Ranma was sweating like a Finn in a sauna, sweat running down his arms in rivulets until it reached his knuckles, where it mixed with the blood seeping from the raw open wounds there.
He felt no pain. He had passed that point days ago. For weeks now he had been training harder with his father than he ever had before in his life, trying to prepare his body and spirit for the ultimate goal of every man: Hot Blood!
But his spirit was as far from reaching that goal as a moth was from reaching the moon. He didn't know if he could succeed. For the first time in his life, Ranma felt insecure about himself and his abilities.
His father wanted him to punch a giant and ancient tree, with a trunk as wide as five men! He expected him to set it on fire with the burning passion of his soul alone! He wanted the impossible! For days now Ranma had been trying to achieve this goal and failed pitifully every time!
After the disaster that Jusenkyo had turned out to be, Genma had expressed genuine remorse, promising Ranma that he knew a way to get rid of the curse, but also telling him that it would be harder than anything he had gone through before. Ranma now certainly knew that his father had been telling him the truth. Here he was, trying desperately to turn into the pinnacle of manliness by reaching this elusive state of Hot Blood and failing miserably at it. And how was he supposed to succeed anyway? He spent half his time as a girl now!
Ranma closed his eyes, his head drooping.
*Thwack!*
A long wooden rod impacted his head. "Don't hang your head! Do you think the other great pillars of manliness gave up this easily? Think again! John Holmes starred in movie after movie until he was the King of Porn! He never even thought of quitting!"
Genma pointed one finger at Ranma dramatically. “Do you think Spartacus lost all hope when he was enslaved? He didn't! His spirit burned hotter than the sun, and he rallied the slaves of the Roman empire behind him to lead them against Rome and overthrow the Empire!"
He clenched his fists in a gesture of purest passion. "Was Musashi satisfied with his sword skills after he had defeated Yushioka? He wasn't! That was only the event that ignited his blood! He travelled all of Japan and challenged and beat every swordsman he could find, until he felt he really deserved the title 'Best Swordsman of Japan'!"
He whacked Ranma once more with the wooden rod. "Hot blooded men never give up! They're not satisfied until they've reached perfection! They'll do anything to achieve their goals or die trying!"
Genma grabbed Ranma by his shoulders, looking him dead in the eyes, his stare earnest and unwavering. "My boy, I myself haven't been good enough to ignite the spark of hot blood! My body was too frail, my spirit too weak, but you can do it! I know it, deep in my heart! For all of your life I have prepared you for this. I know you won't disappoint me! I believe in you, son!
Now do it!"
Ranma nodded. His jaw was set with determination. His stance was rigid with purpose. And his eyes burned with the fiery passion of a man who can do anything!
"KYAAAAAAAAAAH!!" With a roaring battle cry he punched the mighty tree once more. His fist burst suddenly into flames, igniting the giant trunk upon impact and incinerating the tree almost instantly.
Ranma would never the forget the moment he felt all the blood in his body ignite with his passion!
It was a feeling of such overwhelming emotions, there were no words adequate to describe it. It spread from his arm through his chest to his head and limbs. For the smallest fraction of a second, he could feel something resist the awesome might of the Hot Blood, but the outcome of that struggle was preordained.
“Aiiiiiieeeeeeeeee,” with a mournfull wail, the small translucent figure of a girl was ejected from Ranma's body. She sobbed pitifully, gazing at Ranma with a look of such longing it would have made Buddha weep, before she simply faded away.
The fiery aura surrounding his fist suddenly exploded outwards, enveloping Ranma completely. The martial artist threw his head back and jerked his arms upwards. “HAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!” The fire surrounding him shot to the heavens, piercing the clouds and bathing the sky in a beautiful red. The energy spread out along the sky like oil on water, before it retracted and gathered in a small condensed ball.
The small ball of energy exploded in a flesh of bright light, followed by a loud thunderous boom that shook the whole of Honshu, sending small tsunami waves radiating outwards in all directions, announcing the birth of a hot blooded male to all of Japan and the surrounding countries, then the aura flickered out, and Ranma was back to normal again. The only discernible difference was in his eyes, which seemed to burn with an inner fire now.
Panting heavily, Ranma gazed from his fist to the pile of ash on the ground. He had done it! He had ignited the spark of hot blood within his body!
"I'm so proud of you, my son!" Genma cried, enveloping his son in a crushing hug. He was sobbing tears of pride and happiness. He had always known that his son could do it, but nothing could have prepared the aging martial artist for actually seeing Ranma succeed. "Now you truly are a man among men! Your spirit has reached such strength that it is like a force of nature! No man will be able to stand before your will and your might! No magic will be able to touch you! The Gods themselves tremble before your spirit! You have transcended mere mortal status and reached true hot blooded manliness!"
Ranma returned the hug with equal strength. "Thank you, father," he managed to choke out. He closed his eyes, silent tears running down his cheeks in twin streams.
All the blood, all the sweat, all the pain, all the tears. It all had finally paid off.
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(Posted Wed, 03 Dec 2008 03:27)
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らんま1/2 © Rumiko Takahashi
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