Happi’s Redemption
A Ranma One Half Fan Fiction
By Michael A. Ivins
Ranma along with all of his friends, enemies and acquaintances are the property of Takahashi Rumiko. I’m just borrowing them for my own amusement and hopefully that of my readers. Sailor Moon and the Senshi aren’t mine either. Please don’t sue me.
This story takes place after the end of the manga.
Chapter 6
What is This Feeling?
The travelers stopped when they were a short way from the Joketsuzoku border late that afternoon. They made camp in an isolated clearing. So as not to give their position away with smoke, Ranma used a small one burner camp stove. He had used ordinary camp fires with dry wood from the forest before.
The stove burned with a blue flame that didn’t give off any visible smoke and not much light. This allowed them to cook before it got dark. They didn’t want to use the stove after dark because low light wasn’t the same as no light and the flame would be visible in the dark.
Having had a day to recover from her transformation, Noriko found that her ki was returning to the levels they were before when she had been Happosai. In fact her ki reserves seemed to be greater than they had before. She speculated that it was due to her now having a female body to go with her female soul.
Now that her ki was back to the level it had been at before she could use it to enhance her movements in speed and strength. The drawback to that with her weaker muscles was that overuse of ki to boost her movements could strain those muscles. That kind of boost would have to be used sparingly.
She gave it some thought. If need be, Noriko could raise an impressive battle aura. It wouldn’t quite come up to the level of power that Ranma could manifest, but for a simple display, she could do enough to be intimidating. If it came to a fight she could still throw Happo Dikarin, her ki enhanced firecrackers. She could also do the ki draining move she had taught to Ms. Hinako.
That brought her to another train of thought. Teaching that technique to the young girl had saved her life. The problem was that it made her something of an outcast. Noriko would have to devote some time to finding a way to turn the girl to normal. It would likely be tricky to do.
If she was going to be correcting past mistakes, she should give consideration to the name of Pantyhose Taro. Would he even accept a new name when it came from a young blonde woman instead of a shriveled up old gnome? That was a problem to think about later.
She thought about the things she had stolen from the Amazons. While it was true that the Amazons hadn’t been using the stuff, that didn’t change the fact that it was theirs. Maybe now that she had a new body and a younger brain she might be able to remember what she did with all of the items she had taken. Recovering most of them would likely be hard but that was also something to think about later.
For the Nanban Mirror, she figured she would give it to Cologne when they got back to Japan. Knowing the old crone, she’d probably say it was too little, too late. Oh well, it was mostly just a gesture anyway.
As the sun dropped below the horizon Noriko couldn’t avoid a slight shiver. Without a campfire it was rather cold in the mountains of China. Unbidden, another of those girlish thoughts came to her mind. She pictured Ranma sitting next to her putting an arm around her to warm her.
Unfortunately for Noriko, Ranma wasn’t receiving any telepathic messages. He went to his tent and said, “With no fire for warmth we’d better get into our bedrolls.”
It was with some difficulty that Noriko resisted the urge to pout. Even if she used to be an old man, she was a young girl now and she felt the strong urge to snuggle with a cute boy. She was surprised at herself for feeling that way, but decided to embrace the feeling. She was going to be a woman for the rest of her life, after all.
Suppressing her feelings, she followed Ranma’s suggestion. She still had to wonder why she was reacting this way after three centuries of being a man. Not just any man at that. She had been one of the most perverted men alive (or at least that was her reputation.)
As she lay in her tent she thought about that. It was true that as a man she had groped lots of women. She had acted like the worst kind of lecher. The thing about it was that, like she had told Ranma, it had been a game, playing a part. She had never truly felt lust for the women she groped, even if she pretended that she did. Watching women on TV and looking at pictures in magazines had been for the purpose of staying in character.
At least she didn’t think she felt lust for those women. She re-examined her feelings in the new context of her new female body. Had she really felt no attraction to the women? Did she really get no thrill from looking at the pictures?
A thought occurred to her. She remembered the “mental exercise” that Ranma had requested of her. Since it was still fairly early and Ranma didn’t seem to be in the mood to talk right now, she would try a somewhat broader form of mental exercise.
She called up a memory of being Happosai groping on the ample assets of Ranma’s female form. It was an easy memory to call upon as she had groped Ranma the most of any woman. She remembered that beyond the absorption of ki it had been fun. She had enjoyed it more than just playing a part should have allowed.
Hmm. She decided to try and bring her imagination into play. In her mind she changed her perspective so that instead of the tiny body of Happosai, she was now imagining what it would be like for her as Noriko to fondle Ranma’s sizeable breasts.
Huh? There was an odd feeling of warmth in her body, but strongest between her legs. In addition to the warmth there was a kind of tingling sensation that she felt in her own breasts. Wait a minute! Were her nipples getting stiff? She had never experienced it before but had read plenty about it. She was getting aroused while thinking of groping Ranma’s girl form.
She dismissed the memory and took a deep shuddering breath. That was… different. Apparently she had actually gained some pleasure when groping women when she was Happosai. It hadn’t been truly sexual before and that was likely because her own sexuality had been so thoroughly messed up by the spell and the curse. She had found male ki to be repellant and so had stayed away from any kind of intimate contact with men and boys. To be sure she had fought with and sparred with plenty of men but that was different.
It would take more of a mental effort but she decided to try the exercise Ranma had requested. She pictured herself in her current body being groped by her own former self. It was an effort but she eventually got the feelings right. The emotional reactions were pretty much as Ranma had described them. She shuddered as she cast the image from her mind.
After that she felt dirty, like she wanted to take a bath or shower to wash away the feelings. Oh Ranma, I’m so sorry for subjecting you and all of those other women to that. I didn’t know what I was doing. There was no way she would ever be able to make it up to all of the women she had ever groped as Happosai, but she would try to make it up to Ranma if he would let her.
Unbidden, a thought came to her mind. She remembered how she had felt when Ranma had held her as he leapt from tree to tree. She had felt so warm and protected. Not sure why she was doing it, she conjured up in her mind the image of herself again being fondled. However this time it was male Ranma’s hands on her breasts. The feeling was very different. Again she felt the sensations of arousal. In the image in her mind she pictured Ranma’s hands on her bared breasts. It felt good.
The fantasy in her mind began to escalate in intensity. Instead of just touching and groping her breasts the dream Ranma was massaging one of her breasts and his other hand went behind her back as he leaned in and kissed her. It was a deep passionate kiss with dueling tongues. A moment later Ranma pulled back and moved down, his tongue sticking out in preparation to lick one of her nipples.
Noriko’s eyes snapped open. She was panting and found her own hands were massaging her breasts. She looked out the opening of her tent toward Ranma. Fortunately, he didn’t seem to have noticed what she was doing. Somewhat reluctantly she removed her hands from her breasts.
WHAT THE HELL WAS THAT? Was she just having a sexual fantasy where Ranma was making love to her? That’s sure what it seemed like.
Well! That mental exercise was certainly educational. It would seem that before as a misplaced woman in a man’s body she was confused and didn’t really know what to do with her sexuality. Now that she had a woman’s body she learned that she was likely bi-sexual. She found thoughts of Ranma’s female form arousing and thoughts of being touched by his male form were even more arousing.
She didn’t even know if Ranma knew how to make love to a woman. From the way the boy reacted to teasing, she suspected that he didn’t know. That would fit with the way Genma would have raised him. The bald idiot wanted to raise his son to be the greatest martial artist of his generation. That would probably have meant teaching that sex was a “distraction from the Art.”
She shook her head when she considered that. It seemed the height of stupidity to teach the boy something like that when engaging the boy to marry multiple fiancés.
Dismissing that thought from her mind she turned her thoughts back to her own sexuality. As a man she had been confused. As a woman she was apparently bi. Not only that, she was sexually attracted to Ranma in both forms. That was unexpected. True, in female form Ranma was a hot little number and as a guy he was really a hunk.
She caught herself. What was going on here? She was doing it again. Not only was she acting girlish, she was thinking almost like a slut. She’d been a girl for only a day.
Wait a minute! Maybe that had something to do with it. Could the fact that she was a girl for the first time in centuries be causing her hormones to go into overdrive? She’d have to be careful how she acted around Ranma. She’d have to exercise restraint while around him, at least until her hormones leveled out. Until then the poor boy was at risk of Noriko attempting to rape him.
Noriko couldn’t stop herself from thinking that Akane had better watch out. If she didn’t start being nicer to Ranma, Noriko might just take him away from her. If the boy should become the lover or even the husband of the Grand Master of Anything Goes, that would certainly qualify as “joining the schools” as the two idiot fathers kept babbling about.
Huh! Married? To a man? Where did that thought come from? Those hormones must really be messing with her mind. After three hundred years as a man and only one day as a girl and she was already thinking about getting married? It would be a very good idea to try and stay away from such thoughts until she had time for her hormones to reach some level of normalcy. If she had to make any kind of long term decision about it now, there was a very good chance she would choose badly.
She settled into her bedroll and tried to turn her mind to neutral thoughts. Maybe a meditation technique would be what would purge the sexual thoughts from her mind. At least it should work long enough for her to get to sleep.
The meditation worked. She was able to calm herself enough to sleep. When she woke the next morning she didn’t clearly remember any of her dreams other than they were full of images of herself and Ranma nude and in all sort of interesting positions.
When Noriko got out of her tent in the morning it was a major effort to keep from blushing when she looked at Ranma. She told herself it was just the hormones and the only reason she was fantasizing about him was that he was the only guy near.
While he was working at breaking camp, Ranma noticed Noriko seemed oddly flustered as she went about a kata. He asked, “Is anything wrong?”
She decided to go with a partial truth. “I had some dreams that troubled me. It’s nothing to worry about.”
He looked doubtful but wasn’t going to argue with her. “If you say so.”
After a cold breakfast they started off through the trees. Again Ranma carried Noriko who was able to distract herself from sexual thoughts by concentrating on scanning ahead with her ki senses.
It seemed that the Joketsuzoku were determined to catch the pair on their return trip. They had to stop several times while they waited for patrols to move by on the ground. This delayed their travel so that they were only two thirds of the way by the time night fell. The pair ended up spending the night in a tree.
That was a terribly uncomfortable night for the both of them. In the morning when they woke up it took them a while to work out the stiffness. However they did receive some respite. Apparently the Amazon leaders believed they had a better chance of intercepting them on the border that led to the valleys they had come from. The patrols were light in the direction they wanted to go.
Thanks to that, Ranma and Noriko passed the border of Joketsuzoku territory well before midday. It was while they were still in the Joketsuzoku territory that they were caught in a rain shower. For once Ranma wasn’t terribly upset. She would have had to change anyway, and they had been doing well to have avoided water splashing for as long as they had. Maybe it had something to do with staying female so long on the trip out.
When they stopped for the night they camped a good distance off from the main trail. They figured that the Joketsuzoku might send searchers on the trail. They were able to spend the night undisturbed.
Now that the Joketsuzoku were behind them, they walked along the trail at a more leisurely pace. They no longer felt the urgency of being chased. Their ki senses were not able to detect any pursuers.
It was a little before lunchtime that the two travelers reached the village of more modern Nichiezu. At the edge of the village they were met by a tall woman in a police uniform.
The woman bowed to them and said, “Greetings Miss Tendo. It would seem you have completed the business that brought you to this remote region of China. The Matriarch of our village requests that you honor her with a visit. She would like very much to talk to you.”
Ranma turned a questioning look on Noriko. The former man shrugged. She didn’t know what this was about, but didn’t think it a good idea to refuse. Although the request was politely worded, there was the hint that the police woman could cause them trouble if they didn’t comply.
The travelers were led to a modest house. Like other residences in this village, it was a house and not a hut like some of the places of the Joketsuzoku village had been. When the policewoman knocked on the door, they were met by a polite young woman who led them into the living room.
The room they came to looked like the living room of an old person. Every flat surface had doilies on them and dozens of old framed photographs. Some of the photographs featured the owner of the house at a younger age, while many showed people who were probably old friends and family members.
The owner of the house was an elderly woman. She was of short stature by which it should be understood she was only slightly shorter than Rannma’s girl form. She was not a shriveled up troll-like figure the way the elders of the Joketsuzoku appeared. Ranma had met the old woman briefly on their way through the village before. The woman’s name was Lo Shen, if she remembered correctly.
Speaking unaccented Japanese the old woman graciously offered, “Please sit and make yourselves comfortable. Would you care for tea?”
Ranma looked at Noriko who answered with a shrug. The red haired girl bowed her head politely and replied, “Thank you, tea would be appreciated.” The two young women sat in comfortable chairs.
The old woman smiled and said, “Miss Tendo and I met briefly on her visit to our visit a short time ago. I told her at that time my name is Matriarch Lo Shen. I ask that you pronounce it that way instead of the Japanese habit of turning it into ‘Lotion.’ If you say it that way, it could be confused with Elder Lo Shun of the Joketsuzoku.”
The matriarch’s assistant left the room to get the tea things while the policewoman bowed and left as well, headed toward the front door. Ranma didn’t doubt that the woman would likely stay by the door where she could return if needed.
Ranma nodded and said, “I remember. After all, it wasn’t that long ago. I must admit to a little curiosity. When I came through your pleasant little village before you didn’t pay that much attention to my companion and me. I was wondering why you seem so interested now.”
The older woman gave an enigmatic smile. “Do you mean aside from the fact that the companion traveling with you now appears to be a different person than the one you came with before?”
Ranma glanced over at Noriko then back to Lo Shen. “Yes, aside from that.”
The Matriarch smiled again. “I’m curious to hear the explanation as to why this young woman is with you now when your traveling companion before was an elderly man of unusually small stature.”
The redhead launched into the prepared story. “My grandfather didn’t say anything when we were here before, but he was ill, dying in fact. Some time ago he had visited this region and had found an area that he decided would be his final resting place. This was in a valley about a day's travel beyond the lands of the Joketsuzoku.”
She paused. When the Elder gave a nod to indicate she should go on, she continued. “Tendo Noriko is my cousin. She had agreed to meet with us at the valley. She traveled by a slightly different route and joined us there, but too late to speak to grandfather. He passed just as Noriko arrived. Together we buried his remains and headed back to civilization.”
She continued, “While we were moving through the lands of the Joketsuzoku, Noriko suffered an accident. She lost her pack that contained all of her clothing, supplies and camping gear. She has been forced to share my supplies. Also in her pack that was lost were her travel documents.”
At this point the young woman returned with a tray, which she set on a low table in the middle of the room. The others paused in their conversation while the young woman poured tea and passed cups to the elder and her guests.
After Ranma took a sip from her cup she took a moment to look at the cup. She took another sip and said, “That’s really good tea, thank you.”
The elder chuckled lightly. “The tea you have been served is called Amazon Blend and is the main agricultural export of our village. We grow all of the leaves for it on the lands around the village. Because we have limited land on which to grow our tea leaves, this blend of tea is hard to come by and fairly expensive in the outside world.”
She took an appreciative sip from her own cup before setting it aside. “Thanks to the popularity of our tea, the people of our village have been able to purchase the many modern conveniences that we enjoy and those of the Joketsuzoku don’t. They tend to look down on the people of our village as weak and soft.”
Ranma considered that. After a moment she commented, “I notice that your police officer seemed to move in a way consistent with martial arts training. She didn’t seem weak or soft to me.”
The elder smiled. “We don’t take offense at the words of our sister tribe. They live in more primitive conditions than we do and feel the need to speak of that as if it were a virtue. Their village is in such a remote region that it would be difficult for them to have regular commerce with the outside world. That and the fact that they seldom leave their village is probably one of the only reasons that the government of the People’s Republic allow them a warrior culture.”
“Oh?” Ranma was curious.
The elder nodded. “The government is content to let the world think that the Amazons, Musk and Phoenix are nothing more than legends. As long as they stay in their own remote region and fight only between themselves, the government leaves them alone.”
“While the best warriors of any of those tribes would be more than a match for a soldier of the PLA in a one-on-one fight, as a people they can’t hope to match modern weapons. A few bombs dropped from a plane and they would die without ever seeing the faces of their attackers. Their leaders know this and keep their warriors reigned in.”
She sighed. “Even if we came from a warrior people in the past, our little village here is not a community of warriors. We are farmers who have as warriors the police force. In addition to modern techniques, our police are trained in all of the old ways of fighting. There are not enough of them to fight a war and that is the way the government wants it. They don’t object to our strange ways of letting women be in charge as long as we go along with them in other ways.”
The elder took a sip of her tea to give her guests a moment to absorb her story. Then she said, “The reason why I have asked you to my home has to do with a telephone call I received.”
The travelers gave her curious looks but didn’t say anything. The elder felt some further explanation was in order. She said, “It is too costly to string telephone wires over the rough terrain between here and the Joketsuzoku village and they won’t allow the construction of microwave relay towers. However, they have not totally disdained the use of modern technology. While they are not happy about satellites in orbit, they are willing to take advantage of them. They have a satellite telephone.”
Ranma and Noriko didn’t think they would like to hear what the elder had to say, but the continued to politely listen.
The old woman said, “Elder Soap called from the Council chambers. She had a rather fantastic story to tell.”
Lo Shen paused to take another sip of her tea before continuing. “She said that the God Killer, Saotome Ranma, was traveling with Happosai the famed thief and pervert. Those two were supposed to have come through our village and through the territory of the Joketsuzoku on their way to carry out some bizarre plot. They had no idea of the specifics of the plan, only that water from the Nyaniichuan spring was needed to carry it out.”
The elder looked back and forth between the two women in her living room before continuing. “Elder Soap also said that the two travelers might have a cover story. That story went along the lines that the old pervert was dying and needed the cursed water to stay alive.”
The elder frowned slightly. “I don’t like the Council in Joketsuzoku village dictating to us here. They said that we were to try to detain the travelers or at least notify the Council if they passed.”
She shook her head. “I may not be as old as Soap, but I’m still more than a hundred years old. Among other things, that means that I’m not an idiot. A girl who matches the description of Saotome Ranma’s Jusenkyo cursed form passed through our village basically carrying a small old man who matched the description of Happosai. Even if the man was more than 300 years old, it is said that he was sustained by magic that allowed him to be quite active and vigorous. Yet the old man traveling with the girl earlier was weak and had to ride on top of the girl’s pack.”
The old woman now looked at Noriko. “Now the same girl is back here and her traveling companion is no longer an old man, but a girl of about the age that Nyaniichuan would change the old man into. With what I am looking at now, I’m inclined to believe the ‘cover story’ was the true one.”
Noriko looked at their hostess and came to a quick decision. She felt an instant liking for the old woman and was sure she could trust her. The blonde said, “You have guessed correctly. I was Happosai, although I will claim that name no longer. Now that I have been given a new lease on life, I am taking the name Noriko as a tribute to an old friend and mentor.”
Ranma interrupted, “Are you sure you want to tell her that?”
The blonde gave an affirmative movement of her head. “You don’t get to be as old as I am without being able to get a feeling for people. I feel certain we can trust Lo Shen.”
The Elder smiled. “I thank you for the trust you place in me. I suspect we have much to discuss. If it agreeable to you I will ask Jin Rei, my assistant, to prepare lunch for all of us.”
Ranma was feeling hungry and readily agreed. Noriko agreed as well.
Apparently the young woman who took care of the Elder had anticipated the request because she had already prepared food for the guests as well as her employer. Shortly plates were brought in for each of the people in the living room.
Between bites Noriko related the tale of the Cruel Man and how Happosai came to be as he was. She also related the story of how his ability to absorb female ki finally began to desert him after centuries of life. She told of how she had come into possession of the Amulet of Ortiz and the desperate travel though China to get to the stashed bottle of Nyaniichuan water before Happosai’s condition deteriorated to the point where Ranma couldn’t sustain him with her ki any more.
Lo Shen leaned back in her chair as she considered what she had heard. By the time Noriko had finished her tale, they had all finished their meal and Jin Rei had cleared the dishes. The Elder shook her head. “Quite a story. Yet I have the strong feeling that it is true even if it seems utterly fantastic. That the lecher, pervert and panty thief Happosai was born a girl sounds impossible. Still, I can sense that you believe it.”
The elder studied Noriko for a time. Finally she said, “I am probably not as good at this sort of thing as elders like Kho Lon and Soap, but I have a pretty strong sense that you are truly a female spirit in your female body. I sense that you are comfortable with your self in a way that a man’s spirit would not be. I can sense that young Ranma is still uncomfortable with her female body, but perhaps becoming less so over time. Am I right?”
Ranma shrugged. “I guess I’m getting used to it. If I’m going to be stuck changing for the rest of my life, I’m going to have to get used to it. To be honest, changing into a girl isn’t as terrible to me as it was at the start. You can bet I’ll never tell my Pop about that, though. I still really hate constantly getting splashed with water and I hate being in wet clothes.”
The elder nodded with a sympathetic expression on her face. “I can well understand that. It might interest you to know that I have heard that there is magic that will change the trigger for human form Jusenkyo transformations from water to will power.”
Ranma sat up in her chair. “Will power as a trigger to the change? I’ve never heard of that before?”
The Elder nodded. “Understand that I don’t know the magic myself, but I have heard that there is such. You must understand that it is not a cure.”
“Why not?” A puzzled redhead asked. “If the transformation is controlled by will power, why would anyone ever will such a change?”
“I wondered that as well,” confirmed the Elder. “It was explained to me this way. While the curse isn’t a living thing it can act as if it were. If it decides too much time has passed since the last time you have been in cursed form, it will do what it can to trigger the change. When the trigger is water it will magically attract water even to causing it to rain out of a clear sky or making water to flow uphill.”
The aquatransexual gave a rueful chuckle. “I had wondered about that. So how is it different when the trigger is will power?”
The old woman replied, “When the curse decides that too much time has passed since you were in cursed form it will wait until you are distracted or sleeping and transform you. You could be daydreaming or your mind wandering in some other manner, but that is enough for the curse to work the transformation.”
The redhead frowned. “That sounds like it might actually be worse. At least it can be possible to dodge splashes or use an umbrella to stay dry in a rain shower. To avoid your mind wandering would need really strict mental discipline. It would take me some time to accomplish that.”
The Elder nodded. “I would be willing to bet that by the time you could learn that level of mental control, you would be sufficiently accustomed to the change that you would no longer care.”
Noriko chimed in, “You were complaining because your girl form is shorter than your male form. You now know that’s because this form is the equivalent of 13 years old while your male form is 17. Outside of magic to age your female form, the only way for your girl form to get taller is for you to spend more time as a girl. On top of that, if you spend more time that way, you’ll get used to it so it will no longer seem so terrible to you.”
Ranma turned to Noriko and asked, “Do you know magic that could age my girl form?”
“No, Ranma,” she replied. “I don’t know such magic. Likely, you’ll just have to resign yourself to spending more time in your female form.”
Lo Shen spoke again, “I was told that the way to avoid transforming at random moments of inattention when the trigger is will power is to simply pick times when you are in your alternate form. An example would be to sleep while in female form. That would decrease the waking time you would need to spend that way. If you work it right you can avoid transforming when you are not prepared for it. Indeed, doing that would have reduced the number of water accidents.”
In a wistful tone Ranma asked, “I’d never be a guy in girl’s clothes? (That’s really embarrassing.)”
“If you work the scheduling of your girl time right,” the Elder responded. “With will power as the trigger, you wouldn’t accidentally transform.”
Ranma frowned. “That sounds good. But if you don’t know how to work the magic, why do you bring it up?”
The older woman explained, “I can’t work the magic, but I know the name of a sorceress who lives in Japan who can. I don’t have an address for her, but I do know what city she lives in.”
“That sounds great,” enthused Ranma.
“When we get back, I’ll help you find her,” promised Noriko.
Her manner sobering, Ranma asked, “Could I ask you something?”
“How can I help you?” Lo Shen responded.
“Does anyone in the village have a computer with a webcam?” Ranma wanted to know.
The older woman looked surprised at the request. “My granddaughter Po Shen, has a computer that is equipped like that. Why would you need it?”
Ranma explained, “Well, you can understand why Noriko’s old passport won’t work for her now. I was thinking that if we could email a picture of what she looks like now there is a girl we know that can help to create a new passport with her current appearance. She could mail it to us here. Once we have that we can go back to Beijing and book a flight back to Tokyo.”
After thinking for a moment the elder nodded. “I could see where that might be preferable to you being smuggled out of the country.”
Casting a speculative look on the blonde, the elder said, “Miss Noriko, you are the Grand Master of your own martial arts style, are you not?”
“Yes,” Noriko confirmed. “Grand Master of the founding school of Anything Goes Martial Arts, also know as the school of Indiscriminate Grappling. I tend to prefer the first name, because some people get the wrong idea about what is meant by the second name.”
“Good!” The elder said, “I know how you can earn your room and board while you wait for your documents to arrive in the mail.”
Noriko quirked an inquiring eyebrow.
“You can give our police officers advanced training in martial arts,” she explained.
The blonde protested, “We wouldn’t be here long enough to give anyone a complete course of training.”
The elder wouldn’t be put off. “True, but in the time you will be here you can teach them basic techniques they can practice after you leave.”
The former man considered that. “I suppose that would work.” It had been a very long time since she had taught a class. It might be kind of fun.
Ranma chose that moment to ask, “What will you want me to do to pay for the bed I’ll sleep in and the food I’ll eat?”
Lo Shen tapped a finger on her chin for a moment. Finally she said, “I was watching your face while Noriko was telling of your journey. Something in your expression has given me an idea. Tell me, how did you react when Ei Linah addressed you as ‘honored healer’?”
“Huh?” The redheaded girl was confused. She didn’t know what that had to do with anything. Still she wanted to give an honest answer. She said, “Actually I kind of liked it.”
The Elder nodded in a thoughtful manner. “You do realize that she called you that because the way you were caring for Happosai was the sort of thing one of their healers would do?”
The girl considered that. “I guess it was. I didn’t really think about it like that.”
The old woman cast a measuring gaze on the redhead. Finally she asked, “Tell me child, have you ever considered doing anything with your life other than martial arts?”
Ranma was surprised at the question. “It’s all I’ve ever known. My father took me away from my mother at the age of five and spent the next ten years training me in martial arts. I’ve become one of the best martial artists of my generation, maybe the best. There was a cost to that, though.”
“Oh?” The elder asked, “Tell me more about it.”
The young boy who was currently female gave a condensed version of the story of the training trip and some of the insane training. When she was finished, the elder shook her head. “Your father sounds like a fool. You may have come through the training a skilled martial artist, but it sounds like it was only because of a combination of your high intelligence, native skill and luck. The training techniques you describe could have crippled or killed you and most likely have left emotional scars.”
At Ranma’s answering nod, the elder inquired, “Did your father even ask if you wanted to be a martial artist?”
Rather than give a snap answer, Ranma thought about it for several moments. Finally she said, “Now that you mention it, I don’t think he ever did. He always just sort of assumed that it was what I wanted. After being told that I was going to be the best, that’s what I thought I wanted too.”
Her manner extremely serious, the Elder said, “You are young enough that you could still choose a different path. I want you to think carefully about this. If you were free to pick your own way, what would you want to do instead of or in addition to martial arts?”
“In addition to?” That was an interesting way to put it. Suddenly Ranma thought about Dr. Tofu. There was a multitalented man. He was a doctor, a chiropractor, expert on traditional and alternative medicine and skilled martial artist as well.
Ranma replied, “Back home there is this doctor I know. He’s really smart and knows medicine and martial arts. I’d kind of like to be like him. I don’t know if I’m smart enough for that, though.”
Noriko broke in, “Don’t sell yourself short. I happen to know you can learn martial arts techniques incredibly fast. Sometimes you can learn them just by seeing them done. When Ryoga attacked you with the Shi Shi Hokodan you created the Moku Takabish, your own variation. If you’re smart enough to do that, you are smart enough to learn medicine. You just have to get more serious about your schooling.”
“I don’t know…” Ranma trailed off.
Lo Shen nodded. “Unlike our more primitive sister tribe, we don’t just have a healer here. We have a doctor who is has a medical degree and is licensed and certified. However, there are times when she complains that she is overworked. She has asked that I find her an apprentice to work with her and learn medicine. I’ve already found a young man who seems to have the aptitude and interest. I was thinking that I could assign him to work as Rin Se’s assistant and for you to help during the time you are staying here.”
Ranma thought about that. “I’m still going to need to spend at least some time training. I can’t let my skills get rusty.”
“I don’t think that will be a problem,” responded the Elder.
The redhead paused in thought. “At most we’re going to be staying here two or three weeks. How much medicine am I going to learn in that time?”
“Not much,” conceded Lo Shen. “What you should learn in that time is if you really like the work and if you have an aptitude for it. When you get back home you can decide if you want to pursue it.”
The aquatransexual nodded. “When you put it that way, I guess it’s worth a try. I’ll do it.”
Author’s Note: Hormones may or may not have been what got Noriko to start looking at Ranma as boyfriend material. (It's just her theory, after all). Still, that’s not what will keep her doing it.
Ranma’s interest in medicine came about sort of as a whim. I just wrote in Ei Linah calling Ranma "honored healer" but that made me wonder if that could be Ranma's true vocation. I decided that I was going to run with it.
A Place for me to post fan fiction that I write and occasional articles and other thoughts.
Ranma-Kun & Ranma-Chan
Sunday, October 31, 2010
Happi's Redemption chapter 5
Happi’s Redemption
A Ranma ½ Fan Fiction
By Michael A. Ivins
Ranma along with all of his friends, enemies and acquaintances are the property of Takahashi Rumiko. I’m just borrowing them for my own amusement and hopefully that of my readers. Sailor Moon and the Senshi aren’t mine either. Please don’t sue me.
This story takes place after the end of the manga.
Chapter 5
Transformation
Ranma turned the bottle upside down and let the water gurgle out. She had expected to see a change and was not disappointed. The body of the little man began to grow and shift. Before long there was a scream. Happosai’s voice had always been rather high for man but the character of the voice was definitely taking on feminine tones. Also heard was the sound of ripping cloth.
The redhead exclaimed, “Oh, Kami-Sami! I didn’t think about your clothes.”
A feminine voice shouted, “Get it off, get it off! It’s strangling me.”
Ranma rushed to help, saying, “Oh calm down you big baby. You just got too big for what you were wearing.” Mostly it was a matter finishing the tearing that had begun when the small body had changed to more normal proportions. It was perhaps fortunate that the Master’s clothing was old and worn.
When the new girl was free of the constricting garments she sat down and breathed a sigh of relief. She commented, “This is something else we didn’t plan on.”
Ranma also sighed. “Well, stand up. Let’s have a look at you. Hopefully you won’t be so big that you won’t fit into one of my outfits.”
Before she stood up the new girl said, “Noriko.”
“What?”
She answered, “I don’t want to be Happosai any more. I’ve been thinking about it a lot on the trip here. I’m starting a new life here. The witch and I traveled for 20 years together. She was my friend and mentor. I feel it would be a tribute to her if I could take the same name.”
Ranma nodded in acknowledgement. It seemed like a good choice. Now if only the rejuvenated pervert didn’t do anything to dishonor the name.
As Noriko stood, Ranma took out her flashlight and used it to illuminate the naked girl. She was taller than Ranma, not as tall as Kasumi, but just slightly taller than Nabiki. Her hair was a soft honey blonde that fell to her shoulders in an unruly cascade. Her eyes were a beautiful shade of green. Her face was beautiful, about equal to Ranma’s own face. There were some fading red marks where the old clothing had pressed into the expanding flesh.
Ranma moved the beam of the light down and said, “Ghah! Does Nyaniichuan give big boobs to every cursed girl form?”
The blonde looked down at her chest. “Oh, wow! I suddenly feel this strong urge to grope myself.”
“Yeah, well control yourself for a little while longer,” Ranma advised. “From your height and build you should be able to wear one of my guy outfits. With that rack the shirt may be a little tight. It’s the best we’ve got for now.”
From her pack Ranma pulled out pants, a shirt, boxers and a tank top. She also pulled a spare pair of shoes. She tossed these to the other girl.
Ranma said, “So, if you want to grope yourself please do it in your tent. I know there are girls who like to do that a lot, but I’d rather not watch.”
The new girl pouted cutely. “Awe, come on, Ranma. Don’t you want to help me learn about my new body?”
The redhead just looked at her travel companion with one eyebrow raised. Finally she said, “I see. That sounds like more of that sick sense of humor I mentioned earlier. So are you permanently female now or are you going to change into a wrinkled old man with hot water?”
Turning serious with the serious question, Noriko said, “Nope, I’m permanently female. In turning me female and young the curse and the spell interacted and canceled each other out. I could take a hot bath and stay like this.”
Ranma nodded. “So from what you told me, your curse was attached to the spell. That means it should be gone now too, right?”
When Noriko nodded, Ranma asked, “Does that mean the amulet goes back to being a magical defense?”
Noriko frowned. “I don’t know. It should, but it’s possible that it was drained of its magic with all that just happened. I can’t feel any magic in it, but that doesn’t prove anything. My own magic will take some time to adjust to the new body. My ki already feels strong.”
The redhead scrutinized the other girl now and said, “Yeah, your ki seems strong for a normal person, a little low for a martial artist. I think it is building up. I don’t know if it will get as strong as it did in your old body. After all you did have a long time to build up your reserves.”
“Good point,” the blonde conceded.
Ranma was studying the blonde’s face in the firelight. “You know, you look closer to Kasumi’s age than mine.”
The blonde girl seemed to ponder that for a while before answering. “As I understand, that’s how the Nyaniichuan works. Since I was 305 years old the oldest the curse could make me was 19 or 20.”
In a grumpy tone the redhead groused, “So it’s just me that gets turned into a kid.”
Noriko said, “You’re going to have to get used to looking younger than your true age. Your different forms will only age when you are manifesting that form. Basically that means your girl form will only age when you are female and your birth form will only age when you are male.”
Ranma’s eyes went wide. “Are you saying that the curse has doubled my life span?”
The blonde shrugged. “If you don’t die by violence before your full span.”
The redhead seemed to be having trouble with this concept. “Are you saying I actually got something good out of the curse?”
Noriko asked, “Does it have to be all bad?”
In a slightly angry tone Ranma replied, “Well, they do call it a curse for a reason.”
Now in a philosophical mood, the blonde said, “Like many things in life, it could be a curse or a blessing. The difference is in how you deal with it.”
Ranma asked, “Is this one of those ‘if life hands you lemons, make lemonade’ things?” She sounded annoyed.
The former man nodded. “I suppose it is.”
“How can changing into a girl and being a water magnet be a blessing?” Ranma demanded.
Noriko tilted her head in thought. “Well, I can see how the water magnet thing would be an annoyance. Being in wet clothes is not comfortable. The random timing of the changes must surely be inconvenient too and probably embarrassing. On the other hand when you eventually get married you will be much better able to relate to your wife.”
The redhead nodded, “Because I’ve experienced being a woman myself?”
“Exactly.”
The pigtailed girl shook her head. “I don’t know. Akane always seems to think the whole girl curse thing is perverted.”
The new woman said, “Uh… you do know I was joking when I spoke of groping myself, don’t you?”
Ranma frowned. “And how am I supposed to know that? You’re still sitting there naked, after all. And you doing that kind of stuff with your female body would seem perfectly in character for you.”
Noriko looked down at her bare breasts and realized that she was, in fact, still naked. She grabbed the clothes Ranma had thrown her and stood up to put on the boxers and tank top. She hesitated to put on the other clothes. “I’m not sure if I should put the other stuff on if we’re going to go to bed soon.”
The younger girl advised, “Better put ‘em on. If the Amazons do come we might have to run at a moment’s notice. Do you really want to run through the back country of the Chinese mountains dressed like that?”
“Good point,” the taller woman conceded. The pants were a fair fit if a bit snug in the hops, but the shirt was sized for Ranma’s male form. Noriko’s ample bosom did strain the buttons. She unfastened the top buttons for the sake of comfort. At the same time she marveled at the concept of having cleavage, something she never before really expected to have.
Noriko did feel like giving a piece of advice to her traveling companion. “You know, after all of the problems Akane had with Kuno and the morning fights, she probably isn’t the best judge of what is and isn’t perverted now.”
The younger girl surprised Noriko by saying, “I’ve sort of come to realize that. But if I’m ever going to get married to her, I’m pretty much stuck living with what she thinks is perverted.”
The blonde woman wasn’t sure why she was even getting into this but asked, “Do you love her?”
Ranma stayed silent for a while before setting a pot on the fire to heat some water for supper. Finally she spoke again, “I used to think I loved her right after the whole thing with Saffron. I thought she loved me too, but mistrusting me, calling me a pervert and hitting me with a mallet are funny way of showing it.”
The older woman nodded. Deciding a change in subject was in order she said, “I’m going to need to train to strengthen my new body. I’m pretty sure my ki will be as strong as before, but my muscles are still fairly weak. I’m also feeling a little unbalanced. I’m more than twice as tall as before and top heavy with these breasts. Will you spar with me when it gets light?”
The redhead shook her head. “I’m willing, but I think we should wait on that. It might be better to get going as soon as we can in the morning after breakfast. We don’t know that the Amazons plan to come after us, but it might be safest to assume they will.”
“They seemed reluctant to get into a confrontation with you after they learned who you are,” observed Noriko.
The younger girl shrugged. “I guess I sort of have a reputation. They think someone with the strength to kill Saffron could destroy their village and kill everyone in it. I don’t know if that will be enough to keep them at a distance. It all depends on how badly they want you. I guess it’s a good thing they don’t know that I’d never do something like wipe out their village.”
“Yes, a good thing,” the woman agreed. “Still, it would be best to avoid a confrontation. I wouldn’t be much help to you until I get used to my new body and train. I can’t realistically think that I would be properly able to defend myself yet.”
Ranma took a cup and dipped out some of the heating water. She splashed herself, changing to male. He said, “The Amazons will be looking for a red haired girl and a little old man.”
Noriko nodded. “They wouldn’t be expecting a black haired teenaged boy and a…” She paused, then pulled some of her hair around to look at in the firelight. “I’m a blonde? Anyway, they wouldn’t be expecting a black haired teenaged boy and a blonde haired young woman. You’d still have to change back to a girl when we get anywhere they’re going to check your travel documents. What are we going to do about travel documents for me?”
The younger man sighed. “I can think of a couple possibilities. One would be to get back to Japan the way Pop and I did after we first got the curses.”
Noriko looked slightly alarmed. “You don’t mean to swim back, do you? I don’t think this body is strong enough to swim that far.”
“No,” answered Ranma. “We swam to get to China from Japan. Pop couldn’t swim it as a panda because the wet fur weighed him down. We took a cargo ship. We worked for our passage. Pop tried to get out of any work and leave me to do it all, but the captain wouldn’t allow it. I think that was the hardest I’ve ever seen him work.”
The older girl laughed. “Serves him right. What was your other possibility?”
“I was thinking about that first Amazon tribe we visited to get the supplies,” said the pigtailed martial artist. “They seemed pretty modern. I was sort of hoping that someone there would have a computer with a web cam. If they do, we could email a picture of your new face to Nabiki and she could get a new passport made for you. Then she could mail it to us at the village.”
The blonde was surprised again. “You know how to use a computer?”
Ranma snorted in amusement. “You said it yourself, there is more to life than martial arts. Ever since the fight with Saffron I’ve been going at school work like it was a martial arts challenge. Nabiki’s even helping.”
Her expression skeptical, the older girl asked, “How much is she charging you for that?”
The boy shrugged, “She’s charging me ten percent less than a night school would charge for the same lessons. After all, if she was to charge more, I’d just go to the night school.”
“We’d have to stay with those Amazon’s until the new passport could arrive,” observed Noriko. “What will we do while we wait?”
The boy shrugged. “They seem like nice enough people. They were willing enough to help out a girl and old man before. Maybe they’d be more willing to help out two girls this time. I’m willing to work in exchange for a place to stay for a while.”
“How will we explain the fact that you were with an old man before and now you’re with a young woman?” The blonde wanted to know.
Ranma explained, “We tell them that you, Noriko, met us in this valley. The old man died here (which is sort of true) and we buried him there. We then tell them we are going back to Japan together.”
The blonde nodded. “The only part of that that isn’t true is the burial and we could even say that it was true in a purely symbolic sense.”
“I have a thought on that, the symbolism, I mean.” Ranma said thoughtfully.
The other woman looked interested. “Oh, what did you have in mind?”
The redhead grinned. “Just a little ceremony in the morning. We bury what’s left of your old clothes. At the same time we say goodbye to Happosai.”
The older girl grinned, “I like it. I really do think Happosai is dead and I’m a new person. When we’re burying the clothes we can also bury my pipe. I find that the thought of smoking that thing now makes me feel slightly ill.”
Ranma frowned. “I’m pretty sure it’s not a male/female thing, ‘cause the old ghoul smokes a pipe.”
The older girl shook her head. “I can’t explain it. I find I don’t like the idea of drinking sake either and I used to love the stuff.”
“Looks like you’ll have a lot of adjustments to make,” commented Ranma.
The blonde just grunted assent as Ranma dished up the food. When the woman took a taste of the rice she looked surprised. She then took a sip of the instant soup Ranma had made and her eyes got even wider.
Ranma noticed and asked, “Is something wrong with the soup? It’s a cheap instant mix. You know, one of those you just add hot water to.”
The older girl was looking at the metal mug that contained her soup. “No, nothing is wrong with the soup. Quite the opposite, in fact. The soup is delicious. Even the rice tastes good. I think with the new body I must have got new taste buds. I don’t think I’ve really tasted my food this much in a long time.”
The young man nodded. “That makes sense. That’s probably why the idea of smoking and drinking don’t appeal to you now.” He suddenly grinned. “If you think instant soup tastes good, we’ve got to get you back to Japan where you can have one of Kasumi’s meals.”
Noriko shook her head. “It would seem I just thought I was tasting Kasumi’s cooking. Somebody once told me that your taste buds wear out as you get older. I didn’t really pay attention to it, but I guess I have proof that it’s true.”
In a sarcastic tone the pigtailed martial artist said, “Great, something to look forward to when I get old.”
The older girl shrugged and went back to enjoying her food. She reasoned that she should enjoy it now while it was still new. Likely in a week or more she wouldn’t find the soup so exceptional.
After they ate Ranma smothered the fire under dirt. He wanted to be sure that his eyes were adapted to the dark if the Amazons decided to sneak up on them under cover of darkness. He didn’t really think they would, but felt it was better to be safe than sorry.
The next morning after breakfast Ranma pulled a folding shovel out of his pack and started to dig. He paused in his work to look at his traveling companion. Noriko was doing tai chi katas that placed their emphasis on balance. This was his first chance to see the transformed Happosai in the sunlight. She was worth looking at.
The impression from the previous night was borne out. She was about the same height as Ranma’s male form, blonde haired and beautiful of face and figure. The body Nyaniichuan had given her looked moderately athletic but likely not nearly as fit as she would have liked. Her balance was still a little off because her performance of the katas was a little wobbly, but she seemed to be improving as he watched.
She was still wearing one of Ranma’s shirts but with the top buttons undone to give room to her impressive bosom. While Noriko’s breasts were actually larger than those of Ranma’s girl form’s, in proportion to her taller body, they about the same as Ranma’s.
Ranma suddenly realized that he had been checking out Noriko like any pretty girl and turned back to digging. Sure, she was pretty and moved well, but this was Happosai for crying out loud.
When he had the hole deep enough, he called over to the young woman. “Hey Noriko, you want to do this ceremony now?”
The girl stopped her kata and walked over. She picked up the bundle of ripped cloth and looked at the hole. She commented, “I’m not sure if I should get rid of the pipe yet. I could still use it as a weapon even if I don’t smoke it. I don’t much care for the smell of it, though.”
Trying to consider the pros and cons of the situation, Ranma asked, “Do you actually need the pipe or do you just find it useful?”
Noriko thought a moment, “I guess I don’t really need it, but it is useful.”
The boy nodded, “If you don’t like the smell, then you should get rid of this pipe now and pick a new one that hasn’t been used later. That way you’d still have your weapon but be rid of the smell.”
She nodded. “Good idea.” She pulled the pipe from her pocket and set it on top of the bundle of cloth then gently set the whole thing down in the bottom of the hole. She just stared for a few moments. Finally she said, “By this action we are saying goodbye to Happosai. He will never be seen again and I’m sure few, if any, will miss him. I can confess now that he was not a nice person but he did have reasons to behave the way he did. By burying this remnant I commit myself to also bury those behaviors of his that so annoyed people. I may forget sometimes and fall back into my old ways from time to time and I request that you remind me when you see me doing that.”
Ranma nodded. He then bowed his head and said, “Goodbye Old Freak. You were a serious pain in the ass but you did teach me some things. I won’t miss having you groping my girl form. The jury is still out on the new girl, but I’m willing to give her a chance.”
Noriko inclined her head in acknowledgement. She had been given a new life and planned to make something of it.
The two stood for a time in silence. Finally Ranma looked up and Noriko gave him a nod. He nodded in reply and began filling in the hole. Before long the only thing left to show where the “remains” of Happosai were buried was a patch of freshly turned soil. Ranma idly wondered what the Amazon’s would think if they dug up the pipe and bits of torn clothing.
Ranma eyed the sky for a moment. There were a few light, fluffy clouds, but nothing that threatened rain. His luck couldn’t run so good that it would stay that way for long. He quickly struck camp and crammed everything into his pack.
Noriko reasonably pointed out, “Now that I’m a full sized person, I could carry some of that.”
The boy shrugged to settle the pack. “Then I guess this is an area where we didn’t plan ahead properly. I’d let you carry some of this, but we only have the one pack. Neither of us thought to bring an extra one.”
The girl paused and chewed her lower lip for a moment. “Could… I try to carry that pack?”
The pigtailed martial artist studied his traveling companion. She looked fit, but nowhere strong enough to carry the pack more than a step or two. While he could argue the point, a demonstration would likely be much more effective.
He took off the pack and held it so Noriko could put her arms through the straps. When she seemed to have the pack positioned properly Ranma let go of it. The blonde woman staggered but managed to stay on her feet.
“Damn!” she swore. “This thing is heavy. Do you have training weights in there?”
The boy shook his head. “Just the usual stuff.” He pointed out, “You have a whole new body. I wouldn’t expect that body to be as fit as someone who has trained for years. I’d say you’re doing good to even stand up with the weight of the pack. Try walking with it.”
She took a hesitant step and followed it with another. It looked like she was making an enormous effort. A look of frustration came to her face. Finally after a few more steps she made a peremptory gesture and asked, “Help me get this off, please.”
Ranma walked up behind her and lifted the pack enough so she could slip out of the straps. The girl rubbed a shoulder where the strap had pressed down on it. “That settles it! When we get back to Japan, I’m going an intense program of strength, flexibility and speed training. To be in a body that is this weak is intolerable.”
Ranma sighed. “For now just try to work with what you have. Before you can start on that program we need to get somewhere where people aren’t going to try and capture or kill us.”
“You do have a point,” she agreed.
Ranma put the pack back on and they headed out. As they went, Ranma probed ahead of them with his ki senses, looking for any people. Ranma set a brisk pace, but not so fast that Noriko couldn’t keep up. What he was going for was a speed of travel that would push the new girl a little and work on building her endurance.
When they had reached about halfway through the next valley, Noriko was shocked when Ranma suddenly grabbed her and leapt into a tree. Because of her martial arts experience she didn’t cry out or fight against Ranma. She figured there must be a reason for his actions. When they were in the tree she whispered, “What’s going on?”
Even before he could answer she sensed the reason ahead. There was a party of Amazons coming up the trail. They didn’t seem to be looking at the ground, so it seemed likely they weren’t trying to track the travelers. Likely they were just going in the direction that Ranma and Happosai had last been seen traveling.
As the group of five warriors drew close to the tree where the travelers sheltered, their conversation became audible to those hiding. One of the women said, “Even if they did come this way, what would we do with them if we find them? Saotome may be a ‘mere’ male but he’s too strong for just our little group.”
Another scoffed, “We’re some of the strongest of the tribe. What hope can one man have against us?”
The first speaker responded, “We’re talking about the man who killed Saffron. An Elder would have a hard time fighting this man. How much better do you think you would do? Anyway, from the report we have Saotome is traveling in his Jusenkyo cursed form.”
The second warrior was still not convinced. “So? Right now she’s a weak Outsider female. She’s still no threat.”
The leader of the group shook her head. “Whether she’s a threat or not, we must follow our orders. If we do meet up with them, we are to first talk to them. We are to fight only if persuasion fails.”
A third warrior asked, “Saotome said the old man was dying. What if he has died? We can’t punish a dead man.”
The leader replied, “Then we ask to see his grave. We need proof of his death. If he truly is dead now then his punishment is in the hands of the gods and not for mortals like us to concern ourselves.”
There was a chorus of agreement to that as the group passed out of hearing range up the trail.
Noriko thought about asking Ranma to let go of her but she was enjoying the feeling of his strong arms holding her. She wanted to scold herself for feeling that way. She had been a woman for less than a day and already she was starting to react in a feminine way. That shouldn’t be happening. Noriko had been male since she had been only a month old. She had never learned how to be a girl.
The fact that she was reacting this way raised some interesting possibilities. During the time she had been a man the only relationship she had ever had with a woman had been with Cologne. Other than hugging and kissing, there had never been anything physical to that relationship. At least she didn’t think martial arts sparring counted.
She had thought the reason why no romance had ever developed with any other woman was due to Happosai’s small stature and gnome-like appearance. Maybe the real reason for it was because of her own feelings. Could it be that she had been attracted to men and just buried that feeling down so deeply that she hadn’t recognized it for what it was?
She wasn’t sure what to think about that. On the one hand maybe it would mean that adjusting to being a girl would be a lot easier than she had thought it might be. On the other hand after three centuries as a male, a part of her strongly resented the necessity of becoming a woman. She wasn’t sure what to think.
A moment later Ranma jumped to the ground and set Noriko back on her feet. He didn’t notice the distracted look on her face as he said, “Well, that looks like they’re just trying to search in the direction we were going. They don’t seem to be looking for footprints and stuff.”
Noriko frowned and said, “If they are being thorough they might have sent a second party of trackers along. They would be following the footprints, bent grass, broken twigs and that sort of thing. Because they need to see those signs they will be traveling slower.”
Ranma nodded. “It should be harder to track us when we are traveling in the trees. I know you were complaining about being baggage before, but your new body isn’t strong enough yet to jump between trees. Would you object to being carried?”
“Object?” After she had just been thinking about how enjoyable it had been to be held by strong male arms? Doing a fine job of acting she said, “I guess I can put up with it if I have to. I really need to train when we get back to Japan.”
Something in the girl’s tone caused Ranma to look at her searchingly. Was something bothering her? She seemed oddly nervous or something about the prospect of being carried. Misinterpreting her demeanor he told her, “Don’t worry about anything. I won’t drop you.”
“Oh, good. He’s given me an excuse for acting foolish and girlish.” The blonde said, “That’s alright. I trust you.”
There was something in the woman’s tone that seemed… off. The pigtailed martial artist couldn’t quite figure it out. Something was still bothering the girl but he was reasonably sure it wasn’t a fear of being dropped. Inwardly he shrugged. He’d try to puzzle it out later. Right now they needed to get out of territory which was, if not actively hostile, could still be classified as unfriendly.
With that thought in mind, Ranma scooped up the blonde girl and leapt back into the trees. He took no particular notice that Noriko put her arms around his neck. After all, it made sense that she would want to hang on if she was nervous about being carried. It didn’t seem to make a lot of sense for the girl to be nervous when she had been riding on the top of Ranma’s pack as the little old man. That was another puzzle to ponder some other time.
Ranma tried to stay in the trees as much as he could. The few times there were no trees close enough he jumped down onto boulders that would not show much trace of their passage.
It was a couple hours later that Ranma again stopped in a tree. He stood on a branch with an arm around Noriko’s waist to keep her from falling. It didn’t occur to Ranma to wonder why the blonde was submitting to this treatment. If he had been in girl form he would have protested that he didn’t need any of that kind of help.
In a few moments a group of three Amazons appeared. They were looking carefully at the trail. Not trusting the branches and leaves of the tree to conceal him, Ranma engaged his invisibility when they got closer.
One of the Amazons said, “This is useless! We’ve lost the trail. All we’re doing now is going in the same direction as our quarry was last going.”
Another of the group chided, “Are you willing to concede defeat to that male?”
“Humph!” The first speaker responded. “I’ll tell you what I’m willing to concede at this point. That’s that women in general are superior to men in general. I would also be a fool if I didn’t recognize the fact that there may be some rare individual men who could be superior to other men and even to general run of women. I’m not saying that an exceptional male would be superior to an exceptional female.”
The second woman looked in surprise at her companion. “You must be feeling really frustrated if you would say something like that.”
“Arrgh!” The woman ground out. “It’s just that this Saotome person is sneaky and clever.”
The third member of the group complained, “What I can’t understand is why they’re going this way in the first place. There’s nothing out here. No people live here.”
The first woman shrugged. “Maybe they wanted to get away from people.”
The third woman nodded. It would make sense.
The first woman said, “Saotome and the old pervert would have had time to finish whatever they came to do by now. Likely they’re heading back by now.”
The second woman nodded. “If that’s the case then the patrols in our territory will catch them.”
The leader of the group was in a pessimistic mood. “Catching them doesn’t necessarily mean holding them. Ei Linah’s squad caught them and let them go because Saotome was too strong for them.”
The second woman (she had blue hair) frowned at that. She said, “Do we even know what they came here to do? I mean, they traveled here from Japan and that is a long way to go just to tramp around in the woods. If they were trying to get Nyaniichuan water like Elder Soap said shouldn’t they be going to Jusenkyo or trying to raid the storehouse?”
The pink haired leader frowned back. “I know. It doesn’t make any sense. In this direction there’s nothing but trees and grass. There are no people, no ruins of old cities, no treasures. Until you get out of the mountains there is nothing worth bothering with.”
The blue haired woman reasonably pointed out, “Well, there must be something or Saotome and the old pervert wouldn’t be going way. I can’t believe they are just going this way to leave the mountains. If that is what they wanted they could have completely avoided going through our territory.”
The third member of the party had blonde hair. She said in a speculating tone, “We know that the old man stole some of our treasures many years ago. It is possible that he stashed one or more of them in one of the valleys along this way. Maybe they came this way to retrieve something he left behind years ago.”
The pink haired leader rounded angrily on her blonde companion and started to say, “That…” She paused and her angry posture relaxed. “Actually, that makes more sense than anything else I’ve heard. Come on, let’s go. The trees thin out enough ahead that they’d have to go back to the ground. We should be able to pick up the trail again.”
The trio headed off down the trail, not realizing how close they had come to their quarry. When they were out of sight, Ranma dropped his invisibility.
Noriko commented, “Well, they were right about one thing. We did come this way to get something that I stashed. I don’t think they would call it a treasure, but it was a very valuable to me.”
Ranma nodded. “It saved your life. That would make it a treasure for you.”
The young woman sounded thoughtful. “It did more than save my life. After more than 300 years it made me what I was originally born to be. As a man I was one of the greatest martial arts masters but I can admit now that I wasn’t a very nice person. Now that I am a woman, I intend to correct that.”
Ranma smiled at the woman. “I’m glad to hear that. If that’s really what you want to do, I’ll give you whatever help I can. When we get back I’m sure Kasumi will want to help too. I’m not too sure about Akane and Nabiki probably won’t help unless you pay her.”
The blonde frowned, “I’m betting that Soun and Genma won’t be too helpful. I must admit to poor judgment with them. There were times when I was more than a little crazy in my training methods. They are the type to hold a grudge.”
The pigtailed boy nodded. “In anything outside of the Art my Pop isn’t the brightest person. I’ll just have to try and make him see that his grievance was with Happosai and Noriko’s a different person.” He absently cracked his knuckles and got an expression his face as if the idea of “educating” his father appealed to him.
Noriko pointed out, “Well, we do know one thing from listening to the trackers. They are still patrolling back in Joketsuzoku territory.”
Ranma wondered, “Would giving back the stuff you stole get them to back off?”
The blonde woman looked sad. “It might if I still had all of that stuff. Most of the things I took turned out to be useless for what I wanted. I either threw them out or traded them for other magic artifacts while looking for something to cancel my curse. That’s how I got the Amulet of Ortiz.”
The young man looked worried. “You didn’t keep anything?”
She shrugged. “The only item I still have with me is the Nanban Mirror and it’s of limited usefulness because it’s broken. You’d really be taking your life in your hands if you try to use the Mirror in its current condition.”
Now puzzled, Ranma asked, “Why did you keep it if it’s broken?”
Noriko shook her head. “I was sort of hoping I’d find a way to fix it. When the Mirror is working properly and used right it is a powerful tool. It is just tricky to use.”
The pigtailed martial artist nodded. “Since the mirror is no good to you right now maybe you could give it to the Amazons. They might be willing to accept it as a gesture showing that you’ve reformed.”
The blonde woman started to snicker. “Re-formed? Oh, yes. I’ve truly re-formed.”
Ranma rolled his eyes. “That’s not how I meant it.”
The young woman controlled her amusement with some effort. “I’m sorry, I couldn’t help that. Well, I don’t know if I’ll ever be able to fix the Nanban Mirror so it wouldn’t be a sacrifice to give it up.”
Her hand went to the front her shirt. “I didn’t get it from the Amazons, but I’d be willing to give them the Amulet of Ortiz as a gesture. I’ve gotten what I needed from it. I could see where it might be useful as a magic defense, but I’m sure I could live without it. Maybe the Amazons will accept it in place of some of the other stuff I took.”
The black haired boy said, “We’ll keep that as an option if they catch us. I think it would be preferable to violence. I’d also prefer it to trying to scare them off like I did the last time. They don’t know that the only way I’d fight them is to defend if they attacked.”
Noriko nodded. “For now let’s just try to avoid any confrontations.”
He grunted in agreement as he scooped her up in his arms again and leapt to the next tree. By mutual agreement they let Noriko take care of the ki scan of the area, while Ranma concentrated on moving them along. That freed Ranma’s concentration for picking his way through the trees
Author’s Note: Happosai is a woman now. You had to know I would make her beautiful. It adds to the potential complications. Ranma has noticed how good Noriko looks and Noriko likes being held in Ranma’s arms. Is it Ranma or would Noriko react that way to any man?
A Ranma ½ Fan Fiction
By Michael A. Ivins
Ranma along with all of his friends, enemies and acquaintances are the property of Takahashi Rumiko. I’m just borrowing them for my own amusement and hopefully that of my readers. Sailor Moon and the Senshi aren’t mine either. Please don’t sue me.
This story takes place after the end of the manga.
Chapter 5
Transformation
Ranma turned the bottle upside down and let the water gurgle out. She had expected to see a change and was not disappointed. The body of the little man began to grow and shift. Before long there was a scream. Happosai’s voice had always been rather high for man but the character of the voice was definitely taking on feminine tones. Also heard was the sound of ripping cloth.
The redhead exclaimed, “Oh, Kami-Sami! I didn’t think about your clothes.”
A feminine voice shouted, “Get it off, get it off! It’s strangling me.”
Ranma rushed to help, saying, “Oh calm down you big baby. You just got too big for what you were wearing.” Mostly it was a matter finishing the tearing that had begun when the small body had changed to more normal proportions. It was perhaps fortunate that the Master’s clothing was old and worn.
When the new girl was free of the constricting garments she sat down and breathed a sigh of relief. She commented, “This is something else we didn’t plan on.”
Ranma also sighed. “Well, stand up. Let’s have a look at you. Hopefully you won’t be so big that you won’t fit into one of my outfits.”
Before she stood up the new girl said, “Noriko.”
“What?”
She answered, “I don’t want to be Happosai any more. I’ve been thinking about it a lot on the trip here. I’m starting a new life here. The witch and I traveled for 20 years together. She was my friend and mentor. I feel it would be a tribute to her if I could take the same name.”
Ranma nodded in acknowledgement. It seemed like a good choice. Now if only the rejuvenated pervert didn’t do anything to dishonor the name.
As Noriko stood, Ranma took out her flashlight and used it to illuminate the naked girl. She was taller than Ranma, not as tall as Kasumi, but just slightly taller than Nabiki. Her hair was a soft honey blonde that fell to her shoulders in an unruly cascade. Her eyes were a beautiful shade of green. Her face was beautiful, about equal to Ranma’s own face. There were some fading red marks where the old clothing had pressed into the expanding flesh.
Ranma moved the beam of the light down and said, “Ghah! Does Nyaniichuan give big boobs to every cursed girl form?”
The blonde looked down at her chest. “Oh, wow! I suddenly feel this strong urge to grope myself.”
“Yeah, well control yourself for a little while longer,” Ranma advised. “From your height and build you should be able to wear one of my guy outfits. With that rack the shirt may be a little tight. It’s the best we’ve got for now.”
From her pack Ranma pulled out pants, a shirt, boxers and a tank top. She also pulled a spare pair of shoes. She tossed these to the other girl.
Ranma said, “So, if you want to grope yourself please do it in your tent. I know there are girls who like to do that a lot, but I’d rather not watch.”
The new girl pouted cutely. “Awe, come on, Ranma. Don’t you want to help me learn about my new body?”
The redhead just looked at her travel companion with one eyebrow raised. Finally she said, “I see. That sounds like more of that sick sense of humor I mentioned earlier. So are you permanently female now or are you going to change into a wrinkled old man with hot water?”
Turning serious with the serious question, Noriko said, “Nope, I’m permanently female. In turning me female and young the curse and the spell interacted and canceled each other out. I could take a hot bath and stay like this.”
Ranma nodded. “So from what you told me, your curse was attached to the spell. That means it should be gone now too, right?”
When Noriko nodded, Ranma asked, “Does that mean the amulet goes back to being a magical defense?”
Noriko frowned. “I don’t know. It should, but it’s possible that it was drained of its magic with all that just happened. I can’t feel any magic in it, but that doesn’t prove anything. My own magic will take some time to adjust to the new body. My ki already feels strong.”
The redhead scrutinized the other girl now and said, “Yeah, your ki seems strong for a normal person, a little low for a martial artist. I think it is building up. I don’t know if it will get as strong as it did in your old body. After all you did have a long time to build up your reserves.”
“Good point,” the blonde conceded.
Ranma was studying the blonde’s face in the firelight. “You know, you look closer to Kasumi’s age than mine.”
The blonde girl seemed to ponder that for a while before answering. “As I understand, that’s how the Nyaniichuan works. Since I was 305 years old the oldest the curse could make me was 19 or 20.”
In a grumpy tone the redhead groused, “So it’s just me that gets turned into a kid.”
Noriko said, “You’re going to have to get used to looking younger than your true age. Your different forms will only age when you are manifesting that form. Basically that means your girl form will only age when you are female and your birth form will only age when you are male.”
Ranma’s eyes went wide. “Are you saying that the curse has doubled my life span?”
The blonde shrugged. “If you don’t die by violence before your full span.”
The redhead seemed to be having trouble with this concept. “Are you saying I actually got something good out of the curse?”
Noriko asked, “Does it have to be all bad?”
In a slightly angry tone Ranma replied, “Well, they do call it a curse for a reason.”
Now in a philosophical mood, the blonde said, “Like many things in life, it could be a curse or a blessing. The difference is in how you deal with it.”
Ranma asked, “Is this one of those ‘if life hands you lemons, make lemonade’ things?” She sounded annoyed.
The former man nodded. “I suppose it is.”
“How can changing into a girl and being a water magnet be a blessing?” Ranma demanded.
Noriko tilted her head in thought. “Well, I can see how the water magnet thing would be an annoyance. Being in wet clothes is not comfortable. The random timing of the changes must surely be inconvenient too and probably embarrassing. On the other hand when you eventually get married you will be much better able to relate to your wife.”
The redhead nodded, “Because I’ve experienced being a woman myself?”
“Exactly.”
The pigtailed girl shook her head. “I don’t know. Akane always seems to think the whole girl curse thing is perverted.”
The new woman said, “Uh… you do know I was joking when I spoke of groping myself, don’t you?”
Ranma frowned. “And how am I supposed to know that? You’re still sitting there naked, after all. And you doing that kind of stuff with your female body would seem perfectly in character for you.”
Noriko looked down at her bare breasts and realized that she was, in fact, still naked. She grabbed the clothes Ranma had thrown her and stood up to put on the boxers and tank top. She hesitated to put on the other clothes. “I’m not sure if I should put the other stuff on if we’re going to go to bed soon.”
The younger girl advised, “Better put ‘em on. If the Amazons do come we might have to run at a moment’s notice. Do you really want to run through the back country of the Chinese mountains dressed like that?”
“Good point,” the taller woman conceded. The pants were a fair fit if a bit snug in the hops, but the shirt was sized for Ranma’s male form. Noriko’s ample bosom did strain the buttons. She unfastened the top buttons for the sake of comfort. At the same time she marveled at the concept of having cleavage, something she never before really expected to have.
Noriko did feel like giving a piece of advice to her traveling companion. “You know, after all of the problems Akane had with Kuno and the morning fights, she probably isn’t the best judge of what is and isn’t perverted now.”
The younger girl surprised Noriko by saying, “I’ve sort of come to realize that. But if I’m ever going to get married to her, I’m pretty much stuck living with what she thinks is perverted.”
The blonde woman wasn’t sure why she was even getting into this but asked, “Do you love her?”
Ranma stayed silent for a while before setting a pot on the fire to heat some water for supper. Finally she spoke again, “I used to think I loved her right after the whole thing with Saffron. I thought she loved me too, but mistrusting me, calling me a pervert and hitting me with a mallet are funny way of showing it.”
The older woman nodded. Deciding a change in subject was in order she said, “I’m going to need to train to strengthen my new body. I’m pretty sure my ki will be as strong as before, but my muscles are still fairly weak. I’m also feeling a little unbalanced. I’m more than twice as tall as before and top heavy with these breasts. Will you spar with me when it gets light?”
The redhead shook her head. “I’m willing, but I think we should wait on that. It might be better to get going as soon as we can in the morning after breakfast. We don’t know that the Amazons plan to come after us, but it might be safest to assume they will.”
“They seemed reluctant to get into a confrontation with you after they learned who you are,” observed Noriko.
The younger girl shrugged. “I guess I sort of have a reputation. They think someone with the strength to kill Saffron could destroy their village and kill everyone in it. I don’t know if that will be enough to keep them at a distance. It all depends on how badly they want you. I guess it’s a good thing they don’t know that I’d never do something like wipe out their village.”
“Yes, a good thing,” the woman agreed. “Still, it would be best to avoid a confrontation. I wouldn’t be much help to you until I get used to my new body and train. I can’t realistically think that I would be properly able to defend myself yet.”
Ranma took a cup and dipped out some of the heating water. She splashed herself, changing to male. He said, “The Amazons will be looking for a red haired girl and a little old man.”
Noriko nodded. “They wouldn’t be expecting a black haired teenaged boy and a…” She paused, then pulled some of her hair around to look at in the firelight. “I’m a blonde? Anyway, they wouldn’t be expecting a black haired teenaged boy and a blonde haired young woman. You’d still have to change back to a girl when we get anywhere they’re going to check your travel documents. What are we going to do about travel documents for me?”
The younger man sighed. “I can think of a couple possibilities. One would be to get back to Japan the way Pop and I did after we first got the curses.”
Noriko looked slightly alarmed. “You don’t mean to swim back, do you? I don’t think this body is strong enough to swim that far.”
“No,” answered Ranma. “We swam to get to China from Japan. Pop couldn’t swim it as a panda because the wet fur weighed him down. We took a cargo ship. We worked for our passage. Pop tried to get out of any work and leave me to do it all, but the captain wouldn’t allow it. I think that was the hardest I’ve ever seen him work.”
The older girl laughed. “Serves him right. What was your other possibility?”
“I was thinking about that first Amazon tribe we visited to get the supplies,” said the pigtailed martial artist. “They seemed pretty modern. I was sort of hoping that someone there would have a computer with a web cam. If they do, we could email a picture of your new face to Nabiki and she could get a new passport made for you. Then she could mail it to us at the village.”
The blonde was surprised again. “You know how to use a computer?”
Ranma snorted in amusement. “You said it yourself, there is more to life than martial arts. Ever since the fight with Saffron I’ve been going at school work like it was a martial arts challenge. Nabiki’s even helping.”
Her expression skeptical, the older girl asked, “How much is she charging you for that?”
The boy shrugged, “She’s charging me ten percent less than a night school would charge for the same lessons. After all, if she was to charge more, I’d just go to the night school.”
“We’d have to stay with those Amazon’s until the new passport could arrive,” observed Noriko. “What will we do while we wait?”
The boy shrugged. “They seem like nice enough people. They were willing enough to help out a girl and old man before. Maybe they’d be more willing to help out two girls this time. I’m willing to work in exchange for a place to stay for a while.”
“How will we explain the fact that you were with an old man before and now you’re with a young woman?” The blonde wanted to know.
Ranma explained, “We tell them that you, Noriko, met us in this valley. The old man died here (which is sort of true) and we buried him there. We then tell them we are going back to Japan together.”
The blonde nodded. “The only part of that that isn’t true is the burial and we could even say that it was true in a purely symbolic sense.”
“I have a thought on that, the symbolism, I mean.” Ranma said thoughtfully.
The other woman looked interested. “Oh, what did you have in mind?”
The redhead grinned. “Just a little ceremony in the morning. We bury what’s left of your old clothes. At the same time we say goodbye to Happosai.”
The older girl grinned, “I like it. I really do think Happosai is dead and I’m a new person. When we’re burying the clothes we can also bury my pipe. I find that the thought of smoking that thing now makes me feel slightly ill.”
Ranma frowned. “I’m pretty sure it’s not a male/female thing, ‘cause the old ghoul smokes a pipe.”
The older girl shook her head. “I can’t explain it. I find I don’t like the idea of drinking sake either and I used to love the stuff.”
“Looks like you’ll have a lot of adjustments to make,” commented Ranma.
The blonde just grunted assent as Ranma dished up the food. When the woman took a taste of the rice she looked surprised. She then took a sip of the instant soup Ranma had made and her eyes got even wider.
Ranma noticed and asked, “Is something wrong with the soup? It’s a cheap instant mix. You know, one of those you just add hot water to.”
The older girl was looking at the metal mug that contained her soup. “No, nothing is wrong with the soup. Quite the opposite, in fact. The soup is delicious. Even the rice tastes good. I think with the new body I must have got new taste buds. I don’t think I’ve really tasted my food this much in a long time.”
The young man nodded. “That makes sense. That’s probably why the idea of smoking and drinking don’t appeal to you now.” He suddenly grinned. “If you think instant soup tastes good, we’ve got to get you back to Japan where you can have one of Kasumi’s meals.”
Noriko shook her head. “It would seem I just thought I was tasting Kasumi’s cooking. Somebody once told me that your taste buds wear out as you get older. I didn’t really pay attention to it, but I guess I have proof that it’s true.”
In a sarcastic tone the pigtailed martial artist said, “Great, something to look forward to when I get old.”
The older girl shrugged and went back to enjoying her food. She reasoned that she should enjoy it now while it was still new. Likely in a week or more she wouldn’t find the soup so exceptional.
After they ate Ranma smothered the fire under dirt. He wanted to be sure that his eyes were adapted to the dark if the Amazons decided to sneak up on them under cover of darkness. He didn’t really think they would, but felt it was better to be safe than sorry.
The next morning after breakfast Ranma pulled a folding shovel out of his pack and started to dig. He paused in his work to look at his traveling companion. Noriko was doing tai chi katas that placed their emphasis on balance. This was his first chance to see the transformed Happosai in the sunlight. She was worth looking at.
The impression from the previous night was borne out. She was about the same height as Ranma’s male form, blonde haired and beautiful of face and figure. The body Nyaniichuan had given her looked moderately athletic but likely not nearly as fit as she would have liked. Her balance was still a little off because her performance of the katas was a little wobbly, but she seemed to be improving as he watched.
She was still wearing one of Ranma’s shirts but with the top buttons undone to give room to her impressive bosom. While Noriko’s breasts were actually larger than those of Ranma’s girl form’s, in proportion to her taller body, they about the same as Ranma’s.
Ranma suddenly realized that he had been checking out Noriko like any pretty girl and turned back to digging. Sure, she was pretty and moved well, but this was Happosai for crying out loud.
When he had the hole deep enough, he called over to the young woman. “Hey Noriko, you want to do this ceremony now?”
The girl stopped her kata and walked over. She picked up the bundle of ripped cloth and looked at the hole. She commented, “I’m not sure if I should get rid of the pipe yet. I could still use it as a weapon even if I don’t smoke it. I don’t much care for the smell of it, though.”
Trying to consider the pros and cons of the situation, Ranma asked, “Do you actually need the pipe or do you just find it useful?”
Noriko thought a moment, “I guess I don’t really need it, but it is useful.”
The boy nodded, “If you don’t like the smell, then you should get rid of this pipe now and pick a new one that hasn’t been used later. That way you’d still have your weapon but be rid of the smell.”
She nodded. “Good idea.” She pulled the pipe from her pocket and set it on top of the bundle of cloth then gently set the whole thing down in the bottom of the hole. She just stared for a few moments. Finally she said, “By this action we are saying goodbye to Happosai. He will never be seen again and I’m sure few, if any, will miss him. I can confess now that he was not a nice person but he did have reasons to behave the way he did. By burying this remnant I commit myself to also bury those behaviors of his that so annoyed people. I may forget sometimes and fall back into my old ways from time to time and I request that you remind me when you see me doing that.”
Ranma nodded. He then bowed his head and said, “Goodbye Old Freak. You were a serious pain in the ass but you did teach me some things. I won’t miss having you groping my girl form. The jury is still out on the new girl, but I’m willing to give her a chance.”
Noriko inclined her head in acknowledgement. She had been given a new life and planned to make something of it.
The two stood for a time in silence. Finally Ranma looked up and Noriko gave him a nod. He nodded in reply and began filling in the hole. Before long the only thing left to show where the “remains” of Happosai were buried was a patch of freshly turned soil. Ranma idly wondered what the Amazon’s would think if they dug up the pipe and bits of torn clothing.
Ranma eyed the sky for a moment. There were a few light, fluffy clouds, but nothing that threatened rain. His luck couldn’t run so good that it would stay that way for long. He quickly struck camp and crammed everything into his pack.
Noriko reasonably pointed out, “Now that I’m a full sized person, I could carry some of that.”
The boy shrugged to settle the pack. “Then I guess this is an area where we didn’t plan ahead properly. I’d let you carry some of this, but we only have the one pack. Neither of us thought to bring an extra one.”
The girl paused and chewed her lower lip for a moment. “Could… I try to carry that pack?”
The pigtailed martial artist studied his traveling companion. She looked fit, but nowhere strong enough to carry the pack more than a step or two. While he could argue the point, a demonstration would likely be much more effective.
He took off the pack and held it so Noriko could put her arms through the straps. When she seemed to have the pack positioned properly Ranma let go of it. The blonde woman staggered but managed to stay on her feet.
“Damn!” she swore. “This thing is heavy. Do you have training weights in there?”
The boy shook his head. “Just the usual stuff.” He pointed out, “You have a whole new body. I wouldn’t expect that body to be as fit as someone who has trained for years. I’d say you’re doing good to even stand up with the weight of the pack. Try walking with it.”
She took a hesitant step and followed it with another. It looked like she was making an enormous effort. A look of frustration came to her face. Finally after a few more steps she made a peremptory gesture and asked, “Help me get this off, please.”
Ranma walked up behind her and lifted the pack enough so she could slip out of the straps. The girl rubbed a shoulder where the strap had pressed down on it. “That settles it! When we get back to Japan, I’m going an intense program of strength, flexibility and speed training. To be in a body that is this weak is intolerable.”
Ranma sighed. “For now just try to work with what you have. Before you can start on that program we need to get somewhere where people aren’t going to try and capture or kill us.”
“You do have a point,” she agreed.
Ranma put the pack back on and they headed out. As they went, Ranma probed ahead of them with his ki senses, looking for any people. Ranma set a brisk pace, but not so fast that Noriko couldn’t keep up. What he was going for was a speed of travel that would push the new girl a little and work on building her endurance.
When they had reached about halfway through the next valley, Noriko was shocked when Ranma suddenly grabbed her and leapt into a tree. Because of her martial arts experience she didn’t cry out or fight against Ranma. She figured there must be a reason for his actions. When they were in the tree she whispered, “What’s going on?”
Even before he could answer she sensed the reason ahead. There was a party of Amazons coming up the trail. They didn’t seem to be looking at the ground, so it seemed likely they weren’t trying to track the travelers. Likely they were just going in the direction that Ranma and Happosai had last been seen traveling.
As the group of five warriors drew close to the tree where the travelers sheltered, their conversation became audible to those hiding. One of the women said, “Even if they did come this way, what would we do with them if we find them? Saotome may be a ‘mere’ male but he’s too strong for just our little group.”
Another scoffed, “We’re some of the strongest of the tribe. What hope can one man have against us?”
The first speaker responded, “We’re talking about the man who killed Saffron. An Elder would have a hard time fighting this man. How much better do you think you would do? Anyway, from the report we have Saotome is traveling in his Jusenkyo cursed form.”
The second warrior was still not convinced. “So? Right now she’s a weak Outsider female. She’s still no threat.”
The leader of the group shook her head. “Whether she’s a threat or not, we must follow our orders. If we do meet up with them, we are to first talk to them. We are to fight only if persuasion fails.”
A third warrior asked, “Saotome said the old man was dying. What if he has died? We can’t punish a dead man.”
The leader replied, “Then we ask to see his grave. We need proof of his death. If he truly is dead now then his punishment is in the hands of the gods and not for mortals like us to concern ourselves.”
There was a chorus of agreement to that as the group passed out of hearing range up the trail.
Noriko thought about asking Ranma to let go of her but she was enjoying the feeling of his strong arms holding her. She wanted to scold herself for feeling that way. She had been a woman for less than a day and already she was starting to react in a feminine way. That shouldn’t be happening. Noriko had been male since she had been only a month old. She had never learned how to be a girl.
The fact that she was reacting this way raised some interesting possibilities. During the time she had been a man the only relationship she had ever had with a woman had been with Cologne. Other than hugging and kissing, there had never been anything physical to that relationship. At least she didn’t think martial arts sparring counted.
She had thought the reason why no romance had ever developed with any other woman was due to Happosai’s small stature and gnome-like appearance. Maybe the real reason for it was because of her own feelings. Could it be that she had been attracted to men and just buried that feeling down so deeply that she hadn’t recognized it for what it was?
She wasn’t sure what to think about that. On the one hand maybe it would mean that adjusting to being a girl would be a lot easier than she had thought it might be. On the other hand after three centuries as a male, a part of her strongly resented the necessity of becoming a woman. She wasn’t sure what to think.
A moment later Ranma jumped to the ground and set Noriko back on her feet. He didn’t notice the distracted look on her face as he said, “Well, that looks like they’re just trying to search in the direction we were going. They don’t seem to be looking for footprints and stuff.”
Noriko frowned and said, “If they are being thorough they might have sent a second party of trackers along. They would be following the footprints, bent grass, broken twigs and that sort of thing. Because they need to see those signs they will be traveling slower.”
Ranma nodded. “It should be harder to track us when we are traveling in the trees. I know you were complaining about being baggage before, but your new body isn’t strong enough yet to jump between trees. Would you object to being carried?”
“Object?” After she had just been thinking about how enjoyable it had been to be held by strong male arms? Doing a fine job of acting she said, “I guess I can put up with it if I have to. I really need to train when we get back to Japan.”
Something in the girl’s tone caused Ranma to look at her searchingly. Was something bothering her? She seemed oddly nervous or something about the prospect of being carried. Misinterpreting her demeanor he told her, “Don’t worry about anything. I won’t drop you.”
“Oh, good. He’s given me an excuse for acting foolish and girlish.” The blonde said, “That’s alright. I trust you.”
There was something in the woman’s tone that seemed… off. The pigtailed martial artist couldn’t quite figure it out. Something was still bothering the girl but he was reasonably sure it wasn’t a fear of being dropped. Inwardly he shrugged. He’d try to puzzle it out later. Right now they needed to get out of territory which was, if not actively hostile, could still be classified as unfriendly.
With that thought in mind, Ranma scooped up the blonde girl and leapt back into the trees. He took no particular notice that Noriko put her arms around his neck. After all, it made sense that she would want to hang on if she was nervous about being carried. It didn’t seem to make a lot of sense for the girl to be nervous when she had been riding on the top of Ranma’s pack as the little old man. That was another puzzle to ponder some other time.
Ranma tried to stay in the trees as much as he could. The few times there were no trees close enough he jumped down onto boulders that would not show much trace of their passage.
It was a couple hours later that Ranma again stopped in a tree. He stood on a branch with an arm around Noriko’s waist to keep her from falling. It didn’t occur to Ranma to wonder why the blonde was submitting to this treatment. If he had been in girl form he would have protested that he didn’t need any of that kind of help.
In a few moments a group of three Amazons appeared. They were looking carefully at the trail. Not trusting the branches and leaves of the tree to conceal him, Ranma engaged his invisibility when they got closer.
One of the Amazons said, “This is useless! We’ve lost the trail. All we’re doing now is going in the same direction as our quarry was last going.”
Another of the group chided, “Are you willing to concede defeat to that male?”
“Humph!” The first speaker responded. “I’ll tell you what I’m willing to concede at this point. That’s that women in general are superior to men in general. I would also be a fool if I didn’t recognize the fact that there may be some rare individual men who could be superior to other men and even to general run of women. I’m not saying that an exceptional male would be superior to an exceptional female.”
The second woman looked in surprise at her companion. “You must be feeling really frustrated if you would say something like that.”
“Arrgh!” The woman ground out. “It’s just that this Saotome person is sneaky and clever.”
The third member of the group complained, “What I can’t understand is why they’re going this way in the first place. There’s nothing out here. No people live here.”
The first woman shrugged. “Maybe they wanted to get away from people.”
The third woman nodded. It would make sense.
The first woman said, “Saotome and the old pervert would have had time to finish whatever they came to do by now. Likely they’re heading back by now.”
The second woman nodded. “If that’s the case then the patrols in our territory will catch them.”
The leader of the group was in a pessimistic mood. “Catching them doesn’t necessarily mean holding them. Ei Linah’s squad caught them and let them go because Saotome was too strong for them.”
The second woman (she had blue hair) frowned at that. She said, “Do we even know what they came here to do? I mean, they traveled here from Japan and that is a long way to go just to tramp around in the woods. If they were trying to get Nyaniichuan water like Elder Soap said shouldn’t they be going to Jusenkyo or trying to raid the storehouse?”
The pink haired leader frowned back. “I know. It doesn’t make any sense. In this direction there’s nothing but trees and grass. There are no people, no ruins of old cities, no treasures. Until you get out of the mountains there is nothing worth bothering with.”
The blue haired woman reasonably pointed out, “Well, there must be something or Saotome and the old pervert wouldn’t be going way. I can’t believe they are just going this way to leave the mountains. If that is what they wanted they could have completely avoided going through our territory.”
The third member of the party had blonde hair. She said in a speculating tone, “We know that the old man stole some of our treasures many years ago. It is possible that he stashed one or more of them in one of the valleys along this way. Maybe they came this way to retrieve something he left behind years ago.”
The pink haired leader rounded angrily on her blonde companion and started to say, “That…” She paused and her angry posture relaxed. “Actually, that makes more sense than anything else I’ve heard. Come on, let’s go. The trees thin out enough ahead that they’d have to go back to the ground. We should be able to pick up the trail again.”
The trio headed off down the trail, not realizing how close they had come to their quarry. When they were out of sight, Ranma dropped his invisibility.
Noriko commented, “Well, they were right about one thing. We did come this way to get something that I stashed. I don’t think they would call it a treasure, but it was a very valuable to me.”
Ranma nodded. “It saved your life. That would make it a treasure for you.”
The young woman sounded thoughtful. “It did more than save my life. After more than 300 years it made me what I was originally born to be. As a man I was one of the greatest martial arts masters but I can admit now that I wasn’t a very nice person. Now that I am a woman, I intend to correct that.”
Ranma smiled at the woman. “I’m glad to hear that. If that’s really what you want to do, I’ll give you whatever help I can. When we get back I’m sure Kasumi will want to help too. I’m not too sure about Akane and Nabiki probably won’t help unless you pay her.”
The blonde frowned, “I’m betting that Soun and Genma won’t be too helpful. I must admit to poor judgment with them. There were times when I was more than a little crazy in my training methods. They are the type to hold a grudge.”
The pigtailed boy nodded. “In anything outside of the Art my Pop isn’t the brightest person. I’ll just have to try and make him see that his grievance was with Happosai and Noriko’s a different person.” He absently cracked his knuckles and got an expression his face as if the idea of “educating” his father appealed to him.
Noriko pointed out, “Well, we do know one thing from listening to the trackers. They are still patrolling back in Joketsuzoku territory.”
Ranma wondered, “Would giving back the stuff you stole get them to back off?”
The blonde woman looked sad. “It might if I still had all of that stuff. Most of the things I took turned out to be useless for what I wanted. I either threw them out or traded them for other magic artifacts while looking for something to cancel my curse. That’s how I got the Amulet of Ortiz.”
The young man looked worried. “You didn’t keep anything?”
She shrugged. “The only item I still have with me is the Nanban Mirror and it’s of limited usefulness because it’s broken. You’d really be taking your life in your hands if you try to use the Mirror in its current condition.”
Now puzzled, Ranma asked, “Why did you keep it if it’s broken?”
Noriko shook her head. “I was sort of hoping I’d find a way to fix it. When the Mirror is working properly and used right it is a powerful tool. It is just tricky to use.”
The pigtailed martial artist nodded. “Since the mirror is no good to you right now maybe you could give it to the Amazons. They might be willing to accept it as a gesture showing that you’ve reformed.”
The blonde woman started to snicker. “Re-formed? Oh, yes. I’ve truly re-formed.”
Ranma rolled his eyes. “That’s not how I meant it.”
The young woman controlled her amusement with some effort. “I’m sorry, I couldn’t help that. Well, I don’t know if I’ll ever be able to fix the Nanban Mirror so it wouldn’t be a sacrifice to give it up.”
Her hand went to the front her shirt. “I didn’t get it from the Amazons, but I’d be willing to give them the Amulet of Ortiz as a gesture. I’ve gotten what I needed from it. I could see where it might be useful as a magic defense, but I’m sure I could live without it. Maybe the Amazons will accept it in place of some of the other stuff I took.”
The black haired boy said, “We’ll keep that as an option if they catch us. I think it would be preferable to violence. I’d also prefer it to trying to scare them off like I did the last time. They don’t know that the only way I’d fight them is to defend if they attacked.”
Noriko nodded. “For now let’s just try to avoid any confrontations.”
He grunted in agreement as he scooped her up in his arms again and leapt to the next tree. By mutual agreement they let Noriko take care of the ki scan of the area, while Ranma concentrated on moving them along. That freed Ranma’s concentration for picking his way through the trees
Author’s Note: Happosai is a woman now. You had to know I would make her beautiful. It adds to the potential complications. Ranma has noticed how good Noriko looks and Noriko likes being held in Ranma’s arms. Is it Ranma or would Noriko react that way to any man?
Happi's Redemption chapter 4
Happi’s Redemption
A Ranma One Half Fan Fiction
By Michael A. Ivins
Ranma along with all of his friends, enemies and acquaintances are the property of Takahashi Rumiko. I’m just borrowing them for my own amusement and hopefully that of my readers. Sailor Moon and the Senshi aren’t mine either. Please don’t sue me.
This story takes place after the end of the manga.
Chapter 4
Dodging Amazons
Their next stop was in the middle of the night with Ranma and Happosai both asleep when they arrived. A man from the station shook both of them awake. Again they transferred to an older train. Once they got going they went back to sleep. In the morning they changed trains yet again. While traveling they ate from the food in Ranma’s pack. They ate sparingly as they didn’t know how far they would need to stretch those supplies.
By the end of the following day they had gone as far as the train tracks would take them. They hitched a ride with truck driver who was going in the direction they needed to go. When the driver got to his destination, they found another ride and so passed another day.
The final ride they got was with a woman who was taking supplies to a tribe of Nichezu. These were not the Joketsuzoku, but a more modern group of Amazons. In this tribe the women were still the rulers but men had a more equal status. This tribe was also more in touch with the modern world and had more amenities. Ranma found out that there was a river than ran through this valley and they used it to generate electricity.
Ranma was able to talk the Amazons at their stop into resupplying them for their trip. The friendly Amazons warned about how crazy the Joketsuzoku were. They were given a warning that Jusenkyo was a dangerous place and best avoided if possible. Ranma thanked them for the well meant warnings, but refrained from mentioning that she had been to those places before. Their hosts had been able to provide them a map of the area they were planning to visit. Some of the areas on the map were a little vague, but for the most part it was a help.
They were now on foot. While Ranma and her father had passed through the area while fleeing a vengeful Shampoo, it was long enough ago that it still qualified as unfamiliar territory. After all, when they had come through this area before, had not been paying that close attention to the landmarks.
When Ranma was performing her more energetic maneuvers, Happosai had to be tied to the top of the pack. Even after a ki treatment he was too weak to hang on and ran the risk of falling off and getting lost.
It was another day before they reached familiar territory. They had arrived at the edge of the territory inhabited by the Joketsuzoku, the Musk and the Phoenix. The part of the border they were at now was right on the edge of Amazon territory. Now they would have to keep a low profile by moving as silently as possible and avoiding any contact with people. While Ranma felt she could probably be on more or less good terms with Prince Herb of the Musk, she was not so sure about the rest of the tribe. The Phoenix were likely to be very hostile considering what Ranma had done to their god.
As for the Amazons in the area, they’d be better off avoiding them.
Using the map they’d been given, Ranma and her passenger skirted the edge of the territory claimed by the Joketsuzou. The valleys they were headed for were beyond this area and they had to pass through to get where they wanted. They had camped on the border of the area and now were starting out early in the morning. If they were lucky they would be able to get through the area within a single day.
As they traveled they found themselves dodging patrols. Ranma frowned at this. She didn’t remember there being this many warriors out in the general area when she had been through here before. Could the Amazons have been alerted to their coming? Maybe the Amazons had some means of communication other than letters and couriers.
They had made good time and were most of the way through the Amazon territory when their luck ran out. From one side a voice called out in Mandarin, “Outsider, Halt!”
Ranma considered the possibility of running, but another warrior stepped onto the path in front of them and another to the other side. The redheaded girl didn’t take her eyes off the warrior in front of her but could feel with ki senses the presence of someone on the path behind. Ranma and her passenger were surrounded.
Happosai climbed to the ground and Ranma dropped her pack. She looked around then in halting Mandarin, “My Mandarin very bad. Any you speak Japanese?”
Another of the warriors stepped onto the path ahead and said in passable Japanese, “I am Ei Linah. I speak your barbarian tongue, Outsider girl. Our elders have warned us that this man was likely to try and enter our territory.” The tone used to say the word “man” was dripping with scorn.
Ranma raised her hands in what she hoped was a placating gesture. She said, “We don’t want any trouble. We wish only to travel through your lands and not to stay. We have not hunted nor have we camped. We have not damaged anything. We wish only to be allowed to pass.”
Ei Linah gestured with her spear. “That… is a thief and a pervert and is deserving of punishment. We have been ordered to seek for him and capture him if we can, kill him if we can’t capture.”
Now angry Ranma stated, “It is true that this man is a thief and a pervert. Very likely he does deserve punishment. It is also true that there would really be little point in punishing him now.”
“Little point? What are you talking about?” The Amazon leader was confused. “He must face trial.”
Ranma overrode any other protests by saying, “This man is dying! If it weren’t for the ki energy I’ve been giving him, he would be dead already.”
Ei Linah looked at the little man with an expression of confusion. Obviously her orders didn’t cover this possibility. After a moment she said, “What you say may be true. Still he had committed crimes. We will need to take him back to the village where the council of Elders can decide his fate.”
Ranma shook her head in negation. “He seeks to lay eyes on the land he has chosen to be his final resting place. I will only be able to keep him alive for a short time more. If your council is anything like other councils I’ve heard of they could take more time to decide than he has left to him.”
From what the redhead said, it seemed obvious she must be a healer of some kind. Even if the girl did seem young to be a healer, Ei Linah didn’t want to disrespect someone in that vocation. However, her orders said to bring the old man back. She said, “Honored Healer, I’m sorry. My orders were most specific. I am to bring the man back to face punishment. If our own healers confirm your diagnosis, I’m sure they won’t keep you long.”
Ranma muttered under her breath, “We don’t have time for this.” At normal volume she asked, “When your Elders warned you that Happosai might be visiting your part of the world, did they also mention who might be his traveling companion?”
The leader of the Amazon party looked confused. “There was some mention that there might be another man with him. We were not expecting a girl.”
The redhead pulled herself to her full (small) height and proclaimed, “I am not a girl, I am a Jusenkyo cursed man. I am the one who bested Prince Herb of the Musk in combat. I am the same man who killed Saffron, the Phoenix king. I am Saotome Ranma.”
She ignited her aura and let the light blast forth. The force was strong enough that it pushed each of warriors back a step and sent a ripple through the grass. A feeling of heat radiated off the glowing girl.
Her voice now amplified by ki, the girl said in booming tones, “We don’t want any trouble with your people, but I am capable of handling any trouble you may offer. Do you really want to fight over whether or not a man who is already dying gets punished? Any punishment you might give him now would be nothing more than an empty gesture.”
None of the warriors were ki adepts the way the elders were, but even they could feel the power radiating off the girl. Now that she was reminded of it, Ei Linah thought she could remember the story that the one who killed Saffron was in fact a Jusenkyo cursed boy whose girl form was a petite redhead.
Making a decision, the leader of the group asked, “Do you intend any harm to the people or lands of the Joketsuzoku?”
Ranma emphatically shook her head. “We mean no harm. We only want to peacefully pass through your lands. We had hoped we could make it through without you finding out we had ever been here.”
Ei Linah considered carefully. Finally she said, “Will you, Saotome Ranma, give your word that you intend no harm to our village or the people who live in it?”
The girl nodded solemnly. “On my honor as a martial artist, I swear that I intend no harm to any of the Joketsuzoku, nor do I intend harm to any of the Musk or Phoenix people.”
The Amazon commander laughed. “That’s a little more than I was asking for, but I’ll accept it. Will you guarantee his behavior?”
Ranma cast a look at the little man. “Knowing his character, I would normally not promise anything about him. Right now, I don’t think he has enough energy to cause any trouble. Yes, I’ll give you that guarantee.”
Ei Linah gestured toward the aura and said, “I believe you. Now could you stop glowing like that? You’re making me and my warriors nervous.”
Ranma knew the woman was just joking, but she pulled in her aura anyway. She had proved her point. At a hand signal from their commander the party of Amazons faded into the woods again.
As they headed on with their travel, Ranma could feel the ki traces of the women. She softly commented to Happosai, “They’re following us.”
The old man who was back on top of Ranma’s pack said, “Likely they are going to tell any other groups to leave us alone. Think of it more as an escort.”
Ranma ventured, “Maybe Eyeliner just wants to be sure we leave like I said.”
“That too,” the little man conceded.
Thanks to the delay in confronting the Amazons, it was after dark when Ranma pitched her tent. They were a short distance from the official border of Joketsuzoku land. While tending the fire, Ranma commented, “There’s still someone there. There’s only one now.”
Happosai said, “She’s probably watching to see that we don’t cross back onto their land.”
Ranma frowned. “I hope they realize that I’m going to have to come back through here later on the way back.”
He shrugged. “At least they are staying on their side of the border. If this succeeds how are we going to explain you going back with another girl?”
The girl shook her head. “I guess we didn’t plan this very well. If it doesn’t work I’ll be going back alone. I don’t think they’d bother me then. If it does work I guess we’ll have to work on a plan at the time.”
The little man nodded. He asked, “How much farther is it?”
The redhead studied the map. “The valley you marked as the closest looks like another day’s walk, maybe a little less. I’d guess we should get there in the late afternoon. I don’t know if we’ll have time to find the cave before it gets dark. Would the cave be easy to find?”
The old man shook his head. “I picked it because it was hard to find. I remember there were a lot of bushes growing in front of the entrance. From the valley floor you would never know there was a cave there.”
Ranma gave the old man another ki treatment, after which they went to sleep for the night. Ranma chose not to comment on how much harder it was getting to force ki into Happosai’s aura.
In the Joketsuzoku village, warrior Ei Linah was ushered into the council chamber to meet with Elder Soap. The Elder was not in the best mood. “It’s late and I was just about to go to bed. What do you have to report?”
The warrior stood stiffly and in crisp tones said, “My party and I met two people near the northeast border of our territory. One of the people was a fairly small, red haired girl the other was unquestionably the thief, Happosai.”
The elder’s feigned disinterest evaporated instantly. “Red hair, you say? Since you are here alone, I’m guessing you didn’t bring them with you. Did you speak to these people?”
The warrior bowed her head. “Yes, honored elder. The girl did all of the talking. She said that the old man was dying and that she was escorting him to his choice of a final resting place. She said she was using her own ki to keep him alive long enough to reach that place.”
The old woman looked intrigued. “Dying, you say? Elder Kho Lon reported that the old pervert made the same claim. Did they say why they were in our territory?”
“The girl said they were just passing through with no intention of contacting us,” the warrior reported. “The direction they were traveling seems to bear that out. We followed them for a while and they seemed to be deliberately trying to skirt around the outside of our territory.”
The Elder nodded. While she anticipated the answer, the old woman felt she had to ask, “Why didn’t you bring them back here?”
The warrior got a sheepish expression on her face. “The girl didn’t want to come. She said she was Saotome Ranma and then raised a battle aura such as I’ve never seen, even from any of the Elders.”
“I see,” acknowledged the Elder.
The warrior had a worried look on her face. “I’m sorry Honored Elder. Neither I nor any of my squad were strong enough to face a warrior of that power. I asked for her word that she meant no harm to us and when she gave it, I let her go.”
Seeing the expression on the warrior’s face, the Elder took pity on her. “You acted wisely. Young Saotome is too honorable to harm people without provocation, but if pressed he will defend himself and any who have entrusted themselves to his care.”
“Was… Was that really the person who killed Saffron?” Ei Linah asked.
The Elder shook her head. “Not having met her, it’s hard for say for sure, but it sounds like that is who you met. Besides coming back here to report in, what else did you do?”
The warrior snapped to attention again and said in crisp tones, “I assigned warrior Pom Aide to follow the travelers from a discrete distance. I figured that this way we would at least know if Saotome was keeping her word.”
The elder gave a tight lipped smile. “A good choice. She’s level headed and more likely to plan her moves than rush in on impulse. I still predict she’ll lose them.”
The warrior demanded, “What? Why?”
Elder Soap shook her head. “Young Saotome is cleverer than he looks and he has the advantage of the old pervert to advise him. Besides that he knows an invisibility technique.”
“Oh,” said Ei Linah. She thought for a moment, “But if they don’t see Pom Aide…”
The Elder shook her head again. “I would be very surprised if Saotome doesn’t notice he’s being followed. He has ki senses that are much more reliable than vision.”
The warrior considered that. “This is the man that Cologne wants to bring back as Shan Pu’s husband? He sounds like a dangerous man to have around.”
Elder Soap let out a sigh. “There are those on the Council who share that opinion. Indeed there are some who argue in favor of just nullifying the Kiss of Marriage. It seems a safe bet that Saotome would not take well to being forced to become a member of the tribe.”
The elder looked at the floor with a sad expression. “Shan Pu has been ordered to try a simple courtship, abandoning all the more coercive methods. I fear she may have hurt her cause by her heavy-handed ways before now. It would take a minor miracle for the boy to fall in love with Shan Pu now. Some on the council think it might be best to cut our losses and bring back our people from Japan.”
Ei Linah wasn’t sure how to respond to that. Giving up on a man, even a girl cursed one, didn’t sound like the kind of thing they should be doing. Still, if this man was as dangerous as the Elder said, maybe it was better to leave him alone. The warrior left when dismissed.
The next morning Ranma and Happosai were up and moving shortly after sunrise. Ranma glanced over her shoulder and commented, “Our shadow from yesterday is still with us.” She paused for a moment and studied the ki trace. “Actually, I don’t think it’s the same woman but someone who was sent to relieve her.”
The old man looked worriedly back. “It would be a bad idea to let her follow. She might try to interfere in my rejuvenation. She could also bring others.”
The redhead let out a big sigh. “I could go back and kill her, but that’s not my way.”
The tiny man thought for a moment. “Have you mastered your father’s invisibility technique?”
The girl knew the old man couldn’t see her face from his position on the top of the pack but she smirked anyway. “Mastered it and improved on it.” With no fanfare or display of any kind, the girl and the old man simply faded from view.
It was fortunate there was a beaten path to follow. It was old and looked like it hadn’t been used in months, but at least it was free of grass and loose dirt that would betray their movements. Happosai quickly used the rope that looped over the top of the pack to tie himself down. When he indicated he was ready, Ranma moved into a long striding run. The stride was calculated to cover distance with minimum effort. Using this type of running stride, Ranma could run all day if need be.
In this case Ranma ran a short distance away then leapt into a tree. From that vantage she looked back at the point where she had engaged her ki cloak. She didn’t have long to wait. An Amazon warrior came onto the path and looked around. She stood and shaded her eyes from the morning sun and tried in vain to spot the travelers.
In her tree, Ranma was mouthing the words, “Please give up,” over and over. She really didn’t want to hurt the woman.
At that moment the woman dropped her hands to her sides and clenched them into fists as she glared around her. Ranma could see the woman’s mouth move. Though she couldn’t hear the woman, it was easy to guess that she was cursing. The woman turned and stomped off in the direction of the border of Joketsuzoku territory.
Happosai commented, “Well, that’s that for now. I suppose it will be a while before we find out if the Amazons act smart or stubborn.”
“What do you mean?” Ranma asked.
The old man explained, “She’ll probably head back to the village to report that she lost us. If the Elders act smart they’ll just wait for you to come back when you’ve finished your business. If they’re stubborn they’ll send a group to try and track us.”
The girl nodded. “Are you secure back there?”
The little man confirmed, “Yes, I’m tied down.”
“Good,” acknowledged the redhead. “We’re going to stay in the trees as much as we can. It should be harder for them to follow when I jump from tree to tree.”
Suiting actions to words, girl began leaping along like an anime ninja. If the woman who had been following them sent others to track them, they wouldn’t have much time when got to their destination. Ranma felt sure the Amazons had skilled trackers and besides there wasn’t much in their direction of travel other than the valley they were headed for.
They took only the briefest of pauses for a meal at lunch and bathroom breaks.
In the Council Chambers of the Joketsuzoku. Elder Soap was back after a full night’s sleep. She was met by Ei Linah. Shortly Warrior Pom Aide was ushered into the room.
The warrior got down on one knee and apologized, “Elder, Squad Leader, I… am sorry. I lost them. They seemed to just vanish. I went to the spot where they disappeared, but I could find no tracks. They may have leapt into the trees, but I’m not a good enough tracker to follow them there.”
The Elder sighed, “Be at ease child. You were given an impossible task and did about as well as anyone could. We will send out a party of expert trackers, but I don’t hold much hope that they will have any luck. I think it might be just as effective to send a second party to just go in the same general direction as they seemed to be going.”
When Ranma and Happosai got to their destination valley they found it to be totally unremarkable looking place. It was a low place in the generally mountainous region with a little used path running along the bottom. There were trees all around and lots of bushes and some vines growing on the valley sides.
The girl looked around and said, “I don’t suppose you remember where the cave is, do you?”
In a dry tone the old man said, “I haven’t been back here in eighteen years. We’re lucky that I remember which valley it is. I do remember that there were two caves in this valley and I stashed bottles of cursed water in both of them. One was on that side, the other was on the other side.” He pointed.
Ranma shook her head and said in a sarcastic tone, “Oh yeah, that narrows it down a lot. I don’t suppose you would know some ki sensing trick that would help me find it without going over ever millimeter of valley side?”
The old man frowned in thought before he brightened. “There just might be. Did you ever learn the Breaking Point technique?”
The girl nodded. “I know how to do the technique, but I never got the training to toughen up so the shrapnel from the blast tears me up too much to actually use it.”
“You won’t need the toughness,” he told her. “The technique that you use to find the weak point to blow up a rock can be used to find the empty space of a cave.”
Ranma stood wide-eyed as she considered. “That… should work. I never thought of that before.”
“That’s why you are still the student and I’m the Master,” cackled the old man.
Ranma cast an irritated look at her traveling companion but decided not to comment. The old man was dying so she would cut him some slack. She wondered if this person would be so obnoxious when she was female.
They walked over the sloped side of the valley and Ranma extended her ki senses as if looking for a point to blow up. She was able to spot some breaking points, but nothing like the empty space she needed. She began moving along the length of the valley side to continue her probing.
About two thirds of the way along the one side and a little higher she felt something different. She wasn’t sure how to describe it, but she guessed that it was the cave they were looking for. She looked up and saw an outcrop with a clump of bushes growing on it. She leapt up to the outcrop and pushed the bushes to find a concealed opening. The bushes completely screened it from view from the valley floor.
From a pocket Ranma pulled a small flashlight she had brought. With that weak light she could see what looked a brown wine bottle lying on its side on the floor of the cave. There was some debris that made it look some animals had used the cave as a den in the past. Since there was the only the faintest trace of animal smell, Ranma concluded that it had been a few years since any animals had slept in that cave.
The cave itself went back about two meters and the ceiling was low enough that even the tiny Happosai would have to bend down to walk into it. The only way Ranma would be able to get in would be to crawl.
She turned and said, “Hey Master.” She loaded the title with a heavy sarcastic tone. “I found a cave and there’s a bottle on the floor of it. It looks like it would be a tight fit for me to get it out. Do you feel up to going in there for it?”
“Yes!” The old man exclaimed. “I’m glad for a chance to be more than baggage on this trip.”
When the little man stood below her with his arms raised up, she reached down and pulled him up. She then lifted him up and set him down in the tight space between the bushes and the cave opening. The old man got on his hands and knees and crawled into the cave. A short while later he came out gripping the neck of the bottle in his hand.
He hefted it and said, “It’s still full. I didn’t have a stopper, so I used beeswax to seal the bottle. It seems to have worked.”
A thought occurred to the girl and she asked, “Is the water still good?
“Huh?” He looked surprised. He hadn’t thought of that possibility. Carefully he inspected the wax that sealed the opening of bottle. Now that he had it in his hands he could remember this bottle. The seal was as he remembered it. It had not been tampered with.
The little man looked at the girl and said, “I checked. This is the same bottle and the seal is unbroken. It takes centuries for the magic to fade out of the cursed water, so it should still be good.”
Ranma sounded nervous as she said, “If you’re sure.”
He tried to reassure his traveling companion. “If I’m wrong, I’ll be dead and you’ll have a mess to clean up.”
The girl gave him a sour look. “Old freak, has anyone ever told you that you have a sick sense of humor?”
With a chuckle he said, “All the time, boy. All the time.”
“I had sort of planned to do the whole thing inside the cave so we would be away from possible prying eyes. I wasn’t expecting the cave to be so small.” She cast a look at the sky. There were a few thin clouds, but nothing that looked like it would cause rain.
The sun was starting to dip below the rim of the valley. Before too much longer it was going to be dark.
Happosai looked at the sky and said, “Make camp. There’s no rule that says we can’t do this by firelight. I don’t think the Amazons could get a party together in time to stop us. They would likely camp for the night anyway. Even so, the sooner we get this over with, the better.”
By the time the tents were up and the fire merrily burning it was full dark. Ranma had wanted to prepare supper, but Happosai wanted to do the magic first. He had pointed out that if it didn’t work, Ranma wouldn’t have to prepare as much food.
Happosai pulled the amulet out of his pocket and held it in his hand. Ranma then took a small knife and used it to dig the wax out of the neck of the bottle so the water would pour out. She nodded when she was ready.
The old man looped the leather thong over his head but kept the amulet in his hand. He explained, “The magic doesn’t start until the stone touches my body. Get ready.”
Ranma held the bottle over the old man’s head. She tilted the bottle so the water was right at the lip of the bottle, ready to pour. Happosai looked up to confirm it and pressed the stone of the amulet to his chest just above his gi. As soon as the stone made contact with his chest he said, “NOW!”
Author’s Note: I don’t normally do cliffhangers but this seemed the best place to end this chapter. Come back next time.
A Ranma One Half Fan Fiction
By Michael A. Ivins
Ranma along with all of his friends, enemies and acquaintances are the property of Takahashi Rumiko. I’m just borrowing them for my own amusement and hopefully that of my readers. Sailor Moon and the Senshi aren’t mine either. Please don’t sue me.
This story takes place after the end of the manga.
Chapter 4
Dodging Amazons
Their next stop was in the middle of the night with Ranma and Happosai both asleep when they arrived. A man from the station shook both of them awake. Again they transferred to an older train. Once they got going they went back to sleep. In the morning they changed trains yet again. While traveling they ate from the food in Ranma’s pack. They ate sparingly as they didn’t know how far they would need to stretch those supplies.
By the end of the following day they had gone as far as the train tracks would take them. They hitched a ride with truck driver who was going in the direction they needed to go. When the driver got to his destination, they found another ride and so passed another day.
The final ride they got was with a woman who was taking supplies to a tribe of Nichezu. These were not the Joketsuzoku, but a more modern group of Amazons. In this tribe the women were still the rulers but men had a more equal status. This tribe was also more in touch with the modern world and had more amenities. Ranma found out that there was a river than ran through this valley and they used it to generate electricity.
Ranma was able to talk the Amazons at their stop into resupplying them for their trip. The friendly Amazons warned about how crazy the Joketsuzoku were. They were given a warning that Jusenkyo was a dangerous place and best avoided if possible. Ranma thanked them for the well meant warnings, but refrained from mentioning that she had been to those places before. Their hosts had been able to provide them a map of the area they were planning to visit. Some of the areas on the map were a little vague, but for the most part it was a help.
They were now on foot. While Ranma and her father had passed through the area while fleeing a vengeful Shampoo, it was long enough ago that it still qualified as unfamiliar territory. After all, when they had come through this area before, had not been paying that close attention to the landmarks.
When Ranma was performing her more energetic maneuvers, Happosai had to be tied to the top of the pack. Even after a ki treatment he was too weak to hang on and ran the risk of falling off and getting lost.
It was another day before they reached familiar territory. They had arrived at the edge of the territory inhabited by the Joketsuzoku, the Musk and the Phoenix. The part of the border they were at now was right on the edge of Amazon territory. Now they would have to keep a low profile by moving as silently as possible and avoiding any contact with people. While Ranma felt she could probably be on more or less good terms with Prince Herb of the Musk, she was not so sure about the rest of the tribe. The Phoenix were likely to be very hostile considering what Ranma had done to their god.
As for the Amazons in the area, they’d be better off avoiding them.
Using the map they’d been given, Ranma and her passenger skirted the edge of the territory claimed by the Joketsuzou. The valleys they were headed for were beyond this area and they had to pass through to get where they wanted. They had camped on the border of the area and now were starting out early in the morning. If they were lucky they would be able to get through the area within a single day.
As they traveled they found themselves dodging patrols. Ranma frowned at this. She didn’t remember there being this many warriors out in the general area when she had been through here before. Could the Amazons have been alerted to their coming? Maybe the Amazons had some means of communication other than letters and couriers.
They had made good time and were most of the way through the Amazon territory when their luck ran out. From one side a voice called out in Mandarin, “Outsider, Halt!”
Ranma considered the possibility of running, but another warrior stepped onto the path in front of them and another to the other side. The redheaded girl didn’t take her eyes off the warrior in front of her but could feel with ki senses the presence of someone on the path behind. Ranma and her passenger were surrounded.
Happosai climbed to the ground and Ranma dropped her pack. She looked around then in halting Mandarin, “My Mandarin very bad. Any you speak Japanese?”
Another of the warriors stepped onto the path ahead and said in passable Japanese, “I am Ei Linah. I speak your barbarian tongue, Outsider girl. Our elders have warned us that this man was likely to try and enter our territory.” The tone used to say the word “man” was dripping with scorn.
Ranma raised her hands in what she hoped was a placating gesture. She said, “We don’t want any trouble. We wish only to travel through your lands and not to stay. We have not hunted nor have we camped. We have not damaged anything. We wish only to be allowed to pass.”
Ei Linah gestured with her spear. “That… is a thief and a pervert and is deserving of punishment. We have been ordered to seek for him and capture him if we can, kill him if we can’t capture.”
Now angry Ranma stated, “It is true that this man is a thief and a pervert. Very likely he does deserve punishment. It is also true that there would really be little point in punishing him now.”
“Little point? What are you talking about?” The Amazon leader was confused. “He must face trial.”
Ranma overrode any other protests by saying, “This man is dying! If it weren’t for the ki energy I’ve been giving him, he would be dead already.”
Ei Linah looked at the little man with an expression of confusion. Obviously her orders didn’t cover this possibility. After a moment she said, “What you say may be true. Still he had committed crimes. We will need to take him back to the village where the council of Elders can decide his fate.”
Ranma shook her head in negation. “He seeks to lay eyes on the land he has chosen to be his final resting place. I will only be able to keep him alive for a short time more. If your council is anything like other councils I’ve heard of they could take more time to decide than he has left to him.”
From what the redhead said, it seemed obvious she must be a healer of some kind. Even if the girl did seem young to be a healer, Ei Linah didn’t want to disrespect someone in that vocation. However, her orders said to bring the old man back. She said, “Honored Healer, I’m sorry. My orders were most specific. I am to bring the man back to face punishment. If our own healers confirm your diagnosis, I’m sure they won’t keep you long.”
Ranma muttered under her breath, “We don’t have time for this.” At normal volume she asked, “When your Elders warned you that Happosai might be visiting your part of the world, did they also mention who might be his traveling companion?”
The leader of the Amazon party looked confused. “There was some mention that there might be another man with him. We were not expecting a girl.”
The redhead pulled herself to her full (small) height and proclaimed, “I am not a girl, I am a Jusenkyo cursed man. I am the one who bested Prince Herb of the Musk in combat. I am the same man who killed Saffron, the Phoenix king. I am Saotome Ranma.”
She ignited her aura and let the light blast forth. The force was strong enough that it pushed each of warriors back a step and sent a ripple through the grass. A feeling of heat radiated off the glowing girl.
Her voice now amplified by ki, the girl said in booming tones, “We don’t want any trouble with your people, but I am capable of handling any trouble you may offer. Do you really want to fight over whether or not a man who is already dying gets punished? Any punishment you might give him now would be nothing more than an empty gesture.”
None of the warriors were ki adepts the way the elders were, but even they could feel the power radiating off the girl. Now that she was reminded of it, Ei Linah thought she could remember the story that the one who killed Saffron was in fact a Jusenkyo cursed boy whose girl form was a petite redhead.
Making a decision, the leader of the group asked, “Do you intend any harm to the people or lands of the Joketsuzoku?”
Ranma emphatically shook her head. “We mean no harm. We only want to peacefully pass through your lands. We had hoped we could make it through without you finding out we had ever been here.”
Ei Linah considered carefully. Finally she said, “Will you, Saotome Ranma, give your word that you intend no harm to our village or the people who live in it?”
The girl nodded solemnly. “On my honor as a martial artist, I swear that I intend no harm to any of the Joketsuzoku, nor do I intend harm to any of the Musk or Phoenix people.”
The Amazon commander laughed. “That’s a little more than I was asking for, but I’ll accept it. Will you guarantee his behavior?”
Ranma cast a look at the little man. “Knowing his character, I would normally not promise anything about him. Right now, I don’t think he has enough energy to cause any trouble. Yes, I’ll give you that guarantee.”
Ei Linah gestured toward the aura and said, “I believe you. Now could you stop glowing like that? You’re making me and my warriors nervous.”
Ranma knew the woman was just joking, but she pulled in her aura anyway. She had proved her point. At a hand signal from their commander the party of Amazons faded into the woods again.
As they headed on with their travel, Ranma could feel the ki traces of the women. She softly commented to Happosai, “They’re following us.”
The old man who was back on top of Ranma’s pack said, “Likely they are going to tell any other groups to leave us alone. Think of it more as an escort.”
Ranma ventured, “Maybe Eyeliner just wants to be sure we leave like I said.”
“That too,” the little man conceded.
Thanks to the delay in confronting the Amazons, it was after dark when Ranma pitched her tent. They were a short distance from the official border of Joketsuzoku land. While tending the fire, Ranma commented, “There’s still someone there. There’s only one now.”
Happosai said, “She’s probably watching to see that we don’t cross back onto their land.”
Ranma frowned. “I hope they realize that I’m going to have to come back through here later on the way back.”
He shrugged. “At least they are staying on their side of the border. If this succeeds how are we going to explain you going back with another girl?”
The girl shook her head. “I guess we didn’t plan this very well. If it doesn’t work I’ll be going back alone. I don’t think they’d bother me then. If it does work I guess we’ll have to work on a plan at the time.”
The little man nodded. He asked, “How much farther is it?”
The redhead studied the map. “The valley you marked as the closest looks like another day’s walk, maybe a little less. I’d guess we should get there in the late afternoon. I don’t know if we’ll have time to find the cave before it gets dark. Would the cave be easy to find?”
The old man shook his head. “I picked it because it was hard to find. I remember there were a lot of bushes growing in front of the entrance. From the valley floor you would never know there was a cave there.”
Ranma gave the old man another ki treatment, after which they went to sleep for the night. Ranma chose not to comment on how much harder it was getting to force ki into Happosai’s aura.
In the Joketsuzoku village, warrior Ei Linah was ushered into the council chamber to meet with Elder Soap. The Elder was not in the best mood. “It’s late and I was just about to go to bed. What do you have to report?”
The warrior stood stiffly and in crisp tones said, “My party and I met two people near the northeast border of our territory. One of the people was a fairly small, red haired girl the other was unquestionably the thief, Happosai.”
The elder’s feigned disinterest evaporated instantly. “Red hair, you say? Since you are here alone, I’m guessing you didn’t bring them with you. Did you speak to these people?”
The warrior bowed her head. “Yes, honored elder. The girl did all of the talking. She said that the old man was dying and that she was escorting him to his choice of a final resting place. She said she was using her own ki to keep him alive long enough to reach that place.”
The old woman looked intrigued. “Dying, you say? Elder Kho Lon reported that the old pervert made the same claim. Did they say why they were in our territory?”
“The girl said they were just passing through with no intention of contacting us,” the warrior reported. “The direction they were traveling seems to bear that out. We followed them for a while and they seemed to be deliberately trying to skirt around the outside of our territory.”
The Elder nodded. While she anticipated the answer, the old woman felt she had to ask, “Why didn’t you bring them back here?”
The warrior got a sheepish expression on her face. “The girl didn’t want to come. She said she was Saotome Ranma and then raised a battle aura such as I’ve never seen, even from any of the Elders.”
“I see,” acknowledged the Elder.
The warrior had a worried look on her face. “I’m sorry Honored Elder. Neither I nor any of my squad were strong enough to face a warrior of that power. I asked for her word that she meant no harm to us and when she gave it, I let her go.”
Seeing the expression on the warrior’s face, the Elder took pity on her. “You acted wisely. Young Saotome is too honorable to harm people without provocation, but if pressed he will defend himself and any who have entrusted themselves to his care.”
“Was… Was that really the person who killed Saffron?” Ei Linah asked.
The Elder shook her head. “Not having met her, it’s hard for say for sure, but it sounds like that is who you met. Besides coming back here to report in, what else did you do?”
The warrior snapped to attention again and said in crisp tones, “I assigned warrior Pom Aide to follow the travelers from a discrete distance. I figured that this way we would at least know if Saotome was keeping her word.”
The elder gave a tight lipped smile. “A good choice. She’s level headed and more likely to plan her moves than rush in on impulse. I still predict she’ll lose them.”
The warrior demanded, “What? Why?”
Elder Soap shook her head. “Young Saotome is cleverer than he looks and he has the advantage of the old pervert to advise him. Besides that he knows an invisibility technique.”
“Oh,” said Ei Linah. She thought for a moment, “But if they don’t see Pom Aide…”
The Elder shook her head again. “I would be very surprised if Saotome doesn’t notice he’s being followed. He has ki senses that are much more reliable than vision.”
The warrior considered that. “This is the man that Cologne wants to bring back as Shan Pu’s husband? He sounds like a dangerous man to have around.”
Elder Soap let out a sigh. “There are those on the Council who share that opinion. Indeed there are some who argue in favor of just nullifying the Kiss of Marriage. It seems a safe bet that Saotome would not take well to being forced to become a member of the tribe.”
The elder looked at the floor with a sad expression. “Shan Pu has been ordered to try a simple courtship, abandoning all the more coercive methods. I fear she may have hurt her cause by her heavy-handed ways before now. It would take a minor miracle for the boy to fall in love with Shan Pu now. Some on the council think it might be best to cut our losses and bring back our people from Japan.”
Ei Linah wasn’t sure how to respond to that. Giving up on a man, even a girl cursed one, didn’t sound like the kind of thing they should be doing. Still, if this man was as dangerous as the Elder said, maybe it was better to leave him alone. The warrior left when dismissed.
The next morning Ranma and Happosai were up and moving shortly after sunrise. Ranma glanced over her shoulder and commented, “Our shadow from yesterday is still with us.” She paused for a moment and studied the ki trace. “Actually, I don’t think it’s the same woman but someone who was sent to relieve her.”
The old man looked worriedly back. “It would be a bad idea to let her follow. She might try to interfere in my rejuvenation. She could also bring others.”
The redhead let out a big sigh. “I could go back and kill her, but that’s not my way.”
The tiny man thought for a moment. “Have you mastered your father’s invisibility technique?”
The girl knew the old man couldn’t see her face from his position on the top of the pack but she smirked anyway. “Mastered it and improved on it.” With no fanfare or display of any kind, the girl and the old man simply faded from view.
It was fortunate there was a beaten path to follow. It was old and looked like it hadn’t been used in months, but at least it was free of grass and loose dirt that would betray their movements. Happosai quickly used the rope that looped over the top of the pack to tie himself down. When he indicated he was ready, Ranma moved into a long striding run. The stride was calculated to cover distance with minimum effort. Using this type of running stride, Ranma could run all day if need be.
In this case Ranma ran a short distance away then leapt into a tree. From that vantage she looked back at the point where she had engaged her ki cloak. She didn’t have long to wait. An Amazon warrior came onto the path and looked around. She stood and shaded her eyes from the morning sun and tried in vain to spot the travelers.
In her tree, Ranma was mouthing the words, “Please give up,” over and over. She really didn’t want to hurt the woman.
At that moment the woman dropped her hands to her sides and clenched them into fists as she glared around her. Ranma could see the woman’s mouth move. Though she couldn’t hear the woman, it was easy to guess that she was cursing. The woman turned and stomped off in the direction of the border of Joketsuzoku territory.
Happosai commented, “Well, that’s that for now. I suppose it will be a while before we find out if the Amazons act smart or stubborn.”
“What do you mean?” Ranma asked.
The old man explained, “She’ll probably head back to the village to report that she lost us. If the Elders act smart they’ll just wait for you to come back when you’ve finished your business. If they’re stubborn they’ll send a group to try and track us.”
The girl nodded. “Are you secure back there?”
The little man confirmed, “Yes, I’m tied down.”
“Good,” acknowledged the redhead. “We’re going to stay in the trees as much as we can. It should be harder for them to follow when I jump from tree to tree.”
Suiting actions to words, girl began leaping along like an anime ninja. If the woman who had been following them sent others to track them, they wouldn’t have much time when got to their destination. Ranma felt sure the Amazons had skilled trackers and besides there wasn’t much in their direction of travel other than the valley they were headed for.
They took only the briefest of pauses for a meal at lunch and bathroom breaks.
In the Council Chambers of the Joketsuzoku. Elder Soap was back after a full night’s sleep. She was met by Ei Linah. Shortly Warrior Pom Aide was ushered into the room.
The warrior got down on one knee and apologized, “Elder, Squad Leader, I… am sorry. I lost them. They seemed to just vanish. I went to the spot where they disappeared, but I could find no tracks. They may have leapt into the trees, but I’m not a good enough tracker to follow them there.”
The Elder sighed, “Be at ease child. You were given an impossible task and did about as well as anyone could. We will send out a party of expert trackers, but I don’t hold much hope that they will have any luck. I think it might be just as effective to send a second party to just go in the same general direction as they seemed to be going.”
When Ranma and Happosai got to their destination valley they found it to be totally unremarkable looking place. It was a low place in the generally mountainous region with a little used path running along the bottom. There were trees all around and lots of bushes and some vines growing on the valley sides.
The girl looked around and said, “I don’t suppose you remember where the cave is, do you?”
In a dry tone the old man said, “I haven’t been back here in eighteen years. We’re lucky that I remember which valley it is. I do remember that there were two caves in this valley and I stashed bottles of cursed water in both of them. One was on that side, the other was on the other side.” He pointed.
Ranma shook her head and said in a sarcastic tone, “Oh yeah, that narrows it down a lot. I don’t suppose you would know some ki sensing trick that would help me find it without going over ever millimeter of valley side?”
The old man frowned in thought before he brightened. “There just might be. Did you ever learn the Breaking Point technique?”
The girl nodded. “I know how to do the technique, but I never got the training to toughen up so the shrapnel from the blast tears me up too much to actually use it.”
“You won’t need the toughness,” he told her. “The technique that you use to find the weak point to blow up a rock can be used to find the empty space of a cave.”
Ranma stood wide-eyed as she considered. “That… should work. I never thought of that before.”
“That’s why you are still the student and I’m the Master,” cackled the old man.
Ranma cast an irritated look at her traveling companion but decided not to comment. The old man was dying so she would cut him some slack. She wondered if this person would be so obnoxious when she was female.
They walked over the sloped side of the valley and Ranma extended her ki senses as if looking for a point to blow up. She was able to spot some breaking points, but nothing like the empty space she needed. She began moving along the length of the valley side to continue her probing.
About two thirds of the way along the one side and a little higher she felt something different. She wasn’t sure how to describe it, but she guessed that it was the cave they were looking for. She looked up and saw an outcrop with a clump of bushes growing on it. She leapt up to the outcrop and pushed the bushes to find a concealed opening. The bushes completely screened it from view from the valley floor.
From a pocket Ranma pulled a small flashlight she had brought. With that weak light she could see what looked a brown wine bottle lying on its side on the floor of the cave. There was some debris that made it look some animals had used the cave as a den in the past. Since there was the only the faintest trace of animal smell, Ranma concluded that it had been a few years since any animals had slept in that cave.
The cave itself went back about two meters and the ceiling was low enough that even the tiny Happosai would have to bend down to walk into it. The only way Ranma would be able to get in would be to crawl.
She turned and said, “Hey Master.” She loaded the title with a heavy sarcastic tone. “I found a cave and there’s a bottle on the floor of it. It looks like it would be a tight fit for me to get it out. Do you feel up to going in there for it?”
“Yes!” The old man exclaimed. “I’m glad for a chance to be more than baggage on this trip.”
When the little man stood below her with his arms raised up, she reached down and pulled him up. She then lifted him up and set him down in the tight space between the bushes and the cave opening. The old man got on his hands and knees and crawled into the cave. A short while later he came out gripping the neck of the bottle in his hand.
He hefted it and said, “It’s still full. I didn’t have a stopper, so I used beeswax to seal the bottle. It seems to have worked.”
A thought occurred to the girl and she asked, “Is the water still good?
“Huh?” He looked surprised. He hadn’t thought of that possibility. Carefully he inspected the wax that sealed the opening of bottle. Now that he had it in his hands he could remember this bottle. The seal was as he remembered it. It had not been tampered with.
The little man looked at the girl and said, “I checked. This is the same bottle and the seal is unbroken. It takes centuries for the magic to fade out of the cursed water, so it should still be good.”
Ranma sounded nervous as she said, “If you’re sure.”
He tried to reassure his traveling companion. “If I’m wrong, I’ll be dead and you’ll have a mess to clean up.”
The girl gave him a sour look. “Old freak, has anyone ever told you that you have a sick sense of humor?”
With a chuckle he said, “All the time, boy. All the time.”
“I had sort of planned to do the whole thing inside the cave so we would be away from possible prying eyes. I wasn’t expecting the cave to be so small.” She cast a look at the sky. There were a few thin clouds, but nothing that looked like it would cause rain.
The sun was starting to dip below the rim of the valley. Before too much longer it was going to be dark.
Happosai looked at the sky and said, “Make camp. There’s no rule that says we can’t do this by firelight. I don’t think the Amazons could get a party together in time to stop us. They would likely camp for the night anyway. Even so, the sooner we get this over with, the better.”
By the time the tents were up and the fire merrily burning it was full dark. Ranma had wanted to prepare supper, but Happosai wanted to do the magic first. He had pointed out that if it didn’t work, Ranma wouldn’t have to prepare as much food.
Happosai pulled the amulet out of his pocket and held it in his hand. Ranma then took a small knife and used it to dig the wax out of the neck of the bottle so the water would pour out. She nodded when she was ready.
The old man looped the leather thong over his head but kept the amulet in his hand. He explained, “The magic doesn’t start until the stone touches my body. Get ready.”
Ranma held the bottle over the old man’s head. She tilted the bottle so the water was right at the lip of the bottle, ready to pour. Happosai looked up to confirm it and pressed the stone of the amulet to his chest just above his gi. As soon as the stone made contact with his chest he said, “NOW!”
Author’s Note: I don’t normally do cliffhangers but this seemed the best place to end this chapter. Come back next time.
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