Ranma 1/2 Fan Fiction ❯ The Way of the Beast ❯ Chapter Three ( Chapter 3 )

[ P - Pre-Teen ]

Disclaimer: This is a parody inspired by the works of Ms. Takahashi. All characters that I have not created or borrowed from other sources are his. This is a Fan fiction and not meant to violate the rights of those who own the rights to the Ranma One Half series .I have no money and therefore not a good suing target. Thank you very much.

The Way of the Beast

Chapter Three

'Information is power and power is money. Words to live by, words which have kept my family and myself in the black for the most part. Which was why I'm asking questions on topics which I would normally ignore. Martial arts are just not me, except when they seem to mimic the superpowers of characters in manga. Or when they seem to reveal something which my father seemed to have chosen to hid from my sisters and myself. Either one of those reasons is important to know for possible future use for benefits they can provide.

Curses, chi based animal powers, hidden secrets of the Anything School... I don't like not knowing everything about a situation. Especially if I can figure it out, since this means I can't see what effects it would have on all of our lives. I am going to have to keep my eyes on Ranma and his father, as well as try to get more information from daddy about what he has been keeping from us. Or more exactly, what Mr. Saotome has convinced him to add to the school of Tendo style Anything Goes.' thought Nabiki as she began to write into a notebook to sketch the ideas she had in her head. The more thoughts she could get down, the more she could organize them into a pattern.

So far on the note pad page were three circles with different headings. Curses, Beast First and Secrets. From those circles came lines with different major ideas or questions. Things like secret master requirements, secret engagements, mysterious masters and such just from the Secrets heading.

'Another question is why Kasumi was interested in what Ranma was saying? Is it just because he was more mature then most of the other boys his age, living up to the maturity she felt older men had. Which also asked the question why Ranma is so mature, given that he had learnt biology and not manners. Learning languages at such a young age should make him less skilled in his native language. More mysteries which need answers, answers I want.

So what am I going to do to get those answers?' asked Nabiki to herself as she prepared for bed and the school in the morning. As she drifted off to sleep, she wondered what would happen when Ranma met the Hentai Horde... or Kuno when they ran into Akane.

The next morning...

Akane was just returning from her run, making a few kicks and punches in the air as she tried to reflect on Ranma and his art. Also on the secrets which seemed to be linked with the mastership of her school of martial arts. It did cause her to ask herself, 'What do I love so much which I would want to turn into a martial arts? Or what could I base a martial arts on which I could keep up with?'

She walked into gates of her home... only to step back out of the yard of her home. What had forced her back was the show of Ranma and his father sparring with each other, spending most of their time in the air. Quick kicks and punches were being exchanged between the two of them with rapid speed, not wolf like speed but still above human. She slipped by them to the dinning room where her father was at the table reading the paper.

Nabiki was coming down from her room with a toothbrush in her mouth and her pajamas. She seemed irratated since she was not a morning person as she said, "They sure seem to be full of pep this morning."

Her father just nodded as Kasumi came into the room with a pot of food, "Mr. Saotome, Ranma, let's have some dinner shall we?"

This did not stop the two male Saotomes from fighting in that instant, they continue to exchange punches. This continued until they jump apart from each other. Akane could not argue with the facts, "I guess that they are both pretty good."

"So energenic," said Kasumi as she sat at the table for the meal.

"Okay Ranma, let's break for breakfast," said Genma as he prepared for a final push of martial arts when he jumped up again. Ranma did his own jumping and they exchanged punches again, but this time Genma took a moment to make a punch which forced Ranma into the Tendo koi pond. A girl emerged from the water looking at her father as he laughed and said, "You're getting sloppy, Ranma."

"Only because I was trying for pure Anything Goes style rather then Beast Fist style, if I had used the Seijuuken I would not have been in the water. You know that, right Panda?" asked the new girl as she sent a wave of water to her father, which was replaced by a panda in his clothes.

Akane watched at the older male Saotome, try to drown the new female Saotome. She watched wide eyed as she heard her eldest sister say, "I guess that Mr. Saotome is going to need some else to eat."

Akane turned when she heard the banging of something on the table, which revealed a pile of cooked bamboo. Ranma looked up and said, "You might want to avoid giving pops bamboo, gives him unbelievable gas and the runs. Not sure why, since that's all that pandas are suppose to eat."

Later...

Ranma had taken to going to their school well enough, even if he wasn't wearing a uniform. Given his curse this might be a must for him to deal with sudden changes. Akane had expected for Nabiki to leave guiding Ranma to their school in her hands, but her elder sister had decided to walk with them. From what she was beginning to say, Akane was guessing Nabiki is more curious about this strange boy.

"So how come you're so good at Japanese, given you experience with other languages?" asked Nabiki, for some reason Akane was not sure about.

"Martial arts linguistic, a type of ninjutsu for the learning of languages. The uses of deception and hidden meanings in multiple languages including body language, which is useful for the combat arts. The way my father brought me up, martial arts was a basic building block in my life. If a subject could be translated into a format of combative training, I could learn and absorb it better then if it was just left on it's own.

It's the man reason I was able to pick up my biology lessons so fast, was the fact it was for my master level training. One of the zookeepers at one of the zoos I was a master of both linguistics ninjutsu and etiquette style kendo, the latter being a style to mix the combat style of samurai with the manner of a nobleman or their servant. She came from a unique kind of family, the reunions were filled with verbal combat." finished Ranma as he seemed to be speaking of two martial arts which had to be a joke, who would have heard of verbal martial arts.

"You have to be kidding. Linguistics ninjutsu and etiquette style kendo, you really want us to believe those kind of martial arts exist?" asked Nabiki, as she rolled her eyes at the comment.

"You wouldn't believe the number of things people have turned into fighting schools. I have seen..." started Ranma as he jumped off the fence he had been walking on. Only to come into range of a woman spreading water on the street as part of a japanese ritual, which had the expected result. Exit male Ranma and enter female Ranma.

"Okay, does anyone know of a place where I can get warm water?" asked Ranma as she tried to wring out her clothing.

They took a detour to a place the Tendo family knew well, it was a little medical clinc in one of the buildings on the way to the high school. Akane was taking the lead as Nabiki followed her and Ranma took up the rear.

"We should be able to borrow some warm water here, but you got to admit you deserved it for making up those stories." said Akane as she opened the door to the main clinc room.

"Wasn't making it up. Anyways if it wasn't for the fact I didn't want to arrive on the first day of school as a girl, we wouldn't be here. I just didn't want people mistaking me for a girl who turns into a boy instead of the truth." answered Ranma as she continued to try and dry out her clothes, even if she was just going to get the wet again.

"Worse, we're all going to be late." continued Ranma as she took a better look around. It was then the skeleton hand touched her shoulder, causing her to jump and climb the open door. She turned as the door started to swing, to show a skeleton which soon scratched it's head.

"Pardon me, " came the falsetto voice of a man, who appeared behind the skeleton as he took his full height. He was a brown haired man in circle glasses in what looked like a bluish-black gi of some kind. He was wearing his hair in a ponytail.

"Hi, no need to worry. This is my skeleton, Betty. Lovely complexion, don't you think?" asked the man as Ranma still hung from the door.

"Relax Ranma, this is just our family doctor. Dr. Tofu meet Ranma Saotome, she's a friend who's family is staying with us for the time being. My sister needed to run in and get some hot water for Ranma." said Nabiki as she tried to help Ranma down from the door, only to have the door slam shut when Akane ran back into the room.

The door swung open again as the redhead's hands throbbed in pain as she entered the room. Tofu-sensei looked at Akane and asked her, "So no injuries today then? Nothing wrong?"

"No, Tofu-sensei. I haven't been doing anything which would cause any damage for a while now." Akane lowered her head as she began to hide her blushing so her sister and Ranma could not see it, If she had looked at Ranma, she would have seen a look of understanding on the redhead's face.

"Guess, we'll be going. We don't want to miss the bell for school, thanks Tofu-sensei." said Nabiki as she almost dragged the other two women out of the room.

Later on the way to high school...

Ranma was running on the face as Nabiki and Akane were on the ground. He had been answering Nabiki's questions on the top of his curse and his martial arts, which he was guessing was based on her desire for understanding what she didn't know. He had no skill with human psychology but he had some understanding of animal behaviour including human behaviour. He was also detecting the behaviours of Akane with regard to Dr. Tofu.

"So Dr. Tofu is a good martial artist, he seems to have the ability to sneak up on me without making a sound and has a above average amount of ki. Likely great in his line of work, she he can use his own ki to heal other people's life force." said Ranma as he made his observation on the matter clear.

Akane looked at the boy on the fence and had to agree, "He's a really good martial artist even if he doesn't look like it, but I didn't know about the chi ability. I can just remember all of the times I got hurt and we go to him so he could make it better. He always succeeded in making me feel better after I saw him then when I came in."

"So this is why your attracted to men like the emotional mature Tofu-sensei, rather then boys our age? Like your sister Kasumi, to a degree?" asked Ranma, as he mentioned what he had discovered.

Akane stopped for a second as it registered before she continued, "I guess you're right. I like men more then I like boys. In fact I hate boys because of the way they act..."

With this Akane jumped up into the air as a horde of young men approached where Ranma and Tendos were walking. She began to fight with the boys as they all proceeded to ask her out on a date. Ranma turned to Nabiki and asked her, "What's this about?"

"It's a long story. Either Akane or me will explain it to you later. Don't worry about it since Akane is one of the best fighter in the school, and the boys want to date her and not deck her. Unfortunately there's another problem which is going to appear soon, we might as well move into the school. You to get out of her way and me to meet my friends." explained Nabiki as she headed to the school yard. Ranma moved to the gate while avoiding boys, either standing up or laying down.

He jumped on the wall of the school yard to watch Akane finish her battle which was done in record time, only a few minutes after eight thirty. She let out a sigh and said, "You think they would have learnt by now..."

It was then a rose was fired out at Akane, who caught it with amazing skills. She seemed to groan as Ranma noticed the sky start to darken and thunder rolled. A voice rang out, "Unearthly or happy is the rose distilled which whithering on the virgin thorn grows, lives and dies in single blessedness."

The dark haired older boy in a blue shirt and black pants, dressed up to resemble a samurai. Which is wooden sword matched perfectly as he continued to speak, "These WEAKLINGS are a boorish lot. They fought for the pleasure of your compnay Akane, if only the could defeat you that is. What fools these mutants be."

The thunder rolled again as Akane took her time to answer, "Oh Kuno, excuse me please."

"Oh, though she be little, she be fierce. Wilst thou spar with me?" asked the older boy which Ranma guessed was name Kuno, as he moved his sword from the side and pointed at Akane.

"I guess that you're popular with the boys, Akane." said Ranma as he jumped down to stand next to her.

"Just stand out of the way or you're going to get hurt." said Akane as she looked hard and intense at the boy.

Before Ranma could speak, Kuno started to talk again as he pointed his wood at Ranma, "You there? You are being offly familiar with Akane?"

"Well, yeah? But..."

"Yeah, but what Ranma?" asked Akane as she turned to not look at the boy in the red top with the curse.

"Who do you think you are, you insolant whelp? Tell me how you know Akane?"

"I'm..."

"Wait... Is it not the custom to give one's own name first? Well, then mine I shall give. I am the undefeated captain of this school's kendo. The rising new star of the high school fencing world, the sound of my voice strikes fear into my foes. My peers call me the Blue Thunder of Furinkan High, Tatewaki Kuno, age seventeen."

In the school, in her class room Nabiki was standing with her friends. After being asked if she knew about this a head of time, Nabiki responded, "Nope, last I heard he was calling himself Shooting Star."

Back in the yard with Ranma, Kuno and Akane... Ranma was trying to understand what to say next.

"I'm Ranma Saotome, age sixteen. I'm a student of the Saotome school of Anything Goes martial arts, and my father plus me are staying in the Tendo Martial Arts Training Hall."

"You're staying at the Tendo's , under the same roof as the beautiful Akane?" aske Kuno as he charged with his wooden sword as Ranma jumped out of the way.

"Akane, can you please hold my bag. Thanks, " said Ranma as he tossed her the bag before he continued, "I accept your challenge. Shell of the Tortoise."

They two fighters stopped for a moment as a crowd gather at the windows before Kuno answed for this challenge, "The vengence of heaven is slow but sure. So you have been hounding Akane? I, Tatewaki Kuno, shall bring you to justice."

"No, I do not go after a woman who says no to me. Or fight her for no reason, like it looks like you and these guys are doing. You'll have better luck with flowers or chocolates. So are you going to make a move or am I going to have to make the first move?"

Lightning strike as Kuno charged again, sword in hand, "Silence, fool!"

Kuno charged straight at Ranma but the boy took his moment to study the opponent with the weapon. He waited for the moment to make the right move, and did so when Kuno moved into an overhead swing. Ranma jumped and dodged out of the range of the blade, which continued with it's path and the momentum of the older man's run, and struck a crack into the wall of the yard.

'Hmm, air pressure or something from the look at it. He barely touched the wall and it split open like a torn paper door. I'm going to need something stronger then a shield of tortoise shell, maybe use something more dense or old school. The closest I can think of are crustaceans or Ankylosaur like dinos, so let's try the latter for it's size and strength.' thought Ranma as he called out, "Shell of the Anklosaur."

This occured while Ranma moved to stand on the side of a tree, only for Kuno to move his blade to slice down the tree Ranma had been on. Ranma was working on some kind of combination move which could end this quickly, the idea of being able to regenerate his injuries were poping up again and again. Either that or trying to avoid being hit by the attack in the first place.

"Hey, your slippery devil!"

"Wait a minute..." said Ranma as he moved in quickly to fight against the swordman, who used it blade to try and jab at Ranma with his wooden sword. Ranma continued to speak and he avoided the sword points looking for weakness, "If you want to go out with Akane, it's alright with me. I'm not the one who is the one to decide the matter, it's all up with Akane. But I think you're blowing your chances with her given the way you have been acting."

"I will not allow you to insult me or insult the woman I love. Hold still so I can bring justice down on you." said Kuno as he charged again. Ranma jumped out of the way and then moved into a downward motion while saying something no one could hear. The he moved to strike at Kuno, who movied into the position with his sword to attack Ranma. All of this as lightning started to strike down at the earth, as the storm built up. They moved into a freeze where the sword was just inches from Ranma's neck and Ranma held his finger on Kuno's head.

This was broken by a panda running in quickly by holding a kettle before he grabbed Ranma, who seemed to have gained red hair, and rushing into the school. Ranma could feel the point on his neck where Kuno's air strike had bruised him, which was healing with a starfish's regenerative abilities. Self-healing could be dangerous since cancer was mostly based on cell duplicating out of control, but his ki it's self would act as a regulator for the power he was borrowing from the animal kingdom. If he even lost conciousness, the instinctive power of his ki would keep his body from killing it's self since the power was ki based.

This didn't mean that a natural form of cancer or any other disease could effect him, but he had a greater tolerance against such illnesses given his control of his own life force energies. As he healed, he now just had to answer the question which was obvious given his position.

"What the hell is pops thinking?"