Genma hightailed it out of Tokyo as fast as he could, but most of the night was already gone and he knew it would be unwise to move about by day. He had to lie low from the cops until he could get far enough away. As such, even though he managed to escape metropolitan Tokyo, he decided to take shelter as he saw the sun dawn on a new day.
Finding a shrine, he and Ranma hid out in an old well house to sleep the day away.
Genma was still asleep when Ranma awoke that afternoon. Hungry, bored, and eager to explore, Ranma quietly left the well house.
Little Kagome was running around her grandfather’s shrine when she came upon a boy playing with a stray cat. “Who are you?”
Ranma looked up to find a small girl, a bit younger than him. “Hello, I’m Ranma.”
“Wha’cha doin’?” Kagome stared at the cat, wanting to play with it too.
Ranma stood up gracefully. “Teaching the cat a trick. Want to see?”
Kagome nodded.
Ranma made an ‘L’ shape with his thumb and index finger, and then he pointed his finger at the cat like a gun. “Bang!” he cried as the cat keeled over, dead.
Kagome began to tear up. “Waaagh! You killed da kitty,” she cried as she fell to her knees by the cat. She reached her hand out, hesitantly, towards the cat, which was laying on its side with its eyes closed and tongue lolling out.
“I wouldn’t do that,” Ranma mentioned mysteriously.
Kagome tenderly and gently laid her fingers upon the cat. Immediately, the cat shot up, hissed, meowed, and ran off. Kagome jumped back screaming, landing on her butt.
Ranma laughed at her expression. “Told ya so.”
Kagome sniffed a couple times. “You’re a meanie!”
“No, I’m Ranma.”
“Wanna play?”
Ranma nodded his head. “Sure, do you know how to play Jedi?”
“Jedi? Wha’s that?”
Ranma sat down, cross-legged, and took the tone of a sagely guru. “SengokuJidaiRyu is a school of philosophy that encourages a clear and calm mind and self control of our emotions. It doesn’t teach that emotions, such as love, are bad so much as allowing oneself to be ruled by the impulses of emotions is bad. It is a philosophy that believes that all things are as it should be, and trying to force things to change not for the better but because of personal tastes is wrong. For example, men are meant to be perverts. Trying to get them to be otherwise goes against the natural order. The Sengoku Jedi are all about protecting the natural order, peace, and unity of life.”
“Huh?” Kagome didn’t quite understand all of that. Neither did Ranma, but he thought he sounded pretty smart.
Ranma smiled enigmatically. “Do not worry, young firefly. Remember my words and all shall become clear in time.”
Ranma thought he sounded really cool saying that. ‘This is pretty easy stuff, being a priest.’
‘We could always start our own religion,’ Toltiir mentioned. ‘We could try it out on your father.’
Ranma chuckled, which Kagome found odd. ‘Is he laughing at me? I’ll show him, I’ll be the bestest Jai-dai whachamacallit’
“Say, miss, do you have any robes I can wear?” Ranma was thinking about starting his new religion with his father as the victim. Kagome was thinking it was part of playing Jedi.
Kagome shook her head, she didn’t want some strange boy wearing her robes.
Ranma shrugged, unphased; Toltiir provides. Leaning over, he used his knuckles to nip at Kagome’s nose. “I got your nose,” he crowed as he jumped to his feet and ran off. Kagome gave chase.
Genma awoke in the well house to find his son dressed in strange Shinto robes swinging a smoking incense burner. Genma coughed at the overly sweet and cloying scent of the burning incense.
“What are you doing, boy?” Genma demanded gruffly.
Ranma placed the burner down before clapping his hand two times and bowing his head.
“Well, boy?”
“Father, I am attempting to bring peace to our souls as I indoctrinate you into the Church.”
“Huh?” Genma might have laughed at the comedy of it all if he wasn’t the one in the middle of it.
Ranma picked up a bowl of red liquid and a bamboo brush like whisk. First stirring the bowl with the brush, Ranma then used it to flick the liquid onto Genma in a very ritualistic manner. “In Nomine patris, Wilius Coyotius...”
Genma licked at some of the liquid that fell on his lips, he tasted red miso broth. “Ranma,” Genma warned dangerously.
“Relax father. I have joined a church. Were you not the one, last night, that was saying how it would be nothing but shrines for us?”
“What church?”
Ranma put his bowl and whisk down and picked up a lit candle. The dancing flame illuminated Ranma’s face in eerie light. “The Church of the Super-Genius. Founded by Osensei and great prophet, Wile E. Coyote. The local head of the Japanese branch is Lady Washu. We’re in luck, today is the Feast of Sherlock. Come father, let us celebrate by holding a Mensa.”
Genma wasn’t quite sure what Ranma was talking about, but decided the farther away he could get from whatever cult Ranma fell into, the better. Opening the door to the well house, he found it was late afternoon. The sun was once again low in the sky. Genma’s stomach rumbled. He would have to eat some food first. “You stay here, Ranma. I’ll be right back. Just keep having your feet of sure-rot.” And with that, Genma left.
Ranma sat down, watching his father leave. Once he was sure his father was gone, Ranma climbed down to the well itself. Reaching behind the well, he drew out a tray of food that he placed on top of the well covering. Soup made from red miso, fried vegetables, rice, and fish. “Guess Pops wasn’t hungry.” Without a delay, Ranma tore into the food he had gotten for his father. He had already eaten before, but was happy to eat more.
Genma snuck carefully into town. He found some food in a dumpster behind a restaurant. Eating his fill, he planned his next move. ‘When it gets dark, I’ll grab Ranma and run for it. There must be some shrine where I can get the worthless boy to focus on The Art.’
Once he was done, Genma made his way back to the Higurashi Shrine. He feared to think what trouble Ranma might have gotten up to while he was away.
Time and shrines seem to blur right by as Genma and Ranma traveled upon their training journey. It wasn’t all flowers and roses for Genma either. The first time a monk had asked Ranma if he liked to read, Ranma had responded by saying “No, I don’t” and Genma swelled with pride.
‘That’s my boy, finally! Nothing to distract him from The Art.’
“And why not?” the strict monk asked severely.
“Because Poppa said reading was no good.”
Genma crowed mentally.
“And there are never any pictures of catgirls in kilts.”
Genma deflated in disappointment. ‘Oh, what have I done to deserve such a worthless whelp?’
Genma swore he could almost imagine hearing a voice answering, “Do you really need a list?”
“At least, not like in what Pops likes to read when he thinks I’m sleeping.”
Genma screwed his face up in confusion. Unfortunately, a pile of magazines he never saw before chose that moment to fall out of his gi and onto the floor. Playboy, Photo Samurai, and even Supra Kawaii Doll were among the titles seen lying at his feet. The monks didn’t look very pleased.
And in another temple, ran by virginal mikos and prudish nuns, Genma was always in the wrong place at the wrong time when some accidental disrobing occurred. For some reason, they chose to blame him for their state of undress. It was nearly as bad as training with the dreaded master.
“Maya, I can’t find any of my panties!” one distraught, young miko complained to another.
Maya blushed. “Me neither. You don’t think that Great Pervert stole them, do you?”
Anya look horrified at her friend. “Please say you’re only joking. If he has them, I’ll never be able to wear them again. I’d burn them immediately.”
Maya nodded. “Let’s go tell Mother Superior.”
However, that was when they heard the voice of their normally soft spoken Mother Superior booming through the temple complex. “Genma Saotome!”
And those weren’t the only time unexplainable things seemed to happen to him. And going to a new temple, screaming about a demon possessing his son, didn’t help either. The monks just seemed to love Ranma; he could do no wrong in their eyes.
It didn’t help Genma’s nerves any that Ranma, for all of his shenanigans, seemed to learn new techniques like a fish learned to swim. At every temple, he picked up new moves and more skill. Genma wasn’t sure he ought to be proud that Ranma could hold his own so well, or annoyed that it just made him that much harder to control.
‘At least he doesn’t pull any of that Cult of the Genius crap when other people are around. I don’t want to celebrate Brain Day! What a distraction from what is truly important.’
“Dancing naked in the streets for money!”
‘No, wait! Where did that odd thought come from?’ Genma noticed the monks of the current temple looking at him funny. “He he he, I said that out loud? Didn’t I?”
But Genma didn’t give up hope on his only son. And so, after a couple years, their journey took them to a temple about which Genma heard many good things on his travels. Upon reaching the steps that lead to the temple, Genma looked up, and up, and up some more. ‘I just got a brilliant idea for a training technique.’
“Ranma.”
“Yes, Pappa?” Genma was interrupted by the boy in question.
“You will do as I say. I shall ride on your back as you climb these stairs. It is a training exercise.” Genma gave his best ‘father knows best’ expression, which was never a very good one.
“Okay, Pappa!” Genma should have known to worry when Ranma agreed so readily. And so the duo ascended the stairs, Genma being carried by Ranma, until they reached the top, Ranma huffing and puffing and all worn out.
‘Good,’ Genma thought to himself. ‘He’ll be too exhausted to cause any trouble.’
Upon setting his foot on the top step, Ranma suddenly got excited. “Yay! I made it!” Ranma shouted as he threw up his arms and jumped for joy.
Predictably, Genma was thrown backwards to roll and fall down the steep stairs. “Ouch! Ooh! Ouch! *Yelp* Whaaaa! *The Wilhelm* Woo-hoo-ooh! Yargh! *Crash*”
An old man walked up besides Ranma. “Is he OK?”
Ranma nodded without any worries. “I don’t think he hurt anything important.”
“But, it looks like he landed on his head.” The old temple caretaker pointed out.
Ranma shrugged. “Like I said...”
A pained “Ow” floated up on a breeze to them.
Genma and Ranma sat in seiza in the courtyard by the shrine. The old priest was there as well as his grandson.
“I see,” the old caretaker said. “But I am sorry to say, you came all this way for nothing. This is only a simple temple. I only teach the family technique to family, such as my Grandson, Tenchi, here. The shrine itself only serves to mark the spot of a great battle where a demon was defeated.”
Genma bowed his head in disappointment.
“But you may spend the day and night here as you heal and rest up, before continuing on your journey.”
“Thank you Masaki-san,” Genma said respectfully. He hoped buttering up the old man during the time they got to stay may help his cause. In the very least, he could have Ranma do chores around the temple to keep him out of trouble. “In return for your generosity, I volunteer my son, Ranma, to help around the grounds. Boy, grab a broom and get to sweeping.”
Katsuhito laughed. “No need for your boy to sweep alone. Tenchi, grab a broom and help sweep up.”
The two boys rolled their eyes, but did as they were told.
“My name is Ranma,” Ranma introduced himself as the two boys began to sweep.
“Tenchi.”
The boys continued to sweep. “Where’s your father?” Tenchi had looked up to see everyone else gone.
Ranma shrugged. “Probably nosing around, looking for treasures.”
“Oh? I hope he doesn’t wake the demon.”
“Demon?” Ranma’s attention was now fully on Tenchi.
“Yeah. Gramps says there is a demon sleeping in a cave over that way.” Tenchi pointed towards Ryoko’s cave. “It’s my favorite place to visit. Unfortunately, it’s locked and I never seen the demon.”
“Locked?” Ranma was sporting a very thoughtful smirk.
Tenchi nodded. “Gramps has the keys. I haven’t been able to get them ... yet.”
“Well.” Ranma made some noises as he mused. “Let’s see. I’ll need a plan. Shall we try after dinner?”
“What? Get the keys, you mean?” Tenchi seemed intrigued.
Ranma smiled. “Exactly. With both of us working together, I bet we can do it. Come on, let’s get this swept up quickly so we can go off and think.”
The boys soon finished their chore and then ran off to play and talk.
Katsuhito Masaki was strolling along the grounds of the shrine. It was almost dinnertime and he hadn’t seen the kids for a while. He knew where it was likely to find Tenchi. He figured Tenchi was showing Ryoko’s cave to Ranma. He paused his steps as he thought he saw something by Funaho. Approaching the great tree that grew upon his lands, he found Ranma fast asleep beneath the tree, his back against the trunk.
‘Aw, he looks like a little angel when asleep. I’ll let him sleep longer and wake him on my way back with Tenchi.’
Katsuhito continued his journey to the cave, where his grandson would spend much time. Tenchi was intrigued by the stories his grandfather told him of an ancient battle and a powerful demon, and would often go to the cave.
He found Tenchi staring through the locked gate. “Come along, Tenchi. Dinner will be ready soon.”
“Okay, grandfather”
As the two left, Genma came out of hiding in the bushes. ‘Tonight, while everyone is asleep, I’ll break in. There must be great wealth kept locked up in there.’ Genma’s greed dreamed up great riches hidden away behind the locked gate.
Ranma and Tenchi talked animatedly throughout dinner about the kinds of stuff little boys like to talk about.
Soon, dinner was done and Katsuhito cleared away the dishes. Tenchi asked permission to play outside while Genma wandered away.
Having received permission to play, Tenchi and Ranma made a beeline for Ryoko’s cave.
“Here it is. See? It is locked. How do you think we should get the keys? Grandpa has it on him always.”
Ranma smirked as he fished a set of keys out from inside his gi. “You mean these keys?” he asked innocently.
Tenchi’s eyes widened in surprise. “How’d you get those?”
“I told you I was the best,” Ranma boasted.
“Come on, let’s open it up.” Tenchi was more excited than ever.
The key turned smoothly in the old lock and it sprung open silently. Opening the gate and stepping through revealed a small shrine of sorts in the cave. Paper wards hung from a rope strung up from cave wall to cave wall. A big stalactite that looked like a rock hung from the inky blackness of the ceiling. It too was papered in wards, and the rope wrapped around it in its journey from wall to wall.
Ranma turned on a flashlight he had in his gi. While the sun was still up, being summer, the cave’s interior was dim.
“Where’s the demon?” Tenchi asked Ranma.
Ranma shrugged. “Behind that wall, I think.” He pointed at the wall behind a stone that held yet another ward.
“How do you think we get it to open?”
Ranma shrugged in response.
Tenchi’s eyes were drawn to a model of a shrine that stood against a wall that was next to the wall Ranma indicated. It was made of wood and well crafted. Opening the temple doors revealed a sword’s hilt. Tenchi was about to reach in when Ranma’s hand landed upon his arm.
“Don’t. The time is not right yet. Next time you return, take the sword in the stone by its hilt.” Tenchi noted the odd way Ranma spoke, as if someone else was using his voicebox.
Ranma’s serious expression broke into a smile as Tenchi lowered his hand. “Come, we just need to move the stone out of its place, is all,” Ranma said as he gestured at the small, warded stone standing guard in front of the wall.
Tenchi nodded. Together, the two heaved at the stone until it rolled out of a depression in the ground. In response, the cave rumbled as the lone stalactite lowered itself. Tenchi became nervous and apprehensive, wondering if they had done the right thing.
‘Oh no! What have I done? I broken the cave and now Grandpa will be mad at me.’
But, his worries faded as the wall they wanted to get by began to slide open from a split down its middle. The sound of running water could be heard, and Tenchi thought he could hear a girlish giggle emanating from the new opening.
“Wow!” Tenchi exclaimed as he strode to the threshold. Looking over his shoulder at Ranma, he asked, “Do you really think a demon is in here?”
“There is only one way to find out.” Smirks grew on both boys’ faces.
The boys stepped in, and stepped back quickly as their feet found water. Ranma played the flashlight’s beam closer to the ground. The tunnel held a patchwork of non-uniformly sized rectangles separated by channels of water. The carved passages for the water drew a circuit like grid down the steep incline of the tunnel.
The boys looked at each other. Ranma shrugged. Tenchi shrugged. Facing forward, they carefully descended down the tunnel until it opened out into a cavernous room. The square like pattern of circuitry in the tunnel blended into a circuit like pattern based upon concentric circles and arcs. The center of these circles and arcs was a round pool of water. Motes of light, like ephemeral fireflies, drifted lazily in the air.
“Wow,” Tenchi said in a breathy voice.
Ranma nodded. “This doesn’t look like a prison at all. Where’s the steel bars? The guards? Where’s the warden with a heavy cane used to beat people senseless?” Ranma saw the funny look Tenchi was giving him. “Pops always said that was what prison was like, and that was why I couldn’t let any of the cops catch me while playing games. Pops knows lots of games.”
Tenchi nodded, but not in understanding. “I wonder if the demon Gramps is always talking about is here.”
Strolling deeper into the cavern, the boys came upon the edge of the pool. Looking down, they could see a body, obviously female, dressed in outlandish clothing. The face was a red, demonic visage. She seemed to be dead, under the water and with no bubbles of breath raising to the surface. All was calm and peaceful.
Tenchi leaned closer as Ranma danced the spot of light from his flashlight over the figure.
Suddenly, a hand shot out to grab Tenchi by his ankles. “Yah!” Tenchi screamed in surprised. Seeing the hand holding his ankle, he panicked more. “It’s got me, Ranma, help!”
A head broke through the surface of the water as the demonic visage rose into view, red eyes glowing fiercely.
“Aaah!” The two boys screamed. Ranma began kicking at the hand holding Tenchi, but to no effect.
“Quick kicking me, it hurts,” Tenchi yelled at Ranma.
Both boys turned to look back at the demon. “Please don’t eat me,” Tenchi whimpered out.
“Eat you?” A woman’s voice asked. Oddly, the lips of the demon didn’t move. Another hand, slim and graceful, rose from the water to the Demon’s face. It pulled the face off revealing a beautiful woman. Ranma and Tenchi understood then that she was only wearing a ceramic mask. “I don’t want to eat you. I want to play.”
“Beautiful,” both boys said simultaneously as they stared at the woman with a deer trapped in headlights gaze.
The woman blushed. “Thank you, I’m Ryoko.”
The two boys continued to stare, still as statues.
“Hello?” Ryoko asked as she waved her hand in front of them.
“They can’t react, I froze time,” a voice informed Ryoko from behind her. Whipping around in shock, all she could find was a black cat.
She looked around a bit before turning back to the cat. “Did you just speak to me?”
The cat nodded. “Yes, I did. My name is Toltiir. And do I have a deal for you.” The cat smirked in a manner that would have driven other cats to jealousy.
“You froze time? Who or what are you? What do you want with me? You can’t have Tenchi, he’s mine!”
Toltiir laughed. “Yes. I said I was Toltiir. An elder god of mischief, chaos, and practical jokes – well not really practical jokes, but Aries seems to think so. You amuse me, and I have some ideas to run by you. You can keep Tenchi, I have Ranma. But you’ll have to learn to share sooner or later. Others will be coming.”
Ryoko blinked. “Er ... What sort of ideas do you have for me?”
Toltiir smiled. “Well, how would you like to be free of this place? The main problem is that Funaho would detect you and report you immediately. That would bring the Juraians ahead of schedule.”
Ryoko snorted. “Schedule? What’s going on here?”
“All in due time, milady. However, while Ranma was sleeping by Funaho, I was able to ... let us call it reprogram it, to be blind to your escape for only a short period of time. Tonight, while the moon is in the sky, and not prior to midnight. You’ll have from midnight to moonset to make your escape. If you can get far enough away, Funaho won’t detect you. She would normally detect you anywhere upon the planet, but I limited her to only five miles. I have a list of odd jobs I need you to do. It won’t take long to finish them, and when you do you could try doing something like ... say ... teaching at Tenchi’s school. In return, I could give you these. They’ll replace the gems Yosho took from you.”
“How do you know about Yosho?” Ryoko asked suspiciously.
Toltiir rolled his eyes. “God, remember?”
Ryoko nodded, but didn’t take her eyes off of the cat.
“Hold your hand out.”
Ryoko did as she was asked. In them materialized three round stones that were jet black and simply adorned with a red slit not unlike a cat’s eye.
“And what did you want me to do?” Ryoko asked, wary of what she might need to do to buy her freedom; her experiences with Kagato making her cautious.
“Here, I made you a list.” A piece of paper materialized in front of her face. “You’ll note that each job comes with the time you need to do them and costuming ideas. It is important that you are not recognized, or your escape will become known.”
“Recognized? I have been trapped here for nearly 700 years. Who is left alive to recognize me?”
“Yosho,” Toltiir replied in a terse, confidant manner.
Ryoko growled at hearing the name. “So I dress up each time, do these things when you want them done, and that’s it?”
Toltiir nodded. “Yep, basically. I won’t interfere except to pass along messages of anything new. Also, if I feel you are abusing the power or the freedom I am giving you, I’ll take them back. As much as you don’t know how to be subtle, try to be subtle.”
Ryoko pursed her lips. “And how do I know you won’t keep adding onto the list, trapping me as a slave forever?”
Toltiir shrugged. “You don’t. But if you rather spend your days here unable to play or speak with Tenchi, I can just leave you as I found you.”
Ryoko grumbled. “Okay, fine. I’ll do it. Can I really get to be with Tenchi on the outside?”
“Of course.” Toltiir smiled. “Having him get to know you better in less stressful situations is part of my master plan, after all.”
“Oh? Less stressful than what?”
Toltiir winked at her. “Don’t you worry about that. Play with the kids for now. Escape later. Also, a man named Genma Saotome will probably be visiting you later tonight. He’s a big man in a dirty gi. He’ll be looking for treasure. Feel free to scare the beejeebus out of him. You can’t kill, but do the whole crazy demon thing if you want. Just scare him good. Otherwise, don’t come within 5 miles of here. You will have to, in the future. You’ll see it on my list. But it is necessary, it will lead to Kagato’s death. And it will lead Tenchi down a road to greatness. And since you’ll be his friend ...”
Ryoko smiled grimly at the mention of Kagato’s death. Nodding once, she said, “Deal.”
The cat faded out. “Don’t forget, you’re undercover. Leave Ryo-ohki for much later. You’ll know when. Otherwise, many people, such as the Galaxy Police and even Kagato, will pick up her going active. That will draw him here long before Tenchi is ready to kill him to save you.”
“Huh? Wait, say that again!”
“Beautiful,” two voices chorused from behind her. The cat was long gone.
“Don’t be bashful,” a young boy’s voice called out to her.
Ryoko whirled around, “Why’d you say that?”
“Because you asked us to say it again,” Tenchi replied.
“Because you turned around to hide,” Ranma answered at the same time.
Ryoko paused to process the overlapping voices. ‘I guess the god is gone now.’
She smiled brightly. “What games shall we play?”
A family sized sedan skidded around the mountain curve. The driver, a salary man traveling with his wife and son, lost control of his car as it burst through the guardrail separating traffic from the plunging cliff.
“Aaaaa!” The screams of the car’s occupants slowly died off as they realize the car was gently coming to a stop. Their panic return when the car suddenly shot upwards, back over the lip of the cliff’s edge.
The car was deposited upon the road surface it had left from. The occupants panted heavily as adrenaline wore off. They were oblivious of everything for a few moments as they got their racing hearts back under control. The wife was the first to notice their savior, gasping in shock as she suddenly pointed at the front windshield. A woman was hovering high in the air. Her long silver hair matched well with the black outfit she wore. An outfit consisting of a black cape, black long sleeved shirt, black, short pleated skirt, and black boots. The ensemble was trimmed in silver.
Ryoko was wearing a costume that Toltiir copied from an evil Supergirl found in another plane of reality, the only change being the letters “SJ” emblazoned upon the chest. Rolling her eyes, though her audience couldn’t tell because of her height and distance, Ryoko addressed the family she saved, using a script Toltiir wrote.
“You are safe now, gentle citizens. I am Sailor Jurai.” Another eye roll. “I stand for truth, justice, and the Japanese way. No thanks are necessary, just seeing you alive and well are reward enough for me.” Ryoko began to float down to stand by the driver’s door. “I see you have a young child. Should you wish to show your gratitude, might I suggest encouraging him to join the police when he grows up? Our fair nation needs more heroes, and nothing is more admirable then one who chooses to protect the citizens and laws of this fair land.”
“Yes, Ma'am. Thank you Jurai-san,” the father stuttered.
The wife nodded. “We’ll do that, Jurai-san.”
Ryoko twitched but otherwise didn’t react to having to be called Jurai. ‘Toltiir owes me big for this.’
The young boy said nothing, a faint trickle of blood still coming from his nose from when he was admiring the way Ryoko’s skirt flapped in the wind.
“Be well and travel safely,” Ryoko called out as she hovered into air. Without a backwards glance, she flew off.
“Wow!” the boy exclaimed as he craned his neck to watch the girl disappear into the clouds.
“Hear that, Mamoru? What do you think? Would you like to be a police officer when you grew up?” The father asked as he turned in his sat to look into the rear seats of the car.
Mamoru nodded his head. ‘Will I see her again?’
The car hesitantly drove off, making its way at a slower pace among the many hairpin curves of the mountainside road. Invisible, Ryoko followed the car as per her orders, to make sure the family still managed to get home safely. It wouldn’t do to save them just to have them die a mile down the road.
‘The wig and clothes are alright. Maybe I can wear something similar without the cape to play with Tenchi. But what corny lines! Toltiir doesn’t usually give such a detailed task. What’s his interest in the Chiba family?’
Ryoko did enjoy having her powers restored with the three stones given by Toltiir. She also found she had had access to other powers that aided with non-malignant mischief. Other than running off occasionally to do some odd jobs that caused some sort of mischief, she was left to her own devices. An arrangement she found fair.
The breakfast table was peaceful. Ranma and Tenchi were quietly eating their morning food. Tenchi was hoping his grandfather didn’t know what he and Ranma had done the night before. He had fun playing with Ryoko, but Tenchi was worried that his grandfather had noticed when Ranma took or returned the keys. Tenchi couldn’t have know that Katsuhito had never noticed the absence of his keys as they were never gone. Toltiir simply gave Ranma copies of the keys, and later dissolved them to nothingness when Tenchi wasn’t looking.
Katsuhito made a humming noise as he read the morning paper. “How strange, there is a rise in panty thefts in Tokyo. Youngsters these days.”
Tenchi looked up from his breakfast, puzzled at why anyone would want to take panties. Ranma continued eating, as if the news was of no consequence to him.
Suddenly, in a hectic frenzy of motion and noise, Genma blustered into the room. “Thank you for your hospitality. I fear me and my son must be off now. There is nothing of greater importance than learning The Art,” Genma informed his host as he sat down to wolf down some food. He quickly shoveled some breakfast down, showing poor manners in the meantime. He also managed to shovel some of Ranma’s breakfast down as well, as the boy looked upon him in disappointment.
Katsuhito grunted as he lowered his paper. Genma’s appearance seemed suspicious. He was covered with bruises and seemed to be afraid of something. Katsuhito was at a lost at what could have terrified the man so.
“Come along Ranma.” Genma dragged the kid by the scruff of his gi’s collar. Hurrying, he tossed Ranma’s backpack at him before grabbing his own.
“Are you sure you don’t want to stay longer? You look like you could use some rest.” Katsuhito may have found Genma as distasteful, but the man did seem in need of some kind of help.
“No, he he he. A martial artist’s life is full of sacrifices, after all. We’ll be fine.” Genma responded to the trailing Misaki duo. Tenchi and his grandfather shared a look of disbelief.
Ranma wasn’t sure what spooked his father either. But this wasn’t the first time Genma looked rattled and Toltiir was suspiciously quiet about it.
‘Wanna have some fun with Misaki-san?’ Toltiir smiled as Ranma nodded.
As the Saotomes neared the top of the steps, Ranma twisted free from his father’s grasp. “Hey Tenchi, keep in touch. I’ll write ya.”
Tenchi smiled. “Okay!” He was upset to find his new friend having to leave so abruptly, but maybe he’ll get some letters. That would be better than nothing.
Ranma seemed to gaze off into the distance for a moment. “Not to worry, soon we’ll have a means of passing messages.”
Tenchi wasn’t sure what to make of that statement. “How?”
“Dun’ know,” Ranma replied with a shrug.
“Come along, boy. No time to dilly-dally,” Genma berated Ranma while making a grab for the kid.
Ranma side stepped, but left a leg out in the path of Genma’s rush. Genma found himself tripping and tumbling down the stairs.
“Ouch! Ooh! Ouch! *Yelp* Whaaaa! *The Wilhelm* Woo-hoo-ooh! Yargh! *Crash*”
Katsuhito strolled to the top of the stairs to look down at Genma. “Did he injure anything important?” he asked Ranma.
“Nope, nothing. Pops landed on his head and balls only,” Ranma answered as he skipped a few steps down. Turning to glance over his shoulders at Tenchi, he added, “Keep in touch!” Ranma waved as he took another step.
The Misakis waved good-bye to him as Ranma skipped a few more steps down.
“Bye Tenchi-kun, Misaki-san,” Ranma called back as he kept skipping down the steps. When he neared the bottom, he said one final thing. “Hey, why do you wear that old man mask?” Ranma, however, ran off without waiting for a reply.
Katsuhito frowned in confusion, as his confusion slowly eroded into suspicion and shock.
Tenchi, however, summed it up in ways only a kid could. “Ranma’s a nice kid, Grampa, but sometimes I wonder what reality he lives in.”
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(Posted Thu, 21 May 2009 05:17)
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らんま1/2 © Rumiko Takahashi
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