train starting to pull out of the station. He glanced out of the window to get a look at the shifting scenery as it passed by. Although he couldn't see very much due to how dark it was, it still felt pretty relaxing nonetheless.
"Even though I'm only going to be gone for about a day or so, this still feels so strange." he thought. "The journey that led me here started very much in the same way as this. Maybe I ought to take this as a good sign that some changes for the better are right around the corner."
Ranma chuckled a bit as his joke, but even he couldn't wholeheartedly believe his words given his track record. As the conductor came through to check Ranma's ticket, Ranma couldn't help but think about the last time that he had been in such a position. The event in question had occurred several months ago; the day that Ranma and Genma had arrived back in Tokyo before heading for their new life in Nerima with the Tendos.
Given his new age and everything that he had gone through recently, in addition to the dark and soothing atmosphere of the train car, Ranma began to feel very drowsy. He started to lean back and struggled to keep his eyes open.
"Well…I guess that it's gonna be a few hours before this thing arrives at Himawaridai Town." he thought. "A little rest probably isn't such a bad idea."
Within a few seconds, Ranma had completely conked out. As he drifted off to sleep, his mind unconsciously began to relieve what had happened to him all those months ago when he first arrived in Nerima…
On a cold, cloudy day, a sixteen-year old boy with a pigtail and his overweight, bald father stood outside a train station close to Haneda Airport.
"Are you serious, Pop?" Ranma asked.
"Completely, Boy." Genma answered.
"For real?" Ranma asked. "You want us to get to Nerima by taking a train instead of walking?"
"That's right." Genma answered. "I think that after everything that two of us have been through lately, we deserve to take it easy for just a bit before we begin the next phase of our journey."
"Okay, so what kind of training are we going to do while we're riding on the top of the train?" Ranma asked. "Endurance? Evasive? Balancing? Some combination of the three? What?"
"Are you really that dense, Ranma?" Genma asked. "We won't be riding on the top, we'll be riding in one of the train cars like everyone else."
Ranma immediately became confused upon hearing this.
"I'm sorry, what?" he asked.
"As I said, we're going to purchase a pair of tickets and take the train to Nerima." Genma answered. "Don't think of this as training in any way, just think of it as a way to get in some much needed relaxation before we kick things back into high gear."
Ranma immediately felt like something was off.
"Hold on, none of this makes any sense." he said. "Since when have you ever cared about rest and relaxation? Ever since I can remember, all that has ever mattered is The Art, and any ways that one can in additional training as long as they remain conscious. What are you up to?"
Genma's cheeks began to turn bright red.
"Um…nothing. Nothing at all." he shrugged. "Is it really so hard to believe that I want to rest up for a bit before we reach our salvation? These old bones of mine aren't as resilient as they used to be, you know."
Ranma crossed his arms and turned away.
"All of this sounds way too strange if you ask me." he said. "Given the fact that you had us swim manually to China because you couldn't afford to purchase a single plane ticket, and then store away in the cargo hold of a plane bound for Tokyo because you once again couldn't afford to buy tickets, I find it suspicious that you would suddenly have the money necessary for the two of us to ride the train."
Genma sighed and rubbed his eyes for a second.
"For your information, Boy, a train ticket is infinitely less expensive than a plane ticket." he explained. "As for the issue of money, I think that between us we have just enough to make the journey without any hassle. That is, with a small adjustment."
Ranma raised an eyebrow at this.
"Oh yeah, and just what kind of adjustment might that be?" he asked.
"It's like this." Genma answered. "We have a small amount of money on hand, and it's not enough to pay for two adult tickets. So…because of that…we'll have to buy a kid's ticket for you."
Ranma looked at his father as if he had suddenly grown a second head.
"Now I know that you've lost it, Pop." he said. "Do I look like I could pass for a kid in any way?"
"No, not as you are." Genma answered. "Fortunately, fate has given us a means of making this ridiculous idea actually succeed."
Genma began to smile devilishly, which caused Ranma to feel nervous.
"Wait, hold on…no, not that. Anything but that." Ranma stuttered out.
"That's right, Ranma." Genma said. "Time to make that curse of yours work for both of our sakes."
As he finished that last sentence, Genma grabbed a nearby bucket of water and threw the contents at Ranma with enough force that he was knocked to the ground. By the time that Ranma got back to his feet, he had transformed into an extremely attractive redheaded girl. Ranma quickly wiped her eyes and stared up at Genma with a very annoyed expression on her face.
"Hey, what'd you do that for?" she asked.
Genma adjusted his glasses slightly before answering.
"Ranma, I don't know if you've noticed this quite yet, but the application of your curse has had the unintended side effect of making you much shorter than you are as a guy. Just look at yourself right now. We were for the most part at eye level just a few seconds ago, now you need to look up at me just to have a normal conversation."
"Yeah, and what does that have to do with anything?" Ranma asked.
"My point is that this has the side effect of making you look younger." Genma answered. "The maximum age that someone can be and still get a children's ticket is twelve years old. Because you look so much younger, I'm certain that you could pass for that no problem."
"Huh?" Ranma asked, her mouth falling open in disbelief. "You've got to be kidding me."
"I'm completely serious." Genma said.
"You really think that I could pass as a twelve-year-old like this?" Ranma asked.
"Yes." Genma answered.
Ranma pulled open the front of her shirt, exposing her very prominent bosom.
"Even with these things getting in the way?" Ranma asked. "You must be out of your mind to think that anyone would actually buy that."
"Don't be so sure, Ranma." Genma said. "You may not know this, but puberty for young women is extremely unpredictable in every sense of the word. Girls can develop as young as ten, and first they grow extremely tall. As for…those, it's rare, but not unheard of for girls as young as twelve to have developed to such a degree. Besides, I never said that we were going to present you as you are. We're going to make it easier to believe with a single adjustment."
Genma began to sift around through his bag.
"I have a bad feeling about this." Ranma thought.
Genma suddenly pulled an extremely frilly garment out of his bag and pushed it into Ranma's hands.
"Here, change into this." he said. "If you wear this for the journey, you'll have no trouble fooling anyone."
Ranma looked more closely at what he was holding and began to feel sick. Genma had handed him a bright pink frilly dress with multiple petticoats and a red flower pattern across the entire thing. Included with it was black mary-jane shoes, white knee-socks, and a large matching pink bow. The entire thing reeked of girliness, and Ranma wasted no time in forcing it away from himself as if it was on fire.
"Hey, what's the matter with you, you stupid old man?" she yelled. "I can't wear something like this. Have you completely forgotten that I'm a guy?"
"Desperate times call for desperate measures." Genma said. "Besides, whether we like it or not we're stuck with our curses for the time being. A practitioner of the Anything-Goes style needs to know how to make the most out of everything that they have at their disposal, so I suggest that you start learning how to benefit from using your cursed form."
"Forget it, I ain't wearing no stupid dress." Ranma said. "Where'd you even get this anyway?"
"I…found it in someone's suitcase in the plane's cargo hold when I was trying to look for food." Genma answered. "I came up with the plan the instant that I saw it."
"Oh, so on top of that you're also admitting to stealing some poor girl's clothes in the one place that no one would ever think they could be stolen from?" Ranma asked. "You're wasting your time if you think that there's any chance of me putting these on."
Genma started to get annoyed and quickly moved in closer.
"Listen to me, Boy." he said. "Right now, we desperately need to make it to Nerima, and this is the only way that we'll be able to do so. It'll take us at least two weeks to find enough loose change to save up for two adult tickets, but we can't wait that long. I'm sorry, but you're just going to have to swallow your pride and take one for the team. Our salvation is waiting for us at the end of the line, and we need to meet it before it's too late."
Ranma's anger suddenly faded, replaced by a feeling of confusion.
"What do you mean by…salvation?" he asked.
"Oh it's amazing, Ranma." Genma answered with a smile. "There is something waiting for us in Nerima which will permanently fix our lives for the better. I never thought that the day would come when we'd be able to experience it, but it's finally here. It won't be there forever though, so we need to go right away if we're going to have any chance of getting to it."
"Hold on." Ranma said. "Are you really saying…? I mean…that there's something which can…?"
Genma nodded in agreement and Ranma began to smile triumphantly. She looked back at the outfit in her hands with a fierce look in her eyes.
"Okay then." she said. "I'll wear the stupid dress if it means finally being able to have this problem fixed once and for all. You'd better not be lying to me though."
"I swear to you on my honor as a martial artist and as your father, Ranma." Genma said. "Once we step off of that train, both of our lives will forever change for the better. Now get into that thing right away, our train will be here in only a few minutes."
"You got it, Pop." Ranma said.
Ranma ran off to the bathroom to change while Genma paid for their tickets. A few minutes later, Ranma emerged from the bathroom dressed in the extremely frilly outfit. Despite the promise of a better life, she couldn't help but feel extremely embarrassed by the whole ordeal. What she was wearing was something that only a very little kid would wear, but it did have the effect that Genma described. Ranma walked over to her father with her cheeks bright red, and this did not go unnoticed by Genma.
"See, what did I tell you?" he asked.
Although Genma's words were meant to be reassuring, Ranma simply began to pout and glanced away. This caused Genma to laugh out loud.
"Wow, Ranma. You're selling this even better than I expected." he said. "That bashful look, those frilly clothes, and that troublesome pout. You really do look like a little kid all dressed up."
Ranma felt like yelling at her father, but ultimately bit her lip to prevent anything from coming out.
"Keep it together. It will all be worth it soon enough." she thought.
Before long, Ranma and Genma had boarded the train and were on their way. Although Ranma worried over Genma's plan blowing up, the conductor ultimately accepted their tickets without any hassle and moved on. Genma seemed especially relieved, as if he himself did not believe that his stupid plan would be successful, and told Ranma to wake him up once they made it to Nerima. Within a few minutes, he was peacefully snoring next to his son-turned-daughter.
Ranma on the other hand could not relax whatsoever. The thought that she of all people would be wearing something like this left with an excessive feeling of nausea greater than she had ever felt before. Her face cheeks remained red and she stared down at the floor, hoping that this trip would be over and done with very soon.
At one point, two young girls noticed Ranma's clothes and came over to give their compliments on them before their parents led them away. The entire incident caused Ranma's face to turn bright red, and she ended up burying her face in her hands for the remainder of the trip.
Soon enough, the train reached Nerima. Ranma woke Genma up, and the two disembarked. As soon as they did, Ranma ripped off the dress and threw it into a nearby trash can before quickly changing back into her usual outfit. As she was done, Genma walked up and placed his hand on her shoulder.
"You did good, Ranma. I'm very proud of you." he said.
"Yeah yeah yeah, Pop. Glad to help." Ranma said. "Now do you mind telling me what it is that we're doing here already?"
"Of course." Genma answered. "You're going to be so excited at this, I guarantee it."
By the time that Genma was finished telling Ranma everything though, Ranma was the exact opposite of excited. In fact, there was a look of pure fury on her face instead.
"What do you mean fiance and engagements?" she asked. "That's why you brought us here? I thought that there might be a means to cure our curses here. Whatever happened to that? You broke your promise."
"I never promised that there was a cure for our curses here." Genma said. "I only said that our lives would certainly change for the better, and they will. You get to marry one of Tendo's daughters, and the two schools will be joined as we always intended. No more traveling on the road, and no more hardships of any kind for the rest of our lives. It's an absolute dream come true, and the things that will lead to it only lie a few blocks away from here. Now let's get going. Tendo and his daughters are eagerly waiting for us and we're already late enough as it is."
Ranma felt her rage hit its boiling point, and she soon delivered a powerful kick to Genma's jaw, knocking him over a nearby wall. Almost poetically, it started to rain shortly afterwards. Knowing what she would see, Ranma jumped onto the top of the wall and glanced down at her father, who had transformed into a massive Panda and was lying in a crumpled heap on a pile of stones.
"I can't believe that I was ever dumb enough to trust you, Pop." she yelled. "If you want your stupid schools joined, then you go and marry one of your friend's daughters, because there's no way that I'm gonna do it."
Genma quickly sat up and pulled up a sign that read "You most certainly are going to, and you will like it."
"I refuse." Ranma yelled. "You know, I've been having my suspicions ever since you insisted on leaving China even though remaining there was our best hope of being cured. I was willing to put aside those feelings because we're related, but it seems as if I was right to worry. First you take away my hopes of being cured, and then you decide to forcibly marry me to someone I've never even met just to satisfy some stupid dream about uniting two dojos. And on top of all of that, you forced me to wear that stupid dress all the way here on the assumption that my ticket to being a guy again could be found here. That's it, I'm done listening to you. Good luck living your life, Pop, because I'm going to find a cure without you."
Ranma began to turn around, but before she could, Genma held up a sign that read "And just where do you expect to go? You don't have any more money."
Ranma angrily threw a small stone at Genma's head, causing him to fall back to the ground.
"And whose fault do you think that is?" Ranma yelled. "I'll be fine though. Just like how I didn't need that train ride, I don't need money to get to where I'm going. I can start heading west until I make it to the ocean and try to stow away on a boat. Worst case scenario, I'll just wind up swimming to China like last time. It may be hard, but anything is better than what you're proposing."
Ranma hopped down from the fence and began to run in the direction of the train station.
"Okay, I know that the train that brought us here was heading west." she thought. "If I just follow the general direction of the tracks until the sky clears up, it'll be a start at least."
All of a sudden, Ranma felt something coming right for her and instinctively dodged. A massive claw now occupied the space that Ranma's head had just been only a few seconds ago. Turning around, Ranma saw Genma chasing after her.
Genma held up a sign that read "Just come with me now, Boy, and don't make this any harder than it has to be."
"I already told you, no way." Ranma yelled.
As Ranma said those last two words, she slammed her fist into the ground. This not only created a shockwave powerful enough to knock Genma back slightly, but also whipped up a slight dust cloud which enabled Ranma to break Genma's line of sight and make a quick escape.
As she ran down the street, Ranma began to look around in various directions for a place that she could hide or use to throw off Genma's trail.
"Okay, let's see. Where can I go?" she thought. "There has to be some kind of pathway around here that will let me lose him."
"Kid…?" male voice called out.
Ranma suddenly froze in her tracks, trying to see where the voice had come from.
"Huh? Who said that?" she thought.
"Kid…Kid…?" the voice continued.
"Kid…hey Kid. It's time to wake up."
Ranma abruptly opened his eyes and sat up from his rested position. Looking around in confusion, he noticed that the train conductor was standing over him and had his hand on Ranma's shoulder. He had apparently been shaking Ranma slightly in an effort to wake him up. Even though he had apparently fallen asleep, Ranma still felt very drowsy and let out a large yawn.
"Sorry to disturb you, but it's just about time to get off." the conductor continued.
"Huh?" Ranma asked, his mind not fully functioning yet.
"It's the end of the line." the conductor answered. "In about two minutes, we'll be arriving in Himawaridai Town."
Hearing this caused Ranma to fully wake up.
"Oh…thanks." Ranma said. "I guess that I was asleep for a little bit longer than I had planned. But…it did manage to make this trip fly by in a flash."
"Well, maybe from your perspective." the conductor said. "For the rest of us, it was nearly four and a half hours of constant riding broken up by the occasional stop."
"I see." Ranma said. "Wait a minute, did you say four and a half hours? I thought that this trip was only supposed to take three and a half hours."
"Normally it would." the conductor said. "Unfortunately, given that brand new ultra high speed train construction project that's supposed to open in about two years, these late night voyages have become somewhat delayed. Those currently developing the project have been working at night since there's very few people that ride the train this late. That way, they can avoid interrupting the early-morning and late-afternoon rushes. For us though, it adds about an extra hour or so to our journey since they're usually moving heavy materials and machinery across the tracks. I'm not going to complain about it though, because that just means an extra hour of pay going in my pocket."
"You don't say." Ranma said nonchalantly.
"By the way, I meant to ask you before, where's your guardian at?" the conductor asked. "I didn't see anybody board or ride with you the entire time that you've been here."
"Nobody rode with me." Ranma shrugged. "I'm traveling solo this time and it feels great."
The conductor gave Ranma a strange look. Seeing this caused Ranma to panic and realize that he had spoken without thinking.
"Um, what I mean to say is that my guardian is picking me up at the station once I get there." he continued.
"Oh, I see." the conductor said. "Do you want me to stay with you until they arrive? The city can be a pretty dangerous place late at night, especially for someone as young as you."
Ranma felt a bit annoyed at this suggestion. Although the gesture itself was somewhat thoughtful, Ranma severely disliked how much of a kid he was being treated as. He could not find a way to return to normal fast enough.
"I'll be fine. I'm perfectly capable of defending myself." he said while looking away.
"Okay, suit yourself. Just be careful." the conductor said.
Ranma noticed a slightly sad expression on the conductor's face as he walked away and moved to the next car. Looking around slightly, Ranma realized that he was now completely alone in the train car. When he had first boarded, there had been at least a few other people sitting inside, but all of them had since disappeared. Ranma turned back to look at the spot where the conductor had disappeared.
"He was so eager to talk and help me out." he said. "I wonder if he was feeling lonely or something due to the fact that there was no one else around."
All of a sudden, the train started to slow down. An automated voice could be heard coming through the speakers on the wall.
"Final stop. Himawaridai-cho. Himawaridai-cho Station. All passengers please disembark once the train has come to a complete stop."
After about a minute had passed, the train had come to a complete stop. Ranma heard the automated train doors opening with a loud hissing sound and stood up.
"Okay then, I'm finally here." he thought. "Time to go."
Ranma quickly disembarked from the train and began to walk down a long staircase leading to the street below. As he rounded a corner, he noticed the conductor waving him off. He was also made aware of the fact that apparently no one else had gotten off the train except for the two of them. Ranma let out a sigh as he disappeared from view.
"Hold on, was that the same conductor that took our tickets last time?" he asked. "Never mind, I'm too tired to think about it now."
Ranma started to feel very tired once again as he reached the bottom of the stairs. Looking up, he noticed a clock on the wall and saw that the time read '0:35'.
"Guess that I can't exactly blame him for being so worried about me." he said. "I've certainly never heard of a kid being out on their own this late."
Ranma took a few more steps forward, but began to struggle with keeping his eyes open.
"This is bad, I really need to get some sleep." he said. "Maybe there's a motel or something nearby."
Ranma felt the coins that he still had left in his pocket and sighed once again.
"Wait, that's not going to work." he said. "It's gonna cost me at least ¥700 to buy a ticket to make it back tomorrow. With what I have leftover, there's no way that I can afford to stay anywhere that charges money. I suppose that I'm going to have to rough it somewhere."
Ranma looked around for a nice clearing to build a fire in, only to slump his head forward.
"Oh that's right, I didn't bring a sleeping bag either." he continued. "Damn it, what was I thinking? I really need to stop rushing forward so recklessly all the time."
Ranma was barely able to stay awake now. His tiny body was not designed for such late night excursions, and it was already being pushed to its limit. Desperate for shelter, Ranma glanced around in a hurry and noticed a small wooden shack built into the side of the building beneath the stairs. One of the doors was slightly open as well. Even though he knew absolutely nothing about it, Ranma was way too tired to be picky right now.
"Guess that it'll have to do." he thought.
Ranma hurriedly trudged his way over to the shed and walked inside. He made his way to a corner in the back, laid down on the ground, and rested his head against the wall. He was sleeping peacefully within seconds.
End of Chapter 6
4/6/2025
Special thanks to my biggest supporters: Homura VanRoyen, sudowiki
Hi Everyone. This chapter took a bit longer to write that I would've wanted, and also would up being much longer than some of my other chapters in this story, but I'm still happy with it all the same.
This was a particularly hard chapter for me to write, much like the last one. This time around though, the problem was due to the fact that a great deal of the chapter relied heavily on internal monologues, and extreme description due to a lack of characters to play Ranma against. I pride myself on crafting dialogue, and without it I have a hard time finding motivation to write. The reason that I included so many conversations with random characters was an attempt to break up all of that expository text. It really is amazing how much I was able to expand from the original fic, as this part of the story was basically four or five pages of exposition. I still haven't even exhausted the contents of the first chapter of that fic, and I've already written over 133 pages.
The reason that I included the dream flashback with Ranma and Genma was an attempt to expand the chapter and introduce a crucial moment that parallels Ranma's current situation. The fact that Ranma and Genma suddenly returned from China despite it being their best chance for a cure has always confused me. I get that it was necessary for the story to move forward, but it still felt strange. I came up with the concept of Genma tricking Ranma into wasting all of their money on train tickets to force him to Nerima which would lead directly into the opening scene of the series. The idea changed somewhat as I wrote it, as there was originally no kiddie dress plot, instead Genma would plead with Ranma to trust him and say that the train ride was an attempt to make up for Jusenkyo. The idea of forcing Ranma into such a scenario to save a few bucks seemed much more in-character for Genma, so I wrote it that way instead.
I know that this chapter ends rather abruptly, especially after such a long plot, but it just felt right. The next chapter might be a bit short, but I have some ideas about how to add a few more scenes if the need arises. Since I'm expanding from a previously written idea, I find it very easy to write additional material to make the text more meaningful. My writing may be a bit of a slow burn, especially during chapters like this, but that is just my style. The next few chapters will be where the plot really kicks into high gear, especially as I introduce some characters whom I really enjoy writing for, so I hope that you'll stick around. Thank you for all of your support so far.
Please be sure to like and comment on this chapter as any feedback you give me is extremely helpful to me as an aspiring writer.
If you enjoy what you've seen so far and you're interested in seeing more, consider checking out my other stories.
I'd like to thank you all for your encouraging likes, follows, and comments, and stay tuned for Chapter 7, coming soon.