Project A-Ko Fan Fiction / Ranma 1/2 Fan Fiction / Vampire Hunter (Darkstalkers) Fan Fiction ❯ Nabiki 1/2 (A Very Scary Thought) ❯ False Ranma... ( Chapter 92 )

Nabiki 1/2

(A Very Scary Thought)

Written by Jim Robert Bader

Proofread by Shiva Barnwell

Based Upon the Altered Destinies Storyline

Inspired by the works of such fans as

Wade Tritshler

Richard Lawson

James Jones

And Many Others

Standard Disclaimer: This is inspired by the work of Takahashi Rumiko and is not my original creation. All characters belong to her. This is only a fanfictional work, and is not intended to compromise the rights of the original owners, distributors and publishers of the Ranma series. I have no money to spare and would very much appreciate if no one tries to sue me.

Akane stared out across the open field of tall grass and felt an urge to go running across it like a carefree young girl from her long lost innocent youth. Instead, what she did was select a rock the size of a small grapefruit that she found laying at her feet, and with a casual flip of her foot knocked it up into the air where she caught it upon the top of her knee, balancing it there before kicking it up and catching it with her other knee, repeating the gesture as she sought to work upon her concentration and her balance.

Life was so unfair at times…why was everybody picking on her all of a sudden? Just because she said those things about Ranma (her baka brother-in-law-to-be and ex-fiancé) when he ran off and abandoned her sister, Nabiki, was no reason in her mind for everyone to suddenly be giving her the cold shoulder.

Well, it wasn't exactly like Kodachi was giving her the brush-off, but with Ryoga gone, and everyone else so sensitive on the subject of Saotome's sudden urge to go on a training mission while taking her BOYFRIEND with him…well, she just didn't see why she was supposed to passively go along with this. After all, wasn't anyone else worried about Nabiki's feelings? Her Oneechan might not always show it at times, but inwardly she had to be taking it a lot worse than that brave face she was putting on in front of others was letting on…and all because RANMA had to feel a little bit intimidated about the state of their current engagement!

At least Nabiki WANTED to marry the baka, which was more than Akane could ever say for herself. All of her life Akane had suffered from being just a little TOO popular with the people her own age (Ranma being the sole exception, and that because he was too much like a brother for either of them to be serious about their former engagement), while Nabiki only had Ranma and Shampoo (unless, of course, you counted the other odd coupling of Ukyo and Perfume, who shared a co-engagement)…

"Okay," Akane amended to herself aloud, "So maybe Oneechan is a little too popular with both the guys and girls in both of her sexes, but it's not like it's her fault…"

"You mean about Kasumi wanting to jump her bones when she's a guy?"

"EEP!" Akane reacted, missing her concentration by a fraction at the unexpected interruption, which caused the rock to bounce off her knee and go flying over her head back in the direction of the new speaker.

Akane turned around just in time to see a bare foot stretch out an impossibly long distance, catching the stone in mid-air and holding it aloft off the tip of the toes, then allowing the rock to slide down that long, tapering and well-muscled limb, only to be caught mid-way against the knee of the speaker, Keiko Arigami.

"Sorry," she said as she stood poised on one leg, "Didn't mean to startle you like that. Didn't know this was a private monologue and thought anyone could join in."

Akane visibly relaxed, glad to see that she was still on speaking terms with at least SOMEONE from their camp. She flashed a smile at the pig-tailed redhead and said, "Hey, I don't mind the company. In fact, I'd be glad for a little conversation."

"Yeah, I'll bet," Keiko said with her usual affable charm as she studied the dark-haired girl with her bright blue eyes open and friendly, "Sorry if things got a little tense back there, but you kind of brought it on yourself by talking out of turn. Sometimes, Tendo, I just think you'd be better off not trying to find work as a diplomat, you're too blunt speaking."

"Am I really that bad?" Akane asked as she stared at the ground.

"Heads up!" Keiko called out, and with that sent the rock from her knee sailing at Akane, who instinctively reacted by leaping up and bringing her own knee to bear to catch it. "Nice work!" the redhead complimented, "You're definitely improving your reflexes."

"Oh yeah?" Akane smiled, "Try this!" and with that she sent the rock hurtling back to Keiko, who flipped up into the air and caught the rock again with her upraised knee, landing poised and well balanced on one foot in a classic crane stance.

"I thought maybe you might want the chance to talk things over a bit with someone who's sympathetic to your position," Keiko remarked before knocking the rock into the air and giving it a good kick back towards Akane, who had to move fast in order to catch it, "Not that I totally agree with you, mind you, but as least I can see where you're coming from."

"Really?" Akane asked as she kicked the stone back, "I mean…honestly, what did I say that got everybody so upset back there? I was only speaking the truth…"

"Well…one interpretation of it anyway," Keiko remarked as she returned the stone to Akane, "The thing to keep in mind is…you really can't pin all of the blame down onto any one person or factor. Ranma's a little at fault for letting himself get so knotted up inside without telling anybody about his feelings, but Ukyo and Nabiki share part of the blame for not noticing the warning signs that have been going on all around them."

"What warning signs?" Akane asked as she continued their makeshift game of kicking the stone back and forth between them.

"Oh, I dunno," Keiko remarked as she aimed one high, forcing Akane to leap higher to intercept it, "The short temper, the exhaustion, the irritability, the sleepless nights of diaper changing and four-o'clock feedings, all for a kid that isn't even his in the first place. That's bound to add up on a guy's nerves, and since he's head over heels in love with at least one of the two girls in question…well…is it any wonder he's started to feel just a wee bit excluded?"

"But that's not Nabiki's fault," Akane protested as she aimed one just a little past Keiko's left shoulder, making the redhead work for it (and giving Akane a delightful eye-full of the comely redhead's pert anatomy as she flashed it in passing).

"Nobody's saying that it is, heads up!" Keiko executed a perfect flip that sent the stone rocking just a little above Akane's head, forcing the darker haired girl to execute a back-flip in order to catch it, "Least of all Ranma. In point of fact, he's been a pretty nice guy about the whole affair. I know if some girl I was crazy over…say…Kodachi, for example, had got knocked up with somebody else's kid, I'd begin to feel a little bit excluded myself. I'm just amazed it took this long for Ranma to come out and sort-of admit it."

"Oh really?" Akane held the stone balanced on the tip of one foot, then lobbed it up in the air, aiming carefully as she spun around and kicked it on the down turn, rather like smashing a tennis ball with a racket, "I know Ranma pretty well…he'd rather die than admit anything like having a weakness."

"OOPS!" Keiko said as she forced herself to stretch in order to intercept the stone, which she did, amazing Akane at the way her supple legs could stretch to almost any angle. The stone was soon balancing on her knee again as she regained her footing then said, "Well…having a weakness isn't all that bad. Look at me…I'm a pretty tough girl, but splash some water on me and I go right to the birds. Wanna see me do a good imitation of a vulture?"

With that she poised herself with her shoulders and head slumped like a carnivorous bird of prey perching on a rock surveying a juicy carcass. Akane could not help but chuckle at the pantomime of her friend, then Keiko righted herself again and went back to being her usual cocky, brash self, flipping the stone from one knee to the other.

"Seriously, you need to cut the boy some slack once in a while," Keiko continued, "It's not like you're engaged to him anymore, so there's no reason to be so angry and resentful."

"But how can you be taking his side like that?" Akane asked, "Do you know what him going off like that is doing to Nabiki?"

"Do I know?" Keiko was at once entirely sober, "How about when Nabiki seemed to up and desert me when we were hiding out in Hong Kong? How do you think I felt then waking up from a night of pure bliss to find the space beside me empty? She was my first real love…at least, the first one my own age, and it felt pretty damned awful finding out that she'd gone and gotten herself married to the first Amazon chick who took her to bed. Then I come here and find out that some GUY had gone and gotten engaged to her…well…I think you can get the picture. The point is, I don't hold it against Ranma, and I've pretty much forgiven Nabiki. The Old Man? Well…that might be stretching it a bit, but from where I stand I'd have to get at the end of a pretty long line when it comes to paying him back for breaking Nab-chan and me up like he did. If he hadn't interfered…well…then maybe I'd have been the one she got pregnant."

The charming smile on the redhead was simply irresistible, and Akane found herself chagrined for having brought up such a painful reminder. She shook her head and said, "I wish I could be more like you. I mean…with all the stuff you've been through in your life, I just can't see how you can always be such an optimist."

"Constant practice," Keiko winked, "You should try looking on the bright side once-in-a-while, it might improve your whole world outlook. Catch!"

Akane was almost caught napping as the rock went hurtling directly towards her, but she managed to get her leg out in time and stopped it flat against the ball of her right foot, allowing her to flip it up and catch it once again as it was now her turn to balance the stone on her ankle.

"There's really no big secret to maintaining a positive outlook," Keiko continued, "You just have to live each day while it happens. Don't live in the past, don't fantasize about the future, don't waste your time with idle speculation about what may or may not be, just take everything as it comes in stride and make the best of the hand you're dealt by Fate's card dealer. You think I could have survived all those years as a sex slave and a gladiator if I wasted my time away moaning and fretting about my fate? What would be the point to that? I just bided my time and waited for the first opportunity that came my way. I'd almost given up all hope when Nabiki came along to rescue me, and I'll always be grateful for that and her helping to reunite me with my parents."

"Speaking of which," Akane said a bit sadly, "When are they getting back from their honeymoon again?"

"Another week or so," Keiko replied, "Until then I'll continue living with Kodachi. Then…we'll see what happens. I know Dad wants to take me back to the States to get me acquainted with my American roots, but…well…Japan is my home and all that, so you know it won't be long until I get back here. If anything, I may just wind up dragging 'Dachi back with me on an extended vacation. She's never been to America, and I'm sure we'll both have a grand old time in the land of the Gaijin."

"I'll miss you if you leave," Akane said sincerely, "I've learned so much from just being around you…"

"Well, nobody's said I have to go right away," Keiko winked, "I'm sure I won't be that easy to be rid of. After all, this curse of mine is bound to be a problem. 'Dachi's still trying to come to terms with her own curse, and Dad's promised that he's going to look into finding a cure and all that, but…well…I guess we'll just have to make the best of it until then. I think he's still a little alarmed at what happened when he sent Chun-Li and Lieutenant Cammy to Jusenkyo…"

"Oh yeah," Akane winced, "Too bad about that. I kind of like them."

"Just let it go to serve as a lesson," Keiko winked, "Never mess with ancient Chinese Curses. The results can be…very tragic. I'm sure Chun and Cammy must feel the same way, but it really is their fault for getting into a cat-fight in the middle of their mission, give or take some troubles I understand they had with the locals. On the other hand, who knew there was such a thing as the Spring of the Drowned Centaur?"

"Well, at least your dad seems to like them," Akane mused, "But I wonder how your mom talked him into taking them along on the honeymoon as bodyguards…or whatever excuse it was she used."

"Hey, what can I say?" Keiko winked, "Mom can be pretty resourceful when you come down to it. Even Mistress Lao knows better than to underestimate her. Dad, on the other hand…well…be easy on him, he is a Gaijin."

Akane found her mood considerably lightened as she contemplated which way to kick the stone that was balancing on her foot, "That's something else I don't really understand. About you and Lao. I mean…granted she's not entirely evil, but how can you feel so little resentment from someone who treats you like you're virtually her property or something?"

"Nothing virtual about it," Keiko replied, "I was her property…she just let me run off the leash for a while as a favor to my mother. In actuality, she sold me to Kodachi."

"Huh?" Akane let the stone fall off her foot and landed on the other, which caused her to go momentarily cross-eyed.

"Oh, did I forget to tell you about that?" Keiko asked as the darker haired girl hopped up and down on one foot, "It was part of our arrangement when Mistress Lao released me. I now officially belong to Kodachi as her bought and paid for contract slave, signed sealed and delivered for a check in the amount of no less than one hundred thousand US dollars. Not too shabby a bargain if I do say so myself."

Akane was on her rump massaging her bruised foot as she looked up and said, "I didn't know that Kodachi actually owned you. I mean…that's not really legal…is it?"

"You think I care?" Keiko smiled, "It's a private arrangement between us, doesn't involve the law or anything else. Lao surrendered me to Kodachi upon her graduation from the POJ's Bondage Training Academy. Officially, she's my owner and Mistress, but…well…'Dachi prefers if we treat it more like a private affair between near equals. Unofficially, she's free to do with me as she wills, and I've got no objections to this arrangement. It's not something we intend to flash around-especially with my dad, who might have a few objections of his own if he gets word about it…"

"Uh…right," Akane said, "Mum's the word and all that."

"Hey, I'm a big girl, and I'm almost eighteen, so in another few months I'll be free to do as I want without needing a parent or guardian around to tell me what's right and proper," Keiko shrugged, "Mom knows about it and that's cool…she feels she owes Mistress Lao for helping to deprogram her from that Assassination thing. Turns out the guy responsible for it was part of the 108 Dragons, like we figured, but his operation was not sanctioned by the leader of the outfit, so Crying Freeman himself helped remove the last traces of conditioning from Mom's subconscious. Now Mom's perfectly normal-well, as normal as somebody who's lived with the Mistress can be, anyway-and Dad's probably finding his hands full with all the tricks of the trade that she learned from the Mistress. Same goes for Chun and Cammy," she added with a look of sweet mischief that brought a sympathetic smile to Akane.

"Poor guy," she said insincerely.

"My sentiments exactly," Keiko nodded, flipping her long pig-tailed braid around to rest over one shoulder, "So you can see how Dad might be a while in figuring out the true extent of what's going on with me and 'Dachi. I'm her property, and that's the way I like it, but I'm just as much her bodyguard and co-instructor. I'm teaching her a lot about Kickboxing and the sensual arts, just like she's teaching me about life on a whole new level of domestic sensualism. You can be a part of that world too, if you like…you and Ryoga, if you think the poor guy can take it without fainting."

"Ryoga," Akane sighed as she looked down, "Why did he have to go off and train with Ranma anyway? What can that old panda-breath be thinking anyway?"

"That the two boys are about equal in fighting ability," Keiko replied, "And they train pretty good together. They don't hold back and they don't pull their punches, but they're the next best thing to being friends, so they trust each other where it really matters."

"Yeah…well…" Akane struggled to find the words to express her emotions and just gave up in frustration. To her surprise she looked up and found Keiko standing over her with an outstretched hand, offering to give her a lift.

"Hey, trust is essential to any kind of relationship, I know," Keiko replied, "Nab-chan's got to learn to trust Ranma, just like you need to learn to trust Ryoga to handle himself. They're a couple of pretty terrific guys, if you want my honest opinion…"

Akane accepted the hand as Keiko pulled her back to her feet, but the dark haired girl could not help asking, "How can you be on their side? I mean…Ryoga I can understand, but Ranma?"

"What, you think just because I'm a lesbian that I think all boys are jerks?" Keiko gave a cocky little smile and said, "Hardly. Take your boy-toy, for example…he's as naïve as they come, and yet there's something so charmingly innocent about the way he's always there to defend you. He needs to work a bit on self-control with that superhuman strength of his or he's likely to break your back with one of his bear hugs. A little training in the right areas might get him to relax those muscles while strengthening the OTHER muscles he'll need to make you satisfied and happy, and that's where I can come in, being a prime student of Lao's training in the art of muscle and tension relaxation. Just leave yourselves to my care and I'll have the boy eating out of your…ahem…well…you know…" she added with a lascivious expression.

Akane got the reference and immediately colored, glancing down as she unconsciously covered her hands over her hidden genitalia.

"As for Ranma…well…that's a little more complicated," Keiko seemed to actually get thoughtful for a moment, "Don't ask me why, but for the longest time now I've had this…really weird feeling whenever he's around…like he was my long-lost brother, or something. I really can't explain it, other than to say that I think he's a pretty terrific guy, and I wouldn't mind screwing him myself, even if I wouldn't get as much pleasure from the experience as he would."

"What?" Akane blinked her eyes and said, "You?"

"Hey, I've been screwed by a lot worse, believe me," Keiko avowed, "Another part of my training was to help desensitize me to the sort of crawling sensations I used to get whenever a boy touched me. I don't feel the same level of aversion that I once felt when a man wants to have sex with me…in fact, I've learned how to use that to my advantage. Men don't excite me or cause me to feel the sorts of sensations I get around girls, but I can give almost any man a good time if he tries his luck with me, even if he's gay," she added with an ironic leer, "Sex is too sacred a word for me to ever treat it as a trivial sensation."

"I guess I really don't understand," Akane admitted, "With the exception of Ryo-chan and…and Tofu Sensei…boys have always seemed to me to be so…yucky…"

"Try living without them for a couple of years and you'll learn to appreciate the difference," Keiko revealed, "For me, sex is a way of getting to know someone physically and emotionally on a level that's hard to achieve through any other form of contact but fighting. Fighting's the other thing that flips my switch almost as much as sex…it's like reveling in being alive! It's…well…in a word, it's fun!"

"Fun?" Akane repeated with a raised eyebrow.

"That's the one lesson Nab-chan never seems to have learned for herself," Keiko continued, "She thinks that fighting is just a means to an end, and she's very intensive about it, and she does appreciate the art as an art…but she doesn't really know how to let go and just lose herself in the battle. She needs to understand that you don't always have to be in control, that control is often just a cruel and twisted illusion. We're never entirely in control, even of ourselves, and certainly not our destinies, which are the product of an elaborate mesh of conflicting wills and personalities, our will versus that of every other person with whom we come in contact. Life is a game and a battle, it's too random and brief for us to waste our time feeling trapped and embittered by unpleasant circumstances. Better far to treat it like a game where there are no real winners or losers, just players doing their best to make the best of the fates they're given. And fighting is the greatest game of all, the point where it really is a throw of the dice and victory goes to the side that is the truest to their own inner dynamic. Once you learn that fact, you can never really lose, no matter what the battle."

"I guess that does make sense," Akane admitted, "You know, Kei-chan, you're a pretty terrific person."

"Thanks," Keiko smiled back, "You're not so bad yourself…for an 'Uncute Tomboy.'"

"Oh please," Akane rolled her eyes, "I got enough of that from Ranma, and who are you calling a Tomboy?"

The two girls grinned, and then Keiko reached forward and tapped Akane on the nose and said, "TAG-you're it!"

"Huh?" Akane screwed up her eyes then heard the redhead laughing as Keiko turned and started running, "Why you-!" and then the darker haired girl was off and chasing after her, both girls laughing as they darted and wove their way among the tall grasses and otherwise behaving like a couple of school girls.

Kodachi, from where she sat perched upon a tall branch, having sat and listened to this pair chatting pleasantly together, heaved a sigh and said softly, "It's so nice to see them getting along so well together. Akane-chan really does need someone like Kei-chan to drag her out of her doldrums."

There was a suitable pause of about thirty seconds, and then Kodachi spoke again, "Oh, who am I fooling? That looks like so much fun!" and with that she vaulted out of the tree and took off at a run after her two favorite "girlfriends"…

Ranma stared in disbelief at the tall young man calling himself Saotome Ranma, who had just performed a heroic deed and received the compliments of the lady Ringmaster in charge of the circus where they had arrived in such great haste. The boy was a few inches taller than himself, and certainly more ruggedly handsome with muscles that stood out in clean definition, suggesting that he was possibly several years older and more mature in terms of physical development. The combat "Rambo" get-up that he was wearing implied that he might have a military background, but there was too much else beside him that more strongly hinted of a life on the open road. He certainly seemed hardy and virile enough to be a survivalist, to say nothing of possessing some impressive martial arts skills.

All that fell to an insignificant status in light of the one sure thing that Ranma knew on the instant that he had set eyes upon this fellow: He instinctively hated him on sight. There was too much about this older boy that seemed…WRONG on a level for which there was no easy definition. He was too arrogant, too cocky and overconfident in his abilities, full of a contrary pride that seemed to wear his self-deprecation like a badge of honor, and he had chosen the wrong name. That latter point was especially irksome as hearing the boy calling himself Saotome Ranma made the real Ranma's skin crawl, a fact that did not go unnoticed by Ryoga.

"Saotome Ranma?" the Lost Boy said as he looked from his companion to the stranger and back again, "Whoa…what are the odds, eh?"

"Saotome Ranma?" the lady Ringmaster asked with a curious expression on her face, "Would you…by any chance be related to a man named Saotome Genma?"

An immediate wariness crossed the expression of the stranger as he eyed the handsome woman wearing the top-hat and a suggestively revealing costume, "Who wants to know? I mean…why do you ask, Lady?"

"It's just that I…knew a man who went by the name of Saotome Genma," the lady Ringmaster hesitated, "You wouldn't happen to be his son…would you?"

"Eh?" Ranma heard his father say as if just then recognizing the Ringmaster, "Sakura…?"

"His…son?" the young man frowned, "I'm…afraid I can't discuss that, Ma'am. I'm just a wanderer on a pilgrimage, and I stopped by because I saw you were having trouble…"

"Yes, and I'm very grateful that you have," the lady Ringmaster said with great delight, turning her head to several men wearing the gear of animal trainers and adding, "Be sure to get Bruno back into his cage before he wakes up, boys. It's a good thing no one was seriously hurt or we might have had to put him to sleep. As it is you've shown yourself to be a very brave young man and a genuine hero…"

"I'm…nothing really," the boy started to turn away, "Just glad nobody was hurt here…"

"Wait!" the lady Ringmaster called out, "Won't you stay? You look like you could use some work, and there's plenty to do around a circus for a man with your obvious…talents…"

"I'm flattered, really," the young man paused to give a faint smile to the Ringmaster, "Maybe some other time I'd take you up on it, but just now…"

The Ringmaster's eyes suddenly wandered back to the bear, who was being hoisted up into a mobile cage by several of her employees, only her attention fell to an object that had been hidden beneath the bear, which at once caused her to say, "Wait up a minute, young Sir. I think you dropped something."

"Eh?" the young man turned around in time to see the Ringmaster pick up the object and pass it along to him, which proved to be a scroll of some kind, at which point his eyes got very round and he said, "My treasure! I didn't even know I dropped it."

The young man stretched out a hand to reclaim his "treasure," but before it could be managed another hand reached out and snatched it away from the Ringmaster.

"Huh, some treasure," Ranma said as he removed the string binding the scroll and began to unroll it, "Let's see what you've got here."

"HEY!" the young man turned around, "What do you think you're doing?"

"That's what I was going to ask you," Ranma replied when he began to read the poorly lettered kanji, at which point he made a sharp intake of breath, "Saotome School Special Ryu…THE YAMASENKEN???"

"You give that back!" the young man cried as he pounced on where Ranma was standing, only to be amazed as the other boy fleetingly evaded him altogether, still reading the scroll, on which were hand drawn some crude illustrations.

"Where the hell did you get this?" Ranma demanded, then turned a look back towards the crowd and said, "POP!"

"Oh my," the Ringmaster gasped as she saw an uneven game of tag being performed by the two boys, one wearing a red Chinese shirt and black slacks, the other in combat fatigues with sleeveless vest and army boots, "Who are you?"

Ranma paused in his dodging of the other boy's attacks and said, "The name is Saotome Ranma…the REAL one!"

"The…?" the older boy halted dead in his tracks and stared, "YOU are Saotome Ranma?"

"That's right, Jerk," Ranma said as he re-rolled the scroll back up and looped the string back in place, "I don't know what kind of scam you're pulling here, but it stops now. My Pop said he created this system, which means you must have stolen this, 'cause I know it's his handwriting, just as bad as ever."

"I-I don't understand," the Ringmaster covered her mouth with a hand, "Two boys claiming to be Saotome Ranma? What a strange coincidence."

"Coincidence my ass," Ranma turned to the crowd and said, "Well, Pop…are you gonna explain this or what?"

"Watch your mouth, Boy," Genma growled as he shouldered his way into view, then paused as he turned to regard the Ringmaster, at which point his tone fell to a more respectful, "Hello, Sakura."

"Genma?" the Ringmaster gasped, then with a delighted cry she declared, "You're still alive! My word, it's been close to five years…what have you been up to in all this time?"

"That…would take some explaining," Genma replied, "You look as if you've been doing well for yourself."

"I've managed to take over the business from my father," Sakura said simply, taking notice of Ryoga, who had also approached from the sidelines, "Oh my…are these your sons?"

"One of them anyway," Genma nodded towards Ranma before turning his attention to the combat-clad stranger, "My son did ask a very good question though…who are you, and where did you get your hands on the Yamasenken?"

"So," the strange boy straightened out, and an odd smile found its way across his expression, "You're the one who gave that scroll to my father…Saotome Genma. And that means it was meant for you, Saotome Ranma."

"Meant for me?" Ranma asked without altering his own expression, "Explain that."

"Your name is on that scroll," the taller boy replied, "Take another look."

Ranma hastily undid the scroll and unwound it, scanning down to the bottom before saying, "'To my son, Saotome Ranma, on the day he reaches manhood.' Oh…I get it…Pop meant to give this to me when I was old enough for training. But how the hell did you get a hold of-?"

"That's not important, fool," the young man replied, "What is important is that you have something I want! Give me it now and I'll let you walk away unharmed. Oppose me…and you're going to get hurt a lot worse than that grizzly."

"Yeah, yeah," Ranma scoffed, "Talk is cheap, let's see you back it up, you imposter."

"Ranma!" Genma's voice was surprisingly sharp, causing all attention to focus back his way as he turned to the stranger and said, "You're Kumon Omi's boy, aren't you? That's how you wound up with the Yamasenken. He gave it to you."

The stranger narrowed his eyes as he regarded Genma, "More like he passed it onto me with his dying breath after wrecking what was left of our dojo."

Genma closed his eyes and his shoulders sagged a moment as he looked down, then after a long pause he spoke again with surprising gravity in his voice, "I…heard about what happened. I'm very sorry for that, son…your father was a good man. I never should have given him the scroll. It was a mistake…and I've been living with it ever since…"

"Why?" the stranger responded, "You didn't make him wreck our dojo…the place was falling down anyway. Dad just got carried away trying to put the scroll into practice…"

"But you've perfected the technique," Genma raised his eyes again, alight with an intensity that seemed very strange on his expression, "You took what I created and fully mastered the Yamasenken."

"For all the good it does me," the stranger replied, "I need the other part of the Ryu…the shadow side to the Yamasenken, if I'm to fulfill my father's dream of rebuilding our dojo."

"The Kumon Dojo," Genma said softly.

"I don't get this," Ranma said, "Who are you?"

"My name…is Ryu," the boy said with an oddly humorless smile, "Kumon Ryu, owner of that scroll you took from me-which, by the way-I want back right this minute, along with the other scroll you have in your possession…the Umisenken!"

"The Umisenken?" Ranma reacted, "But I don't…"

"Don't waste my time trying to lie about it!" the one calling himself Kumon Ryu angrily declared, "Show me the Umisenken now! I need it to rebuild my father's dojo!"

Ranma sensed the other boy's immanent attack and fell at once into a defensive crouch, but all at once the boy named Ryu exploded with a fiery cry, "FIERCE TIGER OPENING GATES BLOW!" which was identical to the maneuver that he had used to stun the grizzly.

Ranma was almost caught napping by this, and had he been a tad bit slower in dodging out of the way he would have been subjected to a triple-slam of both boy's hands and out outstretched foot. He vaulted sideways and landed in a defensive crouch, aware now that the other boy was not only fast and strong but was master of a technique that involved a lot of raw physical power.

"Hmm…" Ryu said as he turned to regard Ranma with a frankly impressed expression, "Very good…not many people could avoid my attack that way, but you're just delaying the inevitable."

"Oh yeah?" Ranma growled back, "Prove it."

"As you wish," Ryu nodded, then suddenly cried, "MAD GOD BIG DANCE!!!" and his hands became a blur, lashing out at Ranma without him actually seeming to move from the spot.

Again Ranma was forced to dodge and evade his blows, only this time the attack came in the form of hissing knife-like gusts of air that slashed at Ranma's clothing as he attempted to escape them. One slash missed Ranma completely and struck a metal fence directly behind him, snapping through the metal as though it had been cleaved by a broad axe, another coming close to striking an innocent bystander, but for the way it pulled up at the last minute.

"Ranma!" Ryoga cried out in dismay at seeing his friend and traveling companion coming close to being sliced in two by nothing more than a wind current. Genma-at his side-said nothing, but it was clear from his expression that this fight worried him as Ranma clearly did not seem prepared to handle the encounter.

"Oh man…" Ranma stared in dismay at his forearms, which sported a number of angry welts and bruises in those places where he had partly deflected the attack, "What the heck was that?"

"You don't know?" Ryu scoffed, "Don't tell me your father has never bothered to train you in the Yamasenken? I suppose next you'll also say that you don't know what the Umisenken is either."

"That's exactly right, you jerk!" Ranma shouted back, "Pop hasn't yet trained me!"

"Just how gullible do you take me for?" Ryu sneered, "With the level of combat proficiency I've seen right now, it should be a snap for you to pick them up and use them against me. Don't think you can win against me just using an ordinary martial arts system like Kempo. GOLD CORD TIGHT BINDING SOAR!!!"

All at once the older boy whipped out a yellow rope from his side and wrapped it up around Ranma's arms before the other boy had a chance at a reaction. Ranma tried to free himself but was instead yanked into arms reach of his opponent, and then Ryu wrapped his arms around Ranma's waist and cried, "IN THE POCKET ROUND HUG DEATH!!!"

"URRNLK!" Ranma gasped as he found his breath being crushed out of his lungs while his arms were held fast, preventing him from making any retaliatory action.

"Ranma!" Ryoga could hold himself back no longer, seeing that his friend was in serious danger. His well-intentioned gesture, however, did not go unnoticed by Ryu, who let go of his helpless foe in order to turn in time to meet the charge of the formidable Lost Boy.

"RYOGA!" Genma started to cry, sensing the dangerous trap that his other ward was about to fall into.

"WELCOME GATE IRON FINGERS!!!" Ryu cried as he turned into Ryoga's charge with one hand outstretched to penetrate the other boy's guard as though it hardly even mattered. The point where he struck Ryoga caused the angry boy to double up and fall to the ground as though stabbed with a sword blade.

"R-Ryoga…" Ranma wheezed, unable to get enough wind in his breath to say anything else as he stared at where Ryoga had fallen.

"This isn't any fun," Ryu sniffed, "You guys are pathetic! You mean neither one of you knows the secret of the Umisenken? Then you're wasting my time here…"

"Not quite," Genma replied, "The boys may not know the Umisenken, but I do."

"You, old man?" Ryu turned to regard Genma, but before he could fully complete the turn a wind kicked up that blew dust into his face and momentarily obscured his line of vision.

By the time it cleared, both Ranma and Ryoga were no longer where they had fallen, the golden rope laying in the space where it had been unwound, and Ryu could not see to where they had taken off.

"Hey, over here!" A voice called out, causing Ryu to look up to where he found Genma (both boys slung over his shoulders) standing atop a trailer.

"Not too bad," Ryu said grudgingly, "I never even saw that coming."

"That was the idea," Genma replied, "You want the Umisenken, boy? You'll have to work for it, but not here and not now. Meet us in the open field by the rail yards in three days, and I promise by then you'll have the match that I know you're after."

"Why not now?" Ryu asked, "I've defeated your son and his friend, why shouldn't I force you to show me the Umisenken, Old Man?"

"I'm not fighting you, Boy," Genma replied, "I owe that much to your father, but my son is the heir to the Umisenken, and he'll be the one to show it to you."

"That weakling?" Ryu scoffed, "He'll never be ready for me in only three days, not after the bruising I just gave him."

"Care to make a wager on that?" Genma asked, holding up a scroll in his hand, "This treasure versus the scroll that contains the Umisenken? If you lose to Ranma then, it's yours, but if you lose, then you'll give up on pursing the Umisenken and seal up the Yamasenken so that it will never be used again. Then you can found your dojo on a different and more honorable system."

"More…honorable?" Ryu blinked, this time showing surprise in his expression.

"Be where I said on time, Boy," Genma said firmly, then hunched his shoulders and said, "Or you'll never find either us or the Umisenken."

As he said this, something very odd seemed to happen, and Ryu had to blink his eyes to be certain that he was not seeing things, for Genma's outline-and that of his two charges-began to blur, and then the three of them just seemed to utterly vanish as though they had become invisible, leaving him to wonder just how such a thing had been accomplished.

"Three days, huh?" Ryu started to relax, "I won't even need three minutes to finish your boy off, Saotome. The Umisenken is as good as mine, and father will finally be able to rest easy."

Sakura was also staring in shocked disbelief at where she had seen the impossible happen, but when a hand tapped her on the shoulder she almost yelped in surprise, before that beefy hand clamped down over her mouth to prevent such an impulsive gesture.

"Sakura-chan," Genma urged, "I need your help. Is there someplace we can go where the boys can get some privacy and rest?"

Sakura relaxed and began to nod her hand when the hand let her go, so she turned around and found Genma standing right behind her, his son and Ryoga still unconscious and slumped over his broad shoulders.

"Of course," she said, "We can use my trailer. But…Genma…don't they need medical attention? I can get my personal physician to look them over…"

"Won't be necessary," Genma replied, "They'll recover before you know it, but only if we have some privacy, away from prying eyes."

"I understand," the lady Ringmaster replied, then smiled as she added, "It's just like the old days."

"Tell me about it," Genma sighed, "I don't mean to pry, but do you also have some of your father's supply of sake?"

"Same old Genma," Sakura grinned, "A little heavier, less hairy, but always in the thick of trouble. I guess some things never change, eh?"

"I guess maybe they don't," Genma replied, "But I still remain a little hopeful…"

Continued

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