“...What’s his problem?” Kasumi blinked and stepped out, intent on getting her luggage before the crazed driver went ahead with it.
Stepping out of the cab, Ranma-chan was already counting the money from her wad of yen for the driver. “It’s Nerima,” She said to answer Kasumi, as if it explained everything.
Kasumi hefted her suitcase and backpack and stared at Ranma. “Does everyone act like this around here?”
Before Ranma-chan could answer Kasumi outright, the cab sped off at high speeds, startling the poor girl. “Well, what can I say? Taxis tend to get destroyed around here. Accidents, really.”
Kasumi just stared at Ranma some more and sighed. “Accidents? I get the feeling I don’t want to know.”
Ranma-chan shrugged her shoulders to that. “Mostly accidents dealing with lost boys and overactive Chinese Amazons on bicycles-of-death.”
“...” Kasumi decided not to say anymore and walked towards the house. She needed time for all the shocks to settle in.
And once Ranma pushed opened the set of double wooden doors, Kasumi was treated to a rather nice sight. Open space. Grass. Cobblestone pathway. It was like something out of feudal Japan or an old samurai movie. “This is nice,” Kasumi said with a smile, feeling happy to see this place reminded her of home.
Looking over at Kasumi, Ranma-chan smiled. “Glad you like. It’s really nice out back too. There’s a small garden, a koi pond, and the Dojo.”
Nodding her head, Kasumi still smiled. “You have a nice house.”
Shrugging her shoulders to that, Ranma-chan answered, “Thanks. But not my house,” She told Kasumi seriously. “I’m a guest here just as much as you are.”
Kasumi nodded and looked at the house again, though the feature that caught her attention was the dojo itself. “How many students does your school have?”
Pursing her lips together, Ranma-chan had to think about it. “Let’s see...” The redhead mumbled to herself. “Pops and myself practice often. So does Akane, sorta. And then there’s the old lech. I think Mr. Tendo used to practice... Natsume and Kurumi practice a variant... And there was that one guy one time who wanted to learn under the lech...” She blinked and chuckled nervously. “Besides the major practitioners, there’s only been three real students. And only one of them was paying at the time.”
Kasumi stared at Ranma. She opened her mouth to speak, but closed it and thought about her next comment very carefully. “I see...”
Ranma-chan shrugged. “Hey, from my understanding, there used to be a whole lotta students when Mrs. Tendo was still alive... But I’ve personally only seen three since staying here.”
“Must be a very demanding art then,” Kasumi mulled and stopped in front of the house.
“It is,” Ranma-chan agreed, as she opened the door. “Hey, everyone!” She called out, while kicking off her slippers. “I’m back with the guest!”
And as soon as Ranma-chan has spoke, a nice melodic female voice could be heard. “Welcome back, Ranma!”
Kasumi took off her shoes and entered the house, carrying her luggage and looking around trying to get oriented with her new surroundings.
After the female voice had spoken out, a woman came into view. A nice, tall, brown-haired Japanese woman in an apron. She looked over Ranma and the new girl. “Oh my! Is this another fiancée, Ranma?” She asked, having expected Ranma to come back with a foreigner, and not a new Japanese girl.
“Fiancée?” The shorter girl asked in confusion.
Ranma-chan shrugged. “Nah, Kasumi here ain’t no fiancée, Kasumi. She’s the foreign exchange student from America.”
Kasumi nodded her head. “Ah. Well, welcome to the Tendo Dojo,” She said, giving the smaller woman a polite bow. “I am Tendo Kasumi.” “Todoh Kasumi. A pleasure to meet you.” Kasumi returned the bow with one of her own. She then smiled and teasingly added. “I love your name.”
The eldest Tendo daughter smiled back at Kasumi. “I must agree to that, Kasumi,” Kasumi said with her cheerful smile.
Kasumi Todoh continued smiling. “Is there a place I can place these down?” She motioned for her belongings.
“Why yes,” Kasumi told the new Kasumi. “Ranma, please show Kasumi up to Akane’s room. That’s where she’ll be staying for the duration of the foreign education program.”
“Sure thing,” Ranma-chan told Kasumi. Turning her head to Kasumi Todo, she smiled. “Now, let’s get those bags upstairs.”
“Thank you,” Kasumi said to the redhead. “Nice to meet you, Kasumi,” Kasumi then added to the eldest Tendo.
“Glad to meet you too,” Kasumi told the smaller girl. “And I’m relieved you’re not another fiancée.”
Kasumi smiled at the redhead, who was about her height, and nodded. “After you. And you might want to explain the bit about me being ‘another’ fiancée.”
Ranma-chan sighed in defeat. Carrying the girl’s bags upstairs, she told Kasumi, “It’s my old man’s fault. Trying to put me into an arranged marriage.”
Kasumi followed after Ranma, noticing other people in the house but figuring it would be best to greet them once her bags were put away. “Isn’t that... Old fashioned? Even for Japan.”
“Yeah,” Ranma-chan told Kasumi. “But I never said Pops was smart. Especially when he kept selling me into arranged marriages again and again and again and again and...”
“I get the idea,” Kasumi interrupted him. “You certainly live an interesting life.” Not to mention weird and impossible, Kasumi added to herself.
Ranma-chan shrugged. “I get used to it. And here we are!” She said, motioning to the door with the duck-shaped sign on it that read ‘Akane’.
Upon entering the first thing Kasumi noticed was the weights on the floor. She turned to give Ranma a look.
Ranma-chan noticed Kasumi look at her and shrugged. “She keeps in shape.”
The Todoh girl nodded her head to that. “This Akane of yours, she's your fiancée right?”
“Sorta,” Ranma-chan admitted. “We are in title, but... Well...” Ranma-chan blushed. “We’re starting to get along well, and it really feels wrong. Like they’re trying to make me marry a sister or something.”
Kasumi looked back at the weights. They looked heavy. “Can we drop my stuff here? I’ll unpack later after I meet with the others.” She needed to thank the owner of the house for having her.
“Sure thing!” Ranma-chan told Kasumi. She then went to placing Kasumi’s bags on the bed.
“Thank you!” Kasumi beamed.
Ranma-chan blinked her eyes, still unused to having people thank her. “...Sure thing...”
Kasumi suddenly stopped smiling and looked at Ranma seriously. She approached so that they were only inches apart from each other. “You’re cute...”
Her eyes widening, Ranma-chan gawked at the girl. “Excuse me!?”
Kasumi looked the redhead up and down, as if checking her out. “Nice figure. Like the breasts.” She started to inch closer. “And the pigtail...”
Still looking at Kasumi, Ranma-chan had to swallow. Damn, her throat was feeling dry. “Oh god, oh god, oh god, she’s a lesbian, oh god!!!” Ranma-chan mentally shrieked
“It looks so... So...” Kasumi reached behind Ranma’s head and gave it a hard tug. “So pullable!” With that said Kasumi started giggling and walked out of the room. It seemed like she read Ranma right. The boy... Girl... Whatever was easy and fun to tease!
“HEY!” Ranma-chan snapped. Seeing Kasumi run off, she grumbled a bit before rubbing her abused pigtail.
Kasumi stopped in the hall to wait for Ranma, still giggling, and wondered about the rest of the household. Kasumi was very nice and she was looking forward to talking to the older girl.
Stepping out of Akane’s room, Ranma-chan pouted at Kasumi. “That wasn’t nice.”
“It sure was fun, though.” Kasumi smiled sunnily at the redhead.
Ranma-chan pouted. What was this girl trying to get at?
Kasumi tilted her head to the side and smiled more. “Oh. You’re so cute when you pout.”
That had the desired effect of making Ranma-chan blush more.
The new arrival decided to have mercy on Ranma, for the moment, and tone down the teasing a little. “Are you always so easy to tease, Ranma?”
Lowering her head, Ranma-chan let out a sigh of defeat. “Uh-huh.”
Kasumi smiled. “Don’t worry about it. With me coaching you, teasing won’t be a problem anymore.” She’d had Mai Shiranui as a role model there, so she knew what she was talking about.
Ranma-chan shrugged her shoulders. “If you say so, Kasumi,” The redhead said uncertainly. She was getting a baaaad feeling about this.
“Let's go downstairs. I’d like to meet your friends and family.” Kasumi decided to approach the teasing subject more subtly, since Ranma seemed so adverse to it.
“Sure!” Ranma-chan said, nodding her head rapidly.
(------)
Nabiki had a lollypop in her mouth and was lazily reading her manga on the couch, trying her best to ignore both her father and Genma.
“I call your move with my own, Tendo,” Genma said as he moved his shogi piece five spaces.
Soun winced. “A daring move indeed, but not as good as this!” He then moved his piece horizontally for three spaces.
Laughing, Genma said, “You call that a move? THIS is a move!” And then did a series of movements that were better at use for mapping a DNA helix than playing a game of shogi.
Nabiki turned her attention from her manga to see Ranma enter the living room. It was about time that the new guest came to greet them.
“Hey, everyone!” A now male Ranma called out. “Meet our guest, Kasumi Todoh!”
Nabiki sat up to study the new arrival.
Kasumi stepped into the room and bowed politely, her long black hair falling in front of her before she stood straight again. “A pleasure to meet you all.”
The reception the poor girl got was rather cold. Nabiki just stared at her. To the middle Tendo sister it was a mild surprise. She was expecting some blonde girl, knowing Ranma’s luck with the ladies, not a small Japanese girl.
And as for the two patriarchs...
“Ha!” Genma shouted. “Bingo!”
Blinking his eyes, Soun said, “There is no ‘Bingo’ in Shogi!”
Kasumi blinked her eyes in confusion.
Ranma chuckled. “Ignore them, Kasumi. They’re always like that.”
“Who is the owner of the house?” She whispered to Ranma.
Ranma pointed at the two men. “Mr. Tendo is. He’s the one with the mustache and black hair. The guy with the glasses is, sadly, my Pops.”
“Thanks,” Kasumi whispered before stepping forward and bowing directly in front of Soun. “Tendo-san, thank you for allowing me to stay in your house.”
Nabiki raised an eyebrow at the show of manners . It was a first as far as she was concerned.
“Hmm?” Soun answered, keeping his eyes on Genma, as to make sure he didn’t cheat. “Yes, yes, that’s fine, Akane,” He said, not really paying attention.
Kasumi was taken aback by the dismissal and turned to Ranma, her look confused as hell.
“Don’t take any personal offense to it,” Ranma told her. “This is a really bad time. The only ways to get Mr. Tendo and Pops to pay attention while they’re playing is to get them to realize their lives are in danger, the old lech is back, or dinner is ready.”
“It is very interesting to see someone with manners stay here for a change, though,” Nabiki said with her usual smirk, catching Kasumi's attention.
Kasumi wanted to answer to that, but couldn’t figure out if it was an insult or a compliment.
Ranma looked over Kasumi and shrugged. “She’s complimenting you... I think.”
“Be careful, Ranma-kun. We don’t want you to hurt yourself.” Nabiki stood up and walked out of the room, allowing time for the pigtailed martial artist to figure out what she meant.
Kasumi shook her head and turned to Ranma. “Let me guess. Akane’s other sister?” “Yep,” Ranma answered, while scratching his head. “What did she mean ‘hurt myself’?”
Kasumi grew a sweat-drop. “Uh... Better forget about that.” She looked at the men, that were still playing shogi, and turned back to Ranma. “What do you usually do around here to pass the time?”
Ranma smiled. “Training!”
Kasumi smiled back. “Can I watch?” She was really curious about Ranma's style of martial arts.
Though he was surprised to hear someone ask to watch, Ranma nodded his head. “Sure.” He smiled. “I warn you though, it’s gonna be hard to follow. Very complex katas.”
Kasumi smiled mysteriously. “I’ll just go to my room to change into something more comfortable and meet you in the dojo.” She blinked. “You do train in the dojo, right?”
“Yeah, when Akane ain’t hogging it,” Ranma said. “So I’ll meet you there.”
Kasumi nodded and walked upstairs. Kasumi had been unfortunate though, for Nabiki had waiting in the hall.
(------)
Ten minutes later Kasumi walked down the stairs in a training outfit. A pout on her face and her wallet being ten thousand yen poorer than before.
Ranma awaited patiently in the Dojo, just doing some leg stretches before some strenuous activity. It was then that he heard the sound of soft footsteps approaching. Turning he saw Kasumi enter the dojo, blue hakama pants, white gi shirt and a red headband keeping her hair out of her face. Ranma whistled. “You a martial artist?” He asked in surprise. When she had been around him, he didn’t get the feeling that she was one.
Kasumi smiled mysteriously again. “I train a little here and there.”
Ranma nodded. “Oh.” After all, he was used to this sort of thing with Akane. A cute girl keeping in shape who wore the outfit for the hell of it. “Well, shall I show ya’ one of the katas of the Saotome branch of the Anything Goes School of Martial arts now?”
The black-haired girl smiled brightly. “Please!”
Ranma smiled, giving Kasumi one of his lady-killer grins. “Sure thing!” He then walked into the middle of the room and began...
Quick hand movements started first, with his legs keeping him a steady footing as they moved about, as if evading some invisible opponent...
...Before going right into a quick series of kicks and leg-attacks. Ouch. Who knew one could go right from a Judo kick into a roundhouse kick, into a heel stop, and leg sweep combination? And then whiles still down, springing themselves up as if they had been couching down for the jump first hand?
Kasumi watched attentively, surprised at the sheer speed with which Ranma was moving. She also noticed the drastic change in styles and wondered how hard it would be to predict an attack. But one thing was for certain, Ranma seemed to be at his strongest when his feet weren't touching the ground. His unpredictability increased exponentially when that happened.
Finally, it came to a stop, with Ranma landing on both his feet nicely. Wiping a little sweat from his brow with the back of his hand, he turned to Kasumi. “Well?”
Kasumi clapped when the show was over, clearly impressed. “You’re very good, Ranma.”
Ranma smiled with pride, the approval boosting his ego some points. “Heh. Thanks!”
Kasumi smirked a little, thinking of taking his ego down a peg. “Though I noticed you were a little off-balanced in your fourteenth kick, probably because you were trying to show off your right bicep by curling it instead of cocking it to your waist.”
That caught Ranma off-guard. “You noticed!?”
The girl nodded. “Yes, I did. It’s not anything serious, but in a serious fight it could cost you.”
Ranma nodded his head. “Most wouldn’t notice it in the heat of battle... But it’s still VERY impressive you saw it.” He looked at Kasumi seriously. “You come from a strong martial arts background at all?”
Kasumi smiled. “My father owns a dojo back home. He’s trained me since I could walk.”
Staring at the girl, Ranma blinked his eyes in surprise. “You’re a real martial artist?” Ranma asked in disbelief.
Kasumi pouted, trying to catch Ranma off-guard again. “What’s so unbelievable about that?”
“Well,” Ranma started, thinking of how to say this. “Your build TOTALLY screams ‘homemaker’ or something like that. No major or even minor muscle build. Very petite. You look like the type who’d be in tea ceremony rather than a martial arts competition.”
Kasumi instantly frowned at that. She absolutely, no question about it, downright HATED things like tea ceremonies and flower arrangements. Her mother always tried to make her into the perfect housewife, something Kasumi didn’t want to be. “Really?”
Ranma nodded. “Really, you don't think a cute girl like you would be a fighter or...” Ranma blinked his eyes as he realized what he called her. “Did I just call you that out loud?”
Kasumi smiled brightly, trying to hide a slight blush. “That you did.”
Ranma chuckled nervously. Damn. Now he was in for it. “Eh heh... Okay, get it over with.”
“What are you talking about?” The girl was clearly confused.
Ranma blinked his eyes. “I called you ‘cute’. Wasn’t that being perverted?”
Staring at Ranma, Kasumi blinked her eyes back. “...What?”
Ranma sighed. Rather than tempt fate and get her to beat the snot out of him, he told her, “Never mind.”
Kasumi nodded her head, though she made a mental note to ask him about this later, and asked, “Do you usually make katas up as you train?”
Ranma shrugged. “Most just improved on some existing ones.”
“I noticed you use many different styles. Is that part of this Anything Goes you practice?” Kasumi was all business right now, wanting to learn more of Ranma’s martial art.
Ranma nodded his head. “Yeah. Anything Goes is just that. Anything Goes. You adapt to any situation, as it calls for it.”
Kasumi smiled. “It does look powerful. And you’re good at it.”
At the compliment, Ranma smiled brightly. “Hey, thanks again, Kasumi!”
“You’re welcome.” The girl then crouched to stretch her legs a little and stood straight. “You don’t mind if I train a little, do you? Need to relax my body from the long flight.”
Ranma nodded his head. “Sure!” And then walked over to where Kasumi had been standing. “Hope you don’t mind me watching.”
Kasumi raised an eyebrow. “You want to watch?”
“Please,” Ranma asked seriously.
Kasumi shrugged and took several deep breaths to find her center. Once done with that she started her kata. Compared to Ranma’s previous one it was pretty tame.
Ranma nodded his head as Kasumi did the kata from snoozeville. Though he had to admit, it was pretty solid. From the beginning Ranma could tell Kasumi's style was mostly a defensive one, though some offensive moves could be seen. “Not, bad... Not bad at all...” Ranma repeated.
As Kasumi worked Ranma could see this kata had been practiced for years, the fluidity of movement contrasting with Ranma's fast and precise strikes. Whistling, Ranma continued to clap. “Nice!”
The girl then started to move a little faster, but not for that losing any of the fluidity or grace. “Not bad,” Ranma mumbled.
Towards the end Ranma had the distinct feeling that Kasumi’s hands were glowing, and his chi senses were tingling. She stopped and took another deep breath. “That was relaxing.” Kasumi said with a smile.
Ranma nodded his head. “Yeah, I’d say so.”
Kasumi smiled teasingly . “So, did you enjoy the sight?”
Ranma was about to say, ‘yes’, but the way she was looking at him like that made him nervous. “Uh, yeah, I think...”
“You think?” Kasumi repeated, raising an eyebrow.
“Yeah,” Ranma said as he nodded his head. “Pretty sure.”
“Thank you,” Kasumi beamed. “Are you going to keep training?”
“Nah,” Ranma said as he shook his head. “Almost dinner time!”
“Would you mind if I keep training until dinner? ” Kasumi looked around at the dojo, feeling her surroundings and liking what she felt.
“Sure,” Ranma said as he sat down. “May I watch some more?”
“If you want,” Kasumi said with another smile and started on another, more complicated, kata.
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(Posted Sun, 04 Jul 2004 03:01)
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