Ranma 1/2 Fan Fiction / InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ The Pursuit of Power ❯ The Lost Boy ( Chapter 7 )

Disclaimer: I still don't own Inuyasha or Ranma!

 

 

 

 

The Pursuit of Power

Chapter Seven - The Lost Boy

 

 

 

Ryoga Hibiki stepped out of the bathroom, drying his thick hair with a towel, steam puffing from behind him. Silently, he walked to the living room, peering in at the scene that was unfolding.

 

 

Akane was hoisting the bag unto her shoulders as she argued with Ranma who had recovered and had thrown off the boulder that his fiancée had hoisted onto him.

 

 

“Geez Akane! Why won't you just stay here?”

 

 

“I want to help you!”

 

 

Ryoga's gaze shifted to the silent figure in the corner who kept his arms folded, hands tucked into his sleeves. He was strange and Ryoga did not feel comfortable around him. He couldn't put his finger on it, but there was something…otherworldly about him, the stillness, the alert and strange golden eyes.

 

 

“We gotta get going, you can argue along the way.” Inuyasha pushed away from the wall that he was leaning against.

 

 

Ranma spun around to face him, “Are you nuts? What are you thinking allowing Akane to come with us?”

 

 

“What do you mean `allowing'?” Akane looked incensed.

 

 

Inuyasha smirked, “What? Are you afraid you're too weak to protect her?”

 

 

Ranma's jaw dropped open as he stared at Inuyasha, but before he could make a comment, Akane had stalked past him.

 

 

She turned to her father, “I'm going with Ranma and Inuyasha father, to the Higurashi shrine in Tokyo, we're meeting up with Kagome there.” As succinctly as she could, she explained the situation and the time-travelling well.

 

 

Soun goggled at his youngest daughter; it never ceased to amaze him what Akane and Ranma got up to. Ryoga standing in the corner could not believe what he was hearing, time travelling school girls and demons? It sounded like some sort of fantasy.

 

 

Inuyasha sighed and took of his cap, his ears twitching as he faced Akane's father. “I promise to help keep her safe sir.”

 

 

Akane's family stared at the dog-eared hanyou who stood with his head bowed deferentially. It was clear that he was anxious to get on his way. Ryoga could feel his eyelid twitch, the dog ears was not all that strange given that he himself changed into a black pig when splashed with cold water. What were some strange ears compared to that?

 

 

Soun started to sniffle and before Inuyasha could blink, the man was clutching the front of his haori, bawling his eyes out.

 

 

“Oh Akane! You're standing by your fiancé! How noble! How loving! Our dojo's future is assured! And you…you're going to keep my baby safe!”

 

 

Inuyasha stared at the sobbing man in disbelief. A grown man crying like a baby? It was ridiculous.

 

 

Akane started to laugh nervously, moving to pry her father away from the hanyou. Soun collapsed into her arms.

 

 

Nabiki had kept silent throughout the explanation and was nonplussed throughout Akane and Ranma's arguments. Now she stood and sauntered over to Inuyasha. She reached up to rub his ears, ignoring the warning growl that Inuyasha gave. She rubbed the ears from the base to the very tip with Inuyasha glaring at her the entire time.

 

 

“What do you think you're doing?”

 

 

Nabiki met his eyes coolly, unlike Kagome she did not rush to apologise for her actions. “I want to see if they're real.”

 

 

“Are you satisfied?” Inuyasha bit out the words.

 

 

Nabiki stepped back, her eyes thoughtful. “I don't suppose you'd let me come along?”

 

 

Akane and Ranma both yelped their protests, Inuyasha simply glared at her. “I will only tolerate Akane's presence because I know she'll keep that baka in line.” Ranma protested at the notion of Akane controlling him, but Inuyasha simply ignored him, “What will you do?”

 

 

“Hmm…” Nabiki turned to her little sister. “I don't suppose you can bring back some precious historical artefact? Something we can sell?”

 

 

“Nabiki!” Akane gasped in shock, was there no low her devious sister would not stoop to in order to acquire wealth?

 

 

“I don't think so, do you want the fabric of your world falling apart because you stole something five hundred yeas ago?” Inuyasha looked straight at Nabiki who sighed and shrugged.

 

 

Ranma was sick and tired of being ignored, “You are not coming Akane!”

 

 

Akane glared at him and stalked towards the door, “You can't tell me what to do!”

 

 

Ryoga quickly leapt up towards the ceiling, concealing himself from Akane as she walked to the front door, followed closely by Inuyasha and a still protesting Ranma.

 

 

As soon as the trio of unlikely time-travellers walked out of the door, Ryoga dropped down to the floor.

 

 

So, Ranma was in search for another cure to his curse. If he thought he could keep such a thing to himself he was more of a fool then Ryoga thought. Hoisting his own pack which he had secreted in the front closet, Ryoga was determined to set off before he lost sight of Ranma and Akane.

 

 

He heard the stairs creaking and he quickly hid himself from sight. Ryoga peered out and saw Genma the panda, adjusting the straps of his own pack before setting out of the door. Was the old man trying to follow too?

 

 

Ryoga quickly slipped out after the panda, but before he could take another step he heard a sweet voice calling his name.

 

 

Guiltily, he turned to find Kasumi Tendou in the doorway. She held a small bag in her hand, which she held out to him. “Ryoga, could you take this to Akane? It's just some food for her journey, I know Ranma's appetite. They left before I could give it to them.”

 

 

Ryoga could feel his face getting hot, “Akane? I wasn't planning on following them…no…” He flushed even more when he heard his squeaky voice.

 

 

Kasumi smiled and placed the bag in Ryoga's twitching fingers despite his protests. “Only if you see her on your own journey.”

 

 

She went back into the house, leaving Ryoga standing with the bag. He groaned and quickly stowed it away with his own pack before running out after the panda. He skidded to a stop at the gate, looking one way then the other, but he could see no trace of a panda with a backpack. He groaned again.

 

 

Ryoga Hibiki would never admit it to himself but he had to have the world's worst sense of direction, a fact which Ranma teased him with mercilessly. He closed his eyes and turned, his feet unknowingly heading towards the famous Neko-haten.

 

 

Unseen by either Ryoga or the others who had passed underneath it, a white duck sat perched on top of the Tendou dojo gates. The duck looked pensive as he flew after the eternally lost Ryoga.

 

 

 

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Kaede excused herself from Kagome's side, picking up the pail of water. “I shall go fetch some more.”

 

 

Kagome nodded distractedly as Kaede walked out of the hut.

 

 

As she knew he would, Myoga leapt up onto Kaede's shoulder. “This is all very strange; I don't suppose you know what's going on Kaede?”

 

 

The old woman shook her head tiredly. “There are many possibilities. That well has been the repository for demons' bodies for as long as I can remember. I recall Kikyou telling me of its immense powers. People believed that it was the doorway to the underworld and I recall that Kikyou regularly blessed the well. We know now that it is the gateway through the mists of time.”

 

 

Myoga nodded, “It has certainly been there since before your time Kaede. If I recall correctly, it was put into place to harness a powerful force and that a demon was set into place to guard it so that its powers could not be abused.”

 

 

Kaede looked at the flea-demon in surprise. “A demon? Set into place to guard such a mystical artefact? Who would put such a thing in place?”

 

 

Myoga shifted uncomfortably, “My memory grows hazy…”

 

 

Kaede sighed, “It matters not, who put such a guardian on the portal through time, what matters is that now it seems that the unwilling guardian has escaped.”

 

 

“Kagome-sama did mention that the human boy was fighting a strange youkai on their side of the well when she happened upon him. Could it be the guardian of the well?”

 

 

Kaede bent slowly, filling her pail with water. “I'm afraid that it could very well be. But what, or who could be powerful enough to break the spell on the well?”

 

 

Myoga shook his head, “And more importantly, why would they attempt to break it at all?”

 

 

 

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Kagura, the wind sorceress, soared through the air, her mind troubled as she thought of all that she had learned that day. It was valuable information certainly, but what purpose would it serve to tell Naraku? Perhaps it would be more valuable if she kept the miko's secret close to heart until the perfect opportunity came for it to be of more use to her - like Inuyasha's secret.

 

 

An ominous buzzing began to fill her ears. Surprised, Kagura looked up to find Naraku's insects all around her, flying in tight formation.

 

 

Cursing, she eyed them. If they were here, it meant that Naraku was certainly watching. He might already know what she had to tell him. If she lied….

 

 

Naraku was cruel on a whim; if he knew that Kagura was lying to him…she shuddered at the thought.

 

 

Her mind flashed on the pain she felt when that Ranma had dared to attack her. Her hand went to touch her cheek where Kagome's sacred arrow had almost pierced her. Damned humans…perhaps this time it was in her best interest to tell Naraku of the time portal in Inuyasha's forest.

 

 

 

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Shampoo sighed despondently as she stirred a pot of noodles. She had not been her usual bright self since she offered Ranma the ramen meant to make him fall for her. Why did her plans always fail? Was it possible that she would never win Ranma for herself? Very rarely did the Chinese Amazon allow herself to entertain such thoughts. It was a known fact that many battles began with ones own mindset. If one believed in defeat there was no hope for victory. When it came to winning Ranma Saotome it was most definitely war.

 

 

It was not only the boy's own reluctance that stood between her and her desire, it was also the fact that Ranma seemed to collect fiancées like honey attracting bees. Shampoo was not the sort of woman who felt jealousy easily. She was proud of the fact that her husband-to-be was so desired. It made the chase that much more exciting and her eventual victory sweeter still. But Shampoo had enough.

 

 

She was through with the chasing, the teasing. It was now time for Ranma to submit to his faith and claim Shampoo as his prize. If he could only be made to realise that!

 

 

As Shampoo strained the noodles and ladled them into the waiting bowls her mind began to work. It was too soon to attempt to lace his food again and Ranma was beginning to get very suspicious of any of her offerings…

 

 

It was at that moment that the kitchen wall beside her began to crumble as raw brute strength was applied to it and Ryoga emerged from the rubble.

 

 

 

Ryoga blinked and he peered through the dust that was now settling all over the kitchen, “Excuse me. Can you tell me how to get to the Higurashi shrine?”

 

 

Shampoo coughed, waving her hand in front of her face she glared at the lost boy. “Ryoga! Why you so stupid?”

 

 

Ryoga blinked again, his gaze focusing on the apron-clad Amazon. “Shampoo! What are you doing in Tokyo? Did you and your grandmother open another restaurant?”

 

 

Shampoo groaned, “Stupid, stupid Ryoga! You no in Tokyo city! You no where near Tokyo!”

 

 

Ryoga let out a growl of frustration, before turning around, “Damn it! I'm not even out of Nerima yet! How am I ever going to catch up to Ranma now?”

 

 

Shampoo had turned away from the lost boy and was intent on trying to fix the mess he had made of the ramen she had been about to serve when she heard her beloved's name. She whirled around to face Ryoga who was now attempting to work his way out of the rubble he had created. “Ranma? What you want with Shampoo's airen pig boy?”

 

 

Ryoga looked up at the irate Amazon and it suddenly dawned upon him that Shampoo was cursed just like he and Ranma. The voluptuous purple-headed girl turned into a cat when splashed with cold water. It was not as bad as transforming into a helpless pig, but it was a curse nonetheless. Ryoga prided himself on his honour and on the fact that he was nothing like the dishonourable Ranma Saotome. If someone else would benefit from his knowledge, the honourable thing to do was to tell them. Shampoo would surely want to know about a possible cure for her cursed form.

 

 

“Shampoo, Ranma and Akane went with some weird guy. They're after a cure for the Jusenkyo curse!” Ryoga stared at the girl, expecting her to weep for joy at the prospect of breaking the curse; instead she stared back at him intently.

 

 

“Akane? Too, too violent girl with Shampoo's airen?”

 

 

Ryoga blinked, the question was a bit unexpected. “Uh..yeah…they went off with this dog-eared guy…”

 

 

The gears were turning in Shampoo's fertile brain. Akane had obviously wormed her way into accompanying Ranma in the hopes of finally catching him all for herself! Why that conniving bitch! Shampoo untied her apron with quick, angry jerks. She threw the cloth into the corner, going to grab her weapons. She shouted out a quick farewell to her grandmother who simply blinked at her and nodded her consent. With that Shampoo marched out of the hole that Ryoga had created and headed straight for the direction of Tokyo.

 

 

Ryoga was left to stare after her, he shook his head and decided to follow, it was a much safer bet then going off on his own.

 

 

 

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Kaede stepped into her hut to find Kagome hunched over her brother who had now awakened. Sango was passing another wash cloth to Kagome and they both looked up at the healer.

 

 

Myoga and Kaede had agreed that Kagome should be informed of their theory and Kaede moved to sit next to the girl and tell her what they knew.

 

 

Sango shook her head, “But how Kaede? How could such a spell be broken? It certainly couldn't before, what's different?”

 

 

Myoga shook his head sadly, “I don't know my dear. I have no idea. But one thing I do know - only someone not aware of the consequences of their actions or colossally stupid would attempt to free that demon.”

 

 

Sango and Kagome exchanged a glance. Sango faced Kaede, “What now? What do we do?”

 

 

Kaede shifted to place a damp cloth on Souta's forehead, who smiled at her weakly. “We must attempt to reseal the well with a new demonic presence.”

 

 

“It won't be easy. The first time the spell was cast was hundreds of years ago and it was not an easy spell.” Myoga looked worried.

 

 

“But we can't just leave the well open!” Kagome protested.

 

 

“Do not fear child, somehow we will have to reseal that well.” Kaede laid a reassuring hand on the girl's shoulder, smiling at her.

 

 

“Onee-chan?”

 

 

Kagome looked down at Souta, running her fingers through his hair soothingly as she thought about all that Kaede and Myoga had told them.

 

 

 

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Shampoo moved through the crowd of people with dexterity, ignoring Ryoga who followed closely behind. There was one goal on her mind and needless to say Shampoo was fixated.

 

 

Shampoo stopped in her tracks as she was enveloped in a cloud of black petals. Mentally she groaned as the high pitched laughter rang out through the crowd, effectively parting it.

 

 

A girl in a green leotard stood just ahead of Shampoo, she was twirling her ribbon expertly, sending it dancing around her slim body. Shampoo rolled her eyes; the people who said that she was overly dramatic had never met Kodachi Kuno.

 

 

“Where have you hidden my darling Ranma you harridan!”

 

 

Shampoo heard only three words and it was those three that she chose to address, “What you mean `your' Ranma? Ranma Shampoo's airen!”

 

 

The Catholic school girl would've snorted if it wasn't such an ugly gesture, “He is not yours, you Chinese witch! Now I demand to know where you have whisked him away!”

 

 

Shampoo stood defensively, her body tensed for a fight, “Don't know what you talking about! Get out Shampoo way or you be sorry!”

 

 

Kodachi kept her ribbon moving, ready for anything, “I know you have secreted him away! He has not come to visit me lately, you must've done something!

 

 

Shampoo was not above snorting, “You so stupid, Ranma run away with Akane. Shampoo go stop them and you no get in the way!” With that Shampoo launched herself at the gymnast. She would not stand for another of Ranma's hussies to get in her way.

 

 

The two battled ferociously but Shampoo was in a hurry and aimed to maim Kodachi enough to get away, which she managed to do with a well placed kick to the gymnast's legs. With a cry Kodachi came down hard, Shampoo quickly used the girl's own ribbon to tie up her legs and made her escape.

 

 

Kodachi howled in frustration as she watched her enemy slip away. So! The little Tendou bitch had ensnared her darling Ranma! If Akane thought she could pull a fast one on Kodachi Kuno, she was sadly mistaken.

 

 

As Kodachi wriggled free from the prison Shampoo had made of her own ribbon, her older brother Tatewaki stood unnoticed amongst the bystanders that were now beginning to drift away.

 

 

The handsome young leader of Furinkan's kendo club pondered on what he had heard. It seemed that the treacherous Saotome had once again weaved his dangerous spells on his beloved Akane! His princess was in need of her knight! Tatewaki confidently shook the dark bangs out of his eyes and quickly followed Shampoo who had begun to disappear in the distance.

 

 

Kodachi looked up to see her brother sprinting after the crazed Amazon. “Brother dear! Where are you going?” She groaned her frustration when Kuno completely ignored her, “Oh…you're going to pay! You and that Akane Tendou!” With a burst of strength, Kodachi freed herself from the confines of her ribbon and swiftly went in pursuit of her brother and the Chinese bitch.

 

 

Ryoga Hibiki blinked as the dust began to settle around him, when he looked up, he could see no one familiar. He howled out in desperation. “Does anyone know how to get to the Higurashi shrine?”

 

 

 

 

 

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And that's the end of another chapter! Now to get the rest of the Nerima wrecking crew into the picture and into the hapless Feudal Era…oh my! And somehow amidst all of this there's a plot…somewhere… I knew I put it just here…Ummm….get back to me with that one! Oh…And REVIEW!