Ranma 1/2 Fan Fiction / Slayers Fan Fiction ❯ Ranma: Mazoku Factor ❯ Mazoku 4 ( Chapter 4 )

[ T - Teen: Not suitable for readers under 13 ]

Ranma: Mazoku Factor

Part 4

A duel of fate.

++++++++++++++++

Ranma stood casually as he watched Ryoga Hibiki struggle to
stay on his feet as his face smoked angrily.

"Arrrggghh! What the hell did you do to me?" snarled the lost
boy as he glared up at his enemy.

"Do?" replied Ranma calmly.

Ryoga staggered back onto his feet as the sizzling skin on
his face slowly stopped smoking. The flesh was still rotting away
slowly from his face though. "Damn!"

"That's a good look for you Ryoga," said Ranma as he smirked
at the boy.

"Just shut up and die!" snarled Ryoga hatefully as he charged
forward.

"Really Hibiki, I wouldn't talk about being dead," said Ranma
as he lashed out with his hand again and caught the boy on his
other cheek in a slap.

Ryoga screamed in agony as he fell to his knees once again.
"Aaaaarrrggghhh! What did you do to me?" The other side of his
face began to smoke as the skin peeled away slowly and smoldered.


"I'm putting you where you belong Hibiki," said Ranma calmly
as he dusted off both his hands and took a single step back.

Ryoga gasped as he saw several small white specks of powder
fall from the boy's hands. "What?"

"I doubt if this will take care of you permanently Hibiki,
but it should keep you out of my hair until I find a more
permanent solution." Ranma turned his back on Ryoga and started
to walk away.

Ryoga snarled and tried to lunge forward, but something
stopped him. He looked down and gasped. His legs were stuck into
the ground, and he was slowly sinking into the earth. "What?"

"Have a nice nap Hibiki," said the ponytailed boy as he
glanced over his shoulder and continued to walk away.

"Damn you Ranma! I'll be back!" screamed the boy angrily.

"I know," said the boy as he calmly strolled into the shocked
crowd.

The students looked on in shocked horror as Ryoga Hibiki
slowly sank into the ground. It was something that would cause
nightmares for weeks to come. Frightened muttering began to form
within the mob as they parted for Ranma as he walked through
them. He had gone silent and merely stared forward as his head
slowly sank into the dirt. The ground where he sank was little
more than a small pile of upturned soil.

Akane rushed up to Ranma and grabbed his shoulder as he left.
"What did you do to him?" she demanded.

"Huh?" said Ranma as he looked at her. His face was once
again the cheerful mask he usually wore. "Nothing really. I just
put him to sleep for a little while that's all."

"Some kind of sleeping powder?" muttered Nabiki as she moved
up beside her sister.

"You could say that," said Ranma as he held up a small bottle
of something in front of her face.

"Sleeping powder?" gasped Akane as she looked at it. "That's
crazy!"

"You're right, it is a little bit of a stretch isn't it?"
asked Ranma calmly as he glanced at her.

"A salt shaker?" muttered Nabiki as she took the small bottle
from his hand.

"Well, that is how you kill a zombie," replied the boy with a
small shrug. "That's essentially what he is, but his healing
ability will make it a merely temporary solution. I'm not sure
how long it will last, and he won't be happy when he wakes up. I
suggest we leave."

"What?" muttered Akane dumbly as she looked at the small
shaker.

"Kasumi was very kind to loan it to me, I'll have to thank
her later," said Ranma as he shrugged his shoulders and started
towards the street.

Kuno had stood silently as all this went on. He had a deep
frown on his face as he watched Ranma talk with the girls.
"Saotome, it seems you are more dangerous than I had first
imagined. This does not bode well at all."

Nabiki gave him a small gasp as she heard this and turned
away. Kuno would have to be very careful or he'd end up getting
himself killed. As much of an idiot as he was, she didn't want
that for him. Ranma was showing himself to be someone that
shouldn't be taken lightly. She walked over to his side and
grabbed his sleeve. "Let me deal with this for now. He's too
dangerous."

Kuno glanced at her for a moment with his scowl never
wavering. He seemed to ponder what she had told him for a moment.
"Very well Nabiki Tendo. Do not think I will sit idly long
though."

The girl merely nodded and started towards the gates.

++++++++++++++++

Nabiki walked with Akane a short distance behind Ranma as
they moved towards the Tendo home.

"I don't like this," she muttered under her breath.

"I don't get it either," agreed the younger girl. "How does
he do that stuff?"

"That doesn't worry me as much as what he's planning. He's up
to something Akane, I can smell it."

"So, you think he has some sort of plan?" asked the younger
girl.

Nabiki nodded. "I think we're involved somehow too. Maybe not
before he came here, but now he's planning on using us in
whatever it is he's doing."

"What? Why?" asked Akane. Her face hardened a bit more as she
glanced at his back. "Use us?"

Nabiki glanced at her sister and looked back at Ranma once
again. "He never pays attention to much, but with us, he's
showing a little too much interest for my liking, especially you
and me. He's ignored almost everyone else he's met."

"What about that Ryoga guy?" muttered Akane with an
uncomfortable looking shiver.

"He couldn't ignore him, I get the feeling he's involved too
now though."

Ranma could hear the both of them, and said nothing as he
merely continued walking. "Nabiki Tendo, you could become more
useful than I had thought," he mused to himself with a small
chuckle. Neither one of the girls noticed this.

+++++++++++++++++

Evening at the Tendo dojo was relatively quiet. Ranma didn't
speak and had his nose in a book, and neither one of the girls
related what had happened at school to anyone else.

The atmosphere was quiet and tense as they ate dinner. Kasumi
and both of the adults seemed oblivious to this, and Ranma seemed
to rather enjoy it.

At about ten o'clock, Ranma stood up and glanced at those
around him for a moment. Most everyone was relaxing and watching
a television show while waiting to go to bed. Without a word he
started towards the door.

"Where are you going?" asked Akane irritably as she noticed
the boy leaving.

"Just out for a bit, I need to check up on something," said
the boy as he stopped just in front of the door. He didn't even
bother looking back at her. "I shouldn't be long, but don't
bother waiting up."

The girl frowned and glanced over her shoulder. Nabiki was
sitting at the table, watching the events unfold. The older girl
narrowed her eyes and nodded at Akane.

Reluctantly, Akane walked back into the home and sat down.
There really wasn't anything she could do to stop him short of
beating him into submission.

Nabiki glanced at her sister. "We need to find out what's
going on. Asking him won't do us any good."

"What do we do?" asked the younger girl.

"We watch, and wait," replied Nabiki. "Sooner or later, he'll
have to reveal something. Then it's up to me to put it all
together."

Akane nodded. "All right."

+++++++++++++++++++

Ranma stood under the moonlight staring at a small patch of
dirt in the courtyard at Furinkan High. "Seems I'll have to
wait," he muttered under his breath. He walked over to a nearby
tree and leaned against it.

The night was silent and he seemed to close his eyes as he
waited patiently for almost half an hour.

Finally, the ground started to shift as the dirt pushed
itself up from below. "It's about time," commented Ranma as he
became alert immediately and walked over to the disturbance.

Ryoga Hibiki's head pushed itself out of the ground and his
eyes opened. Ranma stood over him and smirked as he watched the
boy slowly climb out of the ground.

"Saotome. Why am I not surprised to see you here?" growled
the lost boy.

"Well Hibiki. It seems we have some things to discuss.
Attacking me was rather stupid you know."

Ryoga growled and turned his eyes aside. "You know I'll kill
you sooner or later, why not get it over with?"

"Behave, or I'll put you back where I found you," said Ranma
cheerfully as he held out a canister of salt.

Ryoga's anger flared, but he became visibly relaxed. "Damn
you."

"Enjoy your nap?" asked Ranma as he walked around the boy and
looked him up and down. Ryoga was almost completely healed, if a
bit dirty. Only a few small red marks showed he'd ever been
injured in the first place.

"It was rather relaxing, once the burning stopped," growled
Ryoga as he watched the boy cautiously.

"Good, now to business," said Ranma calmly.

"What do you want from me?" snorted Ryoga.

"Nothing really. I know that you'll try to kill me again
sooner or later. Once you figure out how to avoid this new
weakness of yours that is." Ranma turned to face him again and
leaned against his staff. "You are a rather interesting piece of
work though. I imagine being a Wu is quite useful at times."

"Stuff it Saotome. I might not be able to beat you now, but
you know sooner or later I'll find a way. There's nothing you can
do to stop that."

"You'd be surprised. For now, let's be civil." Ranma glanced
over his shoulder at the building and then looked back at Ryoga.

"What do you want?" snorted Ryoga as he crossed his arms and
relaxed a bit more.

"A good training dummy. You'll work nicely, but that's not
why I'm here. You'd have become that regardless. It's nice to
know I can't kill you actually. I don't have to worry about
techniques that might get me into trouble if they're too strong
for you."

Ryoga growled and his anger flared once again. Ranma shook
the salt once again and he backed down.

"Yes, very nice," said Ranma calmly. "You do realize that
it's going to take more than what you have now to beat me don't
you? Even as a Wu, you're still a weak Wu. No match for me."

"That will change," snarled Ryoga.

"It would be rather simple for me to keep you in the ground
actually. Salt will always be a weakness too you. There's no way
for you to develop an immunity to it. It's the nature of what you
did to yourself."

Ryoga glared at him and went quiet.

"I'd just need to keep salting the ground where you sleep.
The more I use, the longer it will last. This container is good
for about a month actually." He shook the salt canister and
smirked at the lost boy. "You'd be quite helpless, and I'm sure I
could figure out a way to take care of you on a more permanent
basis with a little time. However..."

"However?" snorted Ryoga.

"I think you might be useful. I would have just killed you
and gotten it over with if that weren't the case."

"Useful? To you? Ha!" snarled Ryoga hatefully.

"You'd think not, but I'm sure I can think of something,"
said Ranma calmly. "As for your newfound powers. You don't have a
chance of beating me Hibiki. You'll just end up having to regrow
yourself again. You'll have to become much stronger than you are
now. I'd suggest a training trip, but you'd probably miss the
point and just punch a few dozen trees down before coming back to
fight again. I'd probably grow tired of that rather quickly."

Ryoga narrowed his eyes at this, but didn't argue. "What do
you want from me?"

It's much more fun for me if I don't tell you," said Ranma.
"I'll be seeing you around Hibiki."

Ryoga growled. "You're right, you will."

"Don't disappoint me."

Ryoga merely snorted and turned away. "You'll regret setting
me loose Saotome."

"I seriously doubt that Hibiki. There isn't much that I do
and regret," said Ranma to himself.

Ryoga turned towards the school gates and wandered into the
street. Ranma watched him for a moment and turned towards the
bushes nearby. "He's gone now, you can come out."

The bushes near the school building shuffled a bit and
Tatewaki Kuno stood up and glared at the boy. "So, we meet again
Saotome."

"Heh. You've been waiting there for some time have you?"

"I knew you would return sooner or later villain."

"You know just how to talk to me don't you. I'm starting to
like you."

"That causes me no end of displeasure," snorted Kuno as he
calmly walked out of his hiding place and strolled in front of
the boy. They stood for a moment regarding each other.

"Did you find out what you wanted?"

"I had suspected that thing was your creation," said Kuno as
he glanced at where Ryoga had gone.

"No, I'm afraid not. He's got focus if nothing else. He'd
have attacked me right away if he hadn't known I had this." Ranma
shook the salt in his hand once again before placing it inside
his robes.

"I see," said Kuno as he gave a short nod.

"You're worried about me are you?" asked Ranma as he glanced
at the boy for a moment.

"Worried? For you?" asked the boy with a shocked looking
frown on his face.

"About me, not for me," clarified Ranma with a small chuckle.
"Something about me bothers you doesn't it?"

"That is obvious," snorted Kuno. "You are a villain, and do
not disguise your intentions."

"Hmmm. The best place to hide is in plain sight?" asked the
ponytailed boy as his smirk returned once again.

"It would seem that is true," said Kuno.

"I wouldn't worry about me, I've got little interest in this
group. I've got my own agenda."

Kuno nodded at this. "Once again, I see that you wish to
dissuade me from interfering."

Ranma snorted at this. "Not really. Interfere all you want.
Protect those girls if it makes you feel any better. Hibiki is my
main problem so far, and he's much more dangerous than I am. He
would think nothing of using those girls to get to me. I think he
knows better though, I'm not the heroic type. I think anyway."

"Hibiki would..." said Kuno as he turned his eyes towards the
gates again.

"He would tear you apart if you got in his way. Not that it
would bother me much."

"My skill..." started Kuno. A hand in his face cut his rant
short though.

"Your skill doesn't matter. Hibiki is immortal, and
invincible by human standards. You would have to do much more
than kill him to stop him. Beating him with a stick just isn't
going to cut it. Even a sword would be of little use. He's quite
relentless as you can probably see."

Kuno growled, but hung his head. "I shall not fail."

"Perhaps, perhaps not," said Ranma as he shrugged. "Do as you
will, but Hibiki is more than you can handle as you are now.
Don't say I didn't warn you."

"How does one defeat such a monster?" growled Kuno.

"Salt," replied Ranma as he shrugged again. "It's only a
temporary solution, as you just saw. In a day or two, he'd just
come back and he'd be quite irate with whoever put him in the
ground."

"You can slay this demon?" said Kuno as he gave Ranma a
careful looking frown.

"Perhaps one day," replied Ranma as he chuckled at this and
started to walk away.

Kuno said nothing and growled in frustration.

"I wonder how he'll deal with a problem he can't beat into
submission?" said Ranma to himself as he started towards the
gates. He smirked at the wall that surrounded the grounds and
paused just in front of the gate for a moment. "To say nothing of
what Nabiki Tendo might have learned from that conversation. I
wonder if she might tell me?"

There was a small growling noise from the other side of the
wall and Nabiki stepped out. She was wearing a jacket and had her
arms crossed over her chest from the chill in the air. "Stuff
it."

"Hmmm. I suppose I should walk you home. I'm sure the parents
would appreciate that. Possibly enough to schedule a wedding in
the morning."

"I can get home on my own fine," snorted the girl irritably.

"Yes. However, it is a rather long walk. I'm sure we can talk
on the way."

The girl glanced down at the ground and started walking.

"Did you learn anything useful?"

"Only that you know more than you're letting on. Sending Kuno
after that thing wasn't a good idea either."

"Sending him?" said Ranma with a false surprise in his voice.

"You know damn well how that idiot is going to react to what
you told him!" snapped Nabiki.

"Actually, I think you're the one who's reading him wrong
here," replied Ranma. "We'll see though."

"I've known Kuno for years! There's no way I'm gonna let you
send him to die!" said the girl angrily.

"Die?" replied the ponytailed boy with another fake looking
pause for thought. "Perhaps. I'd like to think better of Hibiki
than that."

"You're going to get him killed," snarled Nabiki. "I won't
allow that."

"Well, I hope you can dissuade him if that is the case. I'd
rather think of it as a learning experience for him."

"You've had this planned for some time, haven't you?" gasped
Nabiki.

"You really think so? I've just been winging it actually,"
replied the boy as he smiled at her.

Nabiki glared at him. She could tell that was a flat out lie.
Ranma was not the type of person who did anything without some
sort of plan. He was also very good at turning conversations away
from things he didn't want to talk about, and hiding just how
well he had things planned through. He seemed to know far too
much at times, and at other times he seemed far too ignorant.

"This is some sort of game for you, isn't it?" she said
hatefully.

"Game? Why Nabiki Tendo, I do believe you're missing the
point entirely," replied the boy as he turned and grinned at her.
It wasn't his usual smile, he looked quite evil at that moment.

"Point?" she gasped as she stepped back.

"Of course, perhaps one day you'll understand."

"Why don't you just tell me now then?" she said as she
reasserted herself aggressively.

"That wouldn't be near as much fun of course," he replied
cryptically. "You're still missing a few pieces of the puzzle.
Everything will fall into place soon enough."

"What do I have to do with any of this?" she said as she
forced herself to calm down.

"Nothing," he replied with a small shrug.

"Then why are you hanging around?" she countered.

"Where else would I go?" he responded calmly.

"That's what's bothering me," was the immediate response.

"Well, as much as it irritates me, I'm not as independent as
I'd like."

Nabiki snorted and turned her head away from him. He was
pushing just the right buttons and she knew it. That probably
bothered her more than anything else, the boy was turning the
conversation exactly the way he wanted it to go. "You're using
us."

"Of course not," replied the boy with a small shrug. "Having
me around might be more useful than you imagine."

"I doubt that. I won't be manipulated so easily."

"All the more interesting," he replied as he turned the
corner.

Nabiki gasped. She was looking at the street her home was on.
The corner they had just turned was at least ten blocks from her
home. She quickly turned around and saw the street behind her was
not the one they had just walked down.

"Ah look. We're home already. I suppose we'll have to
continue this discussion later." Ranma calmly walked towards the
home and left her standing there. She was shaking visibly, from
the cold mostly, but a little shock was also apparent.

"Damn," she muttered under her breath as she realized that he
was waiting for her at the gate. She jogged forward and shoved
him aside as he tried to open the gate for her. "I'm not
helpless."

"No, that's what makes you interesting," he muttered under
his breath as he walked in behind her. If she heard him, she
didn't let on.

++++++++++++++++++++

Morning came at the dojo with its usual flair. It had been a
week since Ranma's encounter with the Hibiki boy, and it seemed
as if his rival had vanished completely. No one had heard
anything about Ryoga Hibiki since he walked away from the school
a week before.

"Boy! Pay attention!" snapped Genma as he kicked at his son.

"Huh?" muttered Ranma as he shifted out of the way clumsily.

Genma sailed over his head and landed in the koi pond with a
mighty splash.

Ranma leaned against his staff and watched the panda emerge
from the water. "Pay attention to what?"

Genma growled animalistically as he readied himself for
another attack despite his new form. Unfortunately, Kasumi's call
stopped the battle before hostilities could rise any further.

"Ranma! Mr. Saotome! Breakfast!"

Ranma vanished and appeared at the table in his usual
fashion. Genma's approach was a bit slower, but still well beyond
the speed of any normal human. The father and son pair was in
place before anyone else, and Soun and Akane were no more than
three feet away from the table when the call had been made.

"Oh my!" commented Kasumi nervously as she realized that both
of them had a plate of food, and she hadn't yet set down the meal
on the table.

Ranma paused as he ate and frowned slightly. "Hmmm? You're
not hungry Nabiki?"

The girl in question was already walking out the door with
her school bag on her shoulder. She frowned at him and looked at
her family. "Not today. I've got some things to do before class
starts."

"You really should eat breakfast Nabiki," said Kasumi with a
slight frown forming on her face. It was almost a scolding, but
not quite.

"I can afford to miss one meal," replied the girl with a
small shrug. "Don't worry so much."

"Well, I suppose if it's just this once," muttered her elder
sister uncomfortably.

"Well, you should be careful. I've got a feeling something
interesting might happen today," said Ranma as he turned back
towards his food. Genma's chopsticks were stuck in some sort of
field that surrounded his plate. The older man could not pull
them away and tugged almost violently on them. Ranma calmly took
the morsel of food the man had snagged and put it into his mouth.
The panda growled slightly at this, but quickly returned to his
own plate after his chopsticks were freed.

None of the Tendo family seemed to think much of it and the
event was largely ignored. Akane looked slightly annoyed by it,
but didn't voice it.

Ranma shrugged and went back to his meal as the girl left.

Nabiki frowned at Ranma's warning as she walked out the door.
Every day with the boy had been 'interesting' in some way or
another. For the boy to voice something like that meant that
she'd have to be extra careful.

Ranma ate somewhat slowly and deliberately as he mulled over
something. He had much better manners than his father did, but he
still ate rather quickly. It could have just been that sitting
next to his father made his speed seem normal as well. He did
seem slower than normal though and it was making even Genma
somewhat edgy at the table.

"What's with you?" grumbled Akane.

"It's nothing, just thinking over some problems. Nothing
serious anyway."

The girl frowned even deeper. "If you don't want to say, just
say so."

"Okay. I don't want to say," replied Ranma.

Akane growled at this and clenched her chopsticks a little
tighter than she should have. The wood held though and they
didn't break.

"You certainly are difficult to please," commented the boy as
he glanced at her for a moment.

With a heavy sigh, Akane decided to not let it bother her,
and promptly got even angrier. "You jerk."

"Only when it suits my needs. Otherwise I'm simply annoying."

Akane stood up and put her chopsticks over her bowl. "I'm
leaving."

Ranma merely nodded and continued to eat. Both of the adults
looked at him for a moment.

"I've got a stop to make before school today. I'm afraid I'll
be late no matter what."

They both blinked at this and neither one thought or cared
enough to ask. The meal went on as Akane walked out the door.

++++++++++++++++++++++

Meanwhile, in a forest just outside Nerima...

Jiro sat with Sato on a rock overlooking a beautiful valley.
It was tiny and little more than a dip between two large hills in
the forest. The view was quite stunning, and they were alone.
Both of them were wearing hiking gear and seemed to be merely
taking in the scenery.

"Jiro! It's beautiful!"

"Yeah. I thought you might like to see it," said the man as
he grinned at her.

"Wow. I never thought I'd see anything like this so close to
Tokyo," said the girl as she brushed her ponytail back over her
shoulder again. "It's amazing!"

"Yeah, and quiet. There's no one out here but us," said the
boy as he put his arm around her shoulder. She leaned her head
against his shoulder and sighed in contentment.

"I'm glad you decided to share this..."

"Yeah. It's a great spot..." His voice trailed off as he
cocked his head. "What's that noise?"

"Huh? What noise...?" Sato paused. It was very quiet, but
quickly growing louder. It was a most unusual sound that she
couldn't quite place.

"It's coming from behind..." started Jiro. It was a high
pitched thumping sound, almost like a whine, but rhythmic. They
both turned and looked towards the tree line and noticed
something moving in the trees.

"Get down!" screamed Jiro as he jumped over Sato and shoved
her to the ground. A long yellow disk shot out of the tree line
just over them and screamed across the air just above them.

Sato put her head up and stared at it as it continued
forward. "What the hell was that?"

A painful sounding groan sounded from the forest behind them
and the pair looked on in silent horror as the trees behind them
began to topple like dominoes. The entire forest resounded with
the crackling boom of trees hitting the ground all around them.
Remarkably, the pair was unscathed.

"Holy shit!" cried Jiro as he started to climb to his knees
after things settled down.

Both of them froze though when a figure walked out of the
mess and looked down at them.

"Who the..." muttered Jiro dumbly.

"No! It's coming back!" cried Sato as she pointed behind her.
Jiro threw himself on top of her and pinned her to the ground as
the whirring sound started again. This time he got a good look at
it though as it screamed towards them. It was ten feet in
diameter and spinning at an amazing rate of speed.

The figure standing over them merely watched calmly as it
bore down on him.

"Look out that thing is...!" started Jiro.

The boy merely reached up his hand and caught the spinning
disk in his hand. It seemed to fly into a thousand pieces that
spun off into the forest hacking limbs and small trees behind
him. Deep gashes could be seen in some of the tree trunks as the
boy held on to what he caught. He shook it one time and calmly
tied it around his forehead.

"Forgive me. I thought I was alone in these woods. Could you
tell me where Furinkan High School is?"

"Huh?" was the stereo reply.

++++++++++++++++

Ranma Saotome smirked as he looked at the sign in front of
Dr. Tofu's clinic. He was standing outside simply looking at it
for a moment without so much as a hint of reason.

The boy spoke while he was looking up at the sign. "Good
morning doctor."

Tofu paused, he was walking down the sidewalk with a bag
under his arm of groceries. The boy turned to face him and seemed
to look him over without moving from where he was standing.

"Good morning," said the doctor politely. Ranma noticed the
man tense up though and arched his eyebrow slightly.

"Do I make you nervous Doctor?" asked the boy calmly.

The man flushed slightly at his own reaction. "Not really,
you just surprised me."

"Yes, practicing martial arts I see. Anything can be made
into a training exercise if properly executed. Your stealth
techniques are quite impressive."

"I'm surprised you noticed me," admitted the man.

"I have other ways of sensing things, but that's not why I'm
here," said the boy with a small shrug.

"Ahem. Then why are you here, if I might ask?" said the older
man as he adjusted his glasses.

"Why don't we go inside, and have a cup of tea while we
discuss things?" said the boy cheerfully. "I'm certain you'll
find it most interesting."

"Oh! How rude of me!" exclaimed the man as he started to walk
towards the door. "Please come in."

Ranma merely nodded and followed silently.

+++++++++++++++++++

Tofu set a cup of tea in front of Ranma and made one for
himself as they sat at a small kitchen table in the back of the
office. "I should have patients arriving soon, but we have a
little time."

Ranma nodded and accepted the cup. He peered into it for a
moment before taking a sip. "Ah. The people of this area do know
how to make a good cup."

"Thank you," said the man as he nodded.

"Moxibustion and acupuncture, two arts that are considered
mystical in some circles."

"Modern medicine doesn't take a lot into account, it's true.
I am also a licensed chiropractor," said the man as he shrugged.

"Still, you have a unique practice here. Most of the clinics
I've seen are run by half witted hacks and misunderstanding
fools. You were quite fortunate to have such a good teacher."

Tofu nodded. "Yes. Although I hate to brag, I did have
several very good instructors. Even though I am largely self
taught."

"It's the only real way to learn," said Ranma with a small
shrug. "Something I understand better than most would."

The man nodded. "So, that's it is it?"

"Our arts are not as dissimilar as you might imagine Tofu.
You focus on manipulating the spirit through the body, adjusting
the flow of energy through the joints and pressure points. Quite
useful I imagine. I merely find ways to manipulate the same
energies without the use of physical stimulation."

"Very interesting," said the man as he frowned slightly. It
was more a contemplative gesture than anything else. "I wouldn't
have thought it possible actually. Manipulating energy is
difficult enough as it is."

"Only if you don't know how. It's all a matter of focus and
training. Plus, there are a few more far fetched extremes
involved. I won't go into that now."

"Perhaps later?" said the man as he pushed his glasses up his
nose again.

"That's an interesting gesture. I can see that you don't like
the way it sounds much."

"I'm eager to understand more," said the man as he forced his
hand down onto the table to stop the nervous movement.

"I'm certain you are. Perhaps we can exchange information
sometime. I'm sure there's a problem or two you're eager to see
vanish if at all possible."

Tofu narrowed his eyes at this. "I'm listening."

"That's a long involved discussion for a later time. I'm
fairly certain that Kasumi Tendo will remain unattached for some
time."

The man gasped at this. "You...know about that?"

"That you're highly allergic to her? Yes I do."

"Allergic?" muttered the man dumbly.

"You didn't know?" said Ranma as he arched his eyebrow at the
man and smiled. "How interesting. I assumed if anyone could spot
an allergic reaction, it would be you."

Tofu had a somewhat sullen look on his face as he stared at
the table.

"In any case, there are more pressing matters I've come to
discuss."

"Huh?" said the man as he looked up at the boy in confusion.

"I've encountered a rather nasty tempered Wu, he's probably
roaming around the area near here. This one is quite dangerous,
but he's also somewhat useful. The medical benefits of such a
technique alone are enough to pique your interests I'm sure.
However, controlling him is somewhat problematic."

"A...Wu?" muttered Tofu dumbly.

"It's a human without a soul. A zombie of sorts actually.
Salt will contain him for a time, but his healing abilities make
it a less than permanent solution. I need a way to keep him in
check if need be."

"You were hoping I would help you out with it?" said the man
suspiciously.

"Not in so many words. I'm aware of how much you trust me.
However, this is something I'd rather not deal with alone if I
don't have too. You see, he's immortal, and can heal himself
quite easily from any injury. That includes decapitation or the
loss of limb."

"That's a little hard to believe," said Tofu as he frowned at
the boy. "You're right about one thing. I don't trust you, you've
got a bad aura."

"A byproduct of my art, I assure you. However, I'm also aware
that it will take more than my word to convince you of this. I'm
not about to go off and say I'm completely trustworthy either.
However, the presence of something this dangerous should allow
for a bit more leeway between us."

"An alliance of sorts?" asked the man as he frowned at the
boy.

"You could say that. I've got my own agenda, and it shouldn't
really pose a problem for you. I doubt if we'll find ourselves at
odds."

Tofu nodded and sipped at his tea calmly. "I see."

"I'd rather think of it as a business arrangement. I can
supply you with knowledge and items that you would find
difficulty finding on your own."

"I've got good sources for what I need."

"Mine are better, and more direct," said Ranma.

"You've got my attention, but not much else," said Tofu as he
leaned forward.

"I didn't expect more," replied Ranma with a small shrug. "In
any case, I can help you with your unique problem."

"What?" muttered Tofu quietly.

"It will take a bit of time, but I think it can work out well
for us. We can both get what we want, and you can leave with your
conscience intact when it's all over."

"That's the part I have trouble believing," replied Tofu.

"Really? That's fixed easily enough." Ranma stood up and
picked up his staff. "Be at Furinkan High when the final bell
rings this in exactly one week. Any unpleasant feelings about
this deal will likely be dealt with then."

"What do you mean?" said Tofu as he frowned at the boy.

"You'll see. Be sure to bring a shaker of salt. I'll put all
your doubts to rest then."

+++++++++++++++++++

Ranma walked into the gates of Furinkan casually. His face
was stern and he moved quickly despite his relaxed posture.
"Soon, things will begin to move more quickly. I need to be
ready." He glanced up at the sky and chuckled at the dark clouds
that began to form over his head. "Still, there's time enough to
prepare the players in my little game. It's time I made the first
move, the others should arrive soon enough."

++++++++++++++++++++

Ranma Saotome stood outside his classroom with a pair of
buckets in his hands. He didn't seem very upset with the
punishment and took it rather well.

"Hmmm. I'm surprised the teacher had the guts to do this to
me with everything that's gone on for the past few days or so."

He was calm as usual as he stood there patiently waiting to
be let back into class again. It had been a relatively quiet day
so far, but it was just starting and he knew it.

++++++++++++++++++++

Ryoga Hibiki stood on a mountainside staring at the scenery
before him. The valley below him was dark and foreboding. Dead
trees could be seen spotting the harsh rocky ground below him.
"Where am I?" he muttered to himself with a frown forming on his
face. He had little fear of course, his condition made him
impossible to kill really. Anything he met would find a hard
battle, and it would end with his escape eventually, or him
wearing whatever sort of monster he found down. With a casual
shrug he walked forward into the valley. "Can't be any worse than
I am."

After about an hour of walking he found himself standing in
front of an unusual looking rock formation. It was two stone
pillars with another slab of stone resting on top, forming a sort
of gateway from the look of it. It was a gateway to nothing
though as there was no wall or any other object blocking the
sides. It was just sitting in the middle of nowhere.

"Who would put something like this here?" he muttered as he
looked it up and down.

"Someone who wishes to keep something hidden I'd imagine.
Doorways like this are rare indeed," said an unfamiliar voice. It
was old and weak, like that of an old man on his final legs of
life.

Ryoga slowly turned to face the old man and stared at him.
"What do you know about this thing?"

The man looked to be in his eighties, he leaned over a
walking stick and had a hooded cape hiding his body from view. "A
great deal my boy. I suggest you leave, it's dangerous to be
here."

Ryoga snorted at this. "There isn't anywhere I can go that's
dangerous to me."

"My, aren't you full of confidence?" asked the man with an
amused sounding tone in his voice. "Still, such magic is best
left untouched. It is powerful, difficult to control, and taxing
on the soul."

Ryoga merely turned to look at the stones once again. "What
does it do?"

The old man was grinning now, Ryoga could almost hear it in
his tone. "Why, it's a gateway of course. A gateway to a place
where men cannot tread."

Ryoga nodded at this. "What's there then?"

The old man merely turned away and started to hobble off.
"That is an interesting question indeed Hibiki."

Ryoga was too engrossed in watching the stones to listen, or
notice the golden eyes of the figure as he glanced back at him
from the shadows of his hood. "A very interesting question
indeed."

Ryoga stepped towards the stones. "I guess I'll have to
figure it out myself. If it will help me defeat Ranma, I
shouldn't ignore it."

The old man paused. "You wish to defeat someone?"

"Yes," said Ryoga as he glared at the doorway.

"Then you have come to a very good place indeed boy."

A dusty wind blew and obscured the old man from view. Ryoga
narrowed his eyes as the dust finally settled and he found
himself alone. "I get the feeling, I was supposed to find this
place."

He stared forward at the open space between the two pillar
stones and reached forward with his hand. Words began to form in
his head, words he could not understand, and doubted if anyone
living could. "Wha?"

Out of the whispered voices a single more powerful voice
called out to him. "You seek power?"

"I want to destroy Ranma Saotome," he replied simply.

"You have no soul to give...but to destroy Ranma Saotome?"
The voice almost sounded interested. "That, we shall see about."

"Huh?" muttered Ryoga as he pulled his hand away from the
opening.

"Step through young warrior, and discover the power you so
desire," offered the voice darkly. It was strong and firm, yet
somehow inviting in an uncomfortable way.

"You can help me defeat Ranma?"

"You will become much stronger," said the voice cryptically.
"As for destroying Ranma Saotome. That is something even I cannot
promise. He is strong, and dangerous, more so than I think you
realize. Come, perhaps you can be of some use to me in ridding
ourselves of such a bothersome thorn in both of our sides."

Ryoga closed his eyes to think about it for a mere moment.

"All right."

+++++++++++++++++++++++

"I sense a disturbance in the force," said Ranma as he paused
in the middle of the street suddenly.

Akane and Nabiki both looked back at him. He was standing in
front of Tofu's office and simply stared at it.

"What are you looking at?" snapped Akane angrily.

"Something dark and strong has been awakened," said Ranma
calmly. He pointed with his staff. "That way."

"What?" said Nabiki dumbly.

"What should we do about it?" snorted the younger girl
irritably.

"At the moment? Nothing. We'll be seeing it soon enough I
think. It's best to use time like this to relax and enjoy
ourselves. The time to fight will come soon enough."

Akane blinked at this, and Nabiki found herself slightly
unnerved.

"Why does it sound like we'll be involved with this to me?"
asked Nabiki as she frowned at him.

Ranma turned to look at her with a rather blank expression.
"Oh, I wouldn't worry too much. That comes later I think."

"What's that supposed to mean?" grumbled Akane as she crossed
her arms over her chest.

"Mean? Do you look for meaning in everything in life?"
responded the boy as he chuckled a little. "Some things just
happen."

"Yeah. Like you," grumbled Nabiki as she frowned at him.

"Now you're getting it," said the ponytailed boy a little too
cheerfully. "Sometimes the best way to deal with this sort of
thing is to just ignore it for a while."

"In other words, you hope this thing you claim to feel will
just leave us alone, and that you don't have to bother with it,"
said Nabiki flatly.

"Oh. I suppose that is what I mean then," replied Ranma as he
shrugged his shoulders and started walking.

"In any case, we've probably got a few days to rest a bit
before anything of real interest happens," replied the ponytailed
boy as he shrugged again. "There's no point in worrying about it
anyway."

Akane found herself frustrated, but couldn't quite find the
words to voice it. She merely snorted and started walking again.
Nabiki followed immediately after her and didn't pay any more
attention to her fiancee.

Ranma didn't seem to care much and simply looked at the
office in front of him. "I wonder..." He didn't move for about a
minute and focused his attention on the doors. "Ah well. In time,
that too will be answered."

+++++++++++++++++++++

Tofu stood in his office alone. His thoughts filled his mind
as he looked at the back wall of the practice and said nothing.
"It's so strong even I can feel it. Not that far away, but still
contained somehow. This isn't good." He paused when he realized
that something was off outside the clinic. "Wha?"

He made it to the doorway just in time to see Ranma Saotome
turning away. The boy walked slowly and methodically, tapping his
cane on the pavement with each step. Ranma didn't look back at
him, but had a serious expression on his face as he moved towards
the Tendo home. "Something is up?" muttered Tofu. "Well,
something has definitely gotten his attention anyway. I wonder if
this is related to that Wu he was talking about?"

Tofu had read up a bit on Wu over the course of the past few
days. He'd had to go into the restricted section of the Tokyo
library to even find a single reference. The only thing he found
was a rather vague paragraph in an old Chinese Mythology book.
Needless to say, although he'd never admit it, he was growing
very interested in what he might see in the coming week.

++++++++++++++++++++++++

Three days later...

A shadowy figure strolled through the trees of a dark and
thick forest in the wilds of Japan. If you could consider three
miles outside the city 'the wilds'. His pace was methodical and
he had little fatigue in his step, despite many days of hard
training and walking. "At last. The time has come Saotome. I
shall face you and destroy you for certain this time!"

Ryoga Hibiki laughed as he turned around one of the trees and
found himself looking at a street. "Is this Tokyo?" It was a back
road, but it did lead into the city. He cracked his knuckles as
he started down the street, taking care to remain on the
pavement. Roads usually lead him somewhere, so it was a good idea
to follow it until he could get his bearings straight.

Several hours later he found himself standing in a small poor
looking neighborhood. There were children running around with no
shoes and second hand clothes, and a few students hanging around
the neighborhood in uniform despite the late hour. School had
ended more than four hours before.

He found himself standing in front of a local convenience
store and decided to stop and see if he could figure out where he
was exactly. It was uncomfortably warm outside, but heat didn't
bother him much. He was basically out of sweat from his travels
anyway, and he was feeling a little dry. It wasn't like he could
dehydrate or anything though.

A soda machine hummed quietly next to him and he glanced at
it. With a small shrug, he decided that a small comfort like a
drink was within his budget. He reached into his pocket and dug
out a few coins. It was basically all he had left.

With a simple shove of his hand, he pushed the button for a
cola and waited for it to clank down to his waiting hand. He
popped the top and drank deeply, enjoying the cool sensation for
a moment.

When he was through he turned and started walking again.
There was nothing of any real interest to see in the area. He
couldn't make out any landmarks, and the neighborhood looked
unfamiliar too him. Not that many did look all that familiar, in
fact, they all looked pretty much the same as far as he was
concerned.

Being reminded of his curse enraged him once again. "Damn.
That stupid Saotome! I'll make him suffer for this!" He started
to run deeper into the streets, his yearning for revenge driving
him harder and harder to find his enemy.

About a half-hour of running later, Ryoga Hibiki stopped cold
in his tracks. His eyes went wide and he simply stood in the
middle of the road, not caring about the cars honking angrily at
him as he blocked traffic.

Slowly he began to pat down his clothes, but his pace
quickened to an almost frantic searching. "Where?"

The boy fell to his knees as he clutched his head in agonized
terror. "Oh shit! It's gone!"

A group began to form on the sidewalk muttering in pity and
just plain disgust.

"Shameful."

"Sounds like he lost something important!"

"Still, making such a scene!"

"It'll probably still be where ever he left it anyway. This
isn't America you know."

Ryoga didn't hear any of this. His heart raced as he spun
around and around in search of something he couldn't bear to
lose. The soda machine was nowhere in sight, and he was probably
more than a mile away from it. He didn't even have a clue about
where he was when it happened.

Ryoga Hibiki had just spent his soul on a can of soda,
literally.


"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAUUUUUUUUUU UUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUG
GGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!"
++++++++++++++++++++++++++

TBC...