[Episode 217039] [Episode 217039]Ranma sat by the window, watching the scenery drift by as the bus climbed through the mountains. This was the final hour of the five-hour bus ride; eight hours on a train preceded it, and two hours of walking would follow once they reached the correct stop. If nothing else, this hot springs resort Aunt Goei had talked about was isolated, Ranma thought.
He had decided it would be nice to relax, though relaxation was not the only thing he planned for this trip once it was decided that they would all make a vacation out of it. He planned on training hard in the most destructive aspects of the sealed techniques, and also planned to work towards mastering his dragon. Chou'un had said she would help him with that, but she hadn't explained much so he still didn't know how it would work. He assumed that it would do a lot of damage to the landscape though, which made the isolated location useful.
Reactions at Seito to the end of the Big Fighter's Tournament had been... mixed. While many of the students seemed to be even more respectful of Ranma now that he was known to harbor an awakened dragon, there was some disappointment about the forfeit, especially once it became widely known that Rakuyo had declared the tournament over, in Kyosho's favor, without a final round. This disappointment seemingly vanished once it also became known that Rakuyo had not surrendered the Gyokuji, which would normally have been expected. Ranma had not heard any negative comments towards himself though; he mused the students here might have more sense than those at Furinkan, since they had already respected him after his “initiation” with just the knowledge that he was deservedly A-rank, and that respect had only risen.
At lunch on the day after the tournament match with Kyosho, Ryuubi Gentoku and all her lieutenants met in a private room in the library. Ranma had made sure to bring water in the right temperatures. The outcome had been generally pleasant. Chouhi Ekitoku had made some snarky comments, earning her a sharp rebuke from Kanu and a mild glare from Ryuubi, but Ranma had been expecting worse. Ranma had learned that a mild glare was about as harsh as Ryuubi ever got. But he was glad for her response overall. She had declared among the group that “Ranma-san is always Ranma-san”, and (after pressure from Kanu and Chou'un) had issued a rare school-wide Imperial Order announcing that the end of the Seito-Kyosho match was a closed subject, and that bothering her lieutenants would result in “harsh measures.” It had seemed to work.
Regardless, Ranma was glad to be going away from the city for a little while, even just several days.
His thoughts were interrupted by the sounds of his aunt's voice. She was trying to get her daughter's attention. “Hakufu. Do you remember Choukou-sensei?”
Hakufu thought for a moment about this. Ranma thought the expression on her face was deeply amusing, but he suppressed the laughter somehow.
“Grandfather? Yeah. Is he at the hot springs, mama?”
Goei shook her head. “Not at them, dear, but he does live near there. It's been a long time since we came up this way.”
Hakufu nodded. “Not since I was...hm. Twelve?”
The nod was echoed. “Yes, the summer after your twelfth birthday. Five years already, almost six.”
Ranma was then startled by Kanu tapping on his right shoulder. She whispered a question in his ear, but he didn't know the answer so he just shook his head.
“Are you talking about Choukou Shikou, auntie?” Kanu asked. “The mountain hermit? He's supposed to have abilities at or above the level of Suikyou-sensei.”
His aunt nodded. “The very same. He trained Hakufu for a while when she was much younger. He trained me also, and he still counsels me when I need his advice. He trained all of us actually: me, No-chan, and our older brother Kotaro, Kokin's father. No-chan never liked Choukou-sensei and Kotaro never took to it until he was an adult.”
“It's not that I didn't like him,” his mother said. “I just thought he was odd. And I didn't like the way he taught. You were more of the fighter anyway, Go-chan.”
Aunt Goei made a humming sort of noise, but neither confirmed nor denied the statement.
Ranma was intrigued. He had been wondering who trained Aunt Goei and Hakufu, or if his aunt had trained his cousin entirely on her own. He wondered how good this old master was. From her tone of voice, Kan-chan implied he was someone to respect deeply, especially if he was really the equal of a master attached to Seito whom Ranma had heard much of, but had yet to meet.
Cologne cackled. “I think this trip will do everyone a lot of good.” She paused, and then looked over at Hakufu. “I'll need some of your time, girl, don't forget.”
Hakufu looked nonplussed, but slowly nodded. Ranma wondered what this was about; he had asked Cologne why she would want to go along, and she had only said she had a theory she needed to confirm. When Ranma asked her about that “theory” she refused to offer any details.
“What are these springs like?” asked Chou'un.
Aunt Goei made the humming sound again. “Very nice. The resort is small: a few rooms, the shower area, open air baths, co-ed bathing, and the like. With the isolation, there probably won't be many other guests, if any. At any rate, I know the owner well enough. There shouldn't be any disturbances.” She then frowned. “If there are any disturbers... I will punish them.” Her expression then returned to normal.
Chou'un seemed satisfied with this answer, Ranma thought. Kanu had gripped his right hand with her left. He saw that Kokin looked vaguely unsettled for some reason; Hakufu was smiling a bit distantly at the moment; his mother and aunt wore almost identical expressions of contentment, and Cologne's expression was inscrutable.
Hakufu started chattering a lot about inconsequential, random things. Ranma tuned her out in order to pay attention to the scenery going by. He was a few times distracted by Kanu gently squeezing his hand, but she didn't seem to have anything to say, so he continued to ride in silence.
The bus continued to wind its way through the mountains. Eventually, they stopped just at the curb outside an unidentified wooden building. Aunt Goei got up, and instructed everyone to follow. It seemed they had reached the point where they would have to start walking.
The group of eight started walking along a well-worn trail. Aunt Goei reminded them once again that it was a two-hour walk, more or less. Ranma, Kanu, and Chou'un walked somewhere in the middle of the group, at the same pace as the rest.
“Ranma-sama,” Chou'un said, drawing his attention away from the trees. “We shall train together tomorrow. I want to relax in the springs for a few hours today, and get a lot of sleep tonight.”
He paused for a moment at that statement, then decided he had to comment. “Do you really mean sleep?” he asked, his voice filled with mirth. Beside him, Kanu smirked.
“Well,” Chou'un replied after a moment, her voice equally mirthful, “sleep after a lot of sex.” The trio laughed slightly.
Ranma said, “That sounds good.” Kanu nodded.
“What is this training?” Kanu asked, although she was certain she knew the answer.
“Ranma-sama must learn to control his dragon, or else it will control him,” Chou'un said. Her tone was now serious. “That will not be allowed.” They walked for a few minutes before she spoke again. “But, we will talk and begin it tomorrow. Today, we relax.” Ranma and Kanu nodded.
The hike continued. True to the prediction, they arrived at the resort in just under two hours.
It was decided (after much worry and complaint) that Nodoka and Goei would share a room; Ranma, Kanu, and Chou'un would be in another; and Cologne would act as a chaperon for Kokin and Hakufu in a third room. Kokin had argued that he shouldn't room with Hakufu; but there were no other options unless Ranma would take a room with him, and then Hakufu would share a room with Kanu and Chou'un, who both said that sharing a room with anyone other than Ranma was not going to happen. Nodoka was very pleased to hear that.
The other issue was that weapons were not allowed in the baths. Neither Kanu nor Chou'un liked that much, but both decided it was better to comply.
Finally it was settled and the group took their stuff to the three rooms, which were at least grouped together. There were only a handful of other rooms overall; it was a small establishment.
Once their stuff was in their room, Ranma and his girl-friends immediately headed for the showers, got cleaned up, and then walked into the springs. They found a pool in front of a large granite fixture that looked comfortably sized for the three of them, and waded in; Ranma changing from female to male as she stepped into the water.
“Ah! Nice,” he said as he lowered himself into the pool. Both his girl-friends smiled as they did the same, putting the minimal towels on the ledge beside them.
Ranma stared up at the sky. He hadn't seen a clock or watch in some time, but from the position of the sun it was nearly the end of the afternoon. The group had elected to take a train at just past midnight and had arrived at the bus station around nine. Their bus had left almost immediately and so they had arrived at that wooden outpost around two. If Ranma judged it correctly, the time should be shortly past four, but he wasn't sure. He thought there might still be light for another two to three hours.
Then, as he decided to reach out with his senses, they were flooded by a very powerful aura. He looked at his girl-friends, who both obviously were sensing the same power. They both had turned to face the large fixture; Kanu was holding her right arm above the water so as not to wet the cast.
It did not feel like a dragon's aura, Ranma thought, but it was still considerable; one of the largest he had sensed to date. And, from the way it felt, it was not uncontrolled. This was no common fighter, whoever it was. No, he decided, it was definitely someone to be wary of.
“Nice afternoon, isn't it?” he called out. Kanu and Chou'un looked at him strangely. “A great day just to relax.”
There was no voiced reply, but a faint sound of feminine laughter drifted over the stone. It lasted for a few seconds and then stopped.
“Prideful, aren't you?” the feminine voice asked after a while. “Or not. Three against one, I think.”
The voice had gained a hint of menace, but was still mostly light.
“If you declare yourselves, I will return the favor,” came the voice. The ki presence withdrew somewhat.
That took them aback. Chou'un quickly whispered something in Kanu's ear, and then came over to Ranma to tell him the same thing. Ranma agreed and nodded.
Being the most famous fighter of Seito, they had decided Kanu would do the introductions. “Kanu Unchou, Ranma Saotome, and Chou'un Shiryuu of Seito Private School. A-rank, all.”
The reply came after a few minutes. “An illustrious group.”
When nothing further had been said after several minutes, Kanu and Chou'un nodded at Ranma. “You said you'd introduce yourself if we did,” he called out.
“Is there room in your pool for a fourth?” came the voice.
The trio whispered to each other again. “If your intentions are not unfavorable,” replied Kanu.
The sound of feminine laughter was much sharper this time. The trio heard the sound of someone standing up and exiting the other pool, and then footsteps. They all turned to face the obvious direction.
What appeared was a very hot girl with a towel wrapped around her, which just about completely failed to hide that she was extremely stacked, possibly more so than any girl Ranma had ever seen. Atop the package was a mop of aquamarine hair with ponytails on either side of her head. Green eyes were set in the face; a face that smiled faintly and cruelly. A gold magatama hung from her left ear.
While both Kanu and Chou'un had a sort of regal air, this girl seemed to radiate sexuality much more blatantly.
The girl dropped her towel. Ranma was then confronted with the knowledge that her carpet matched the drapes. He turned away as she stepped into the water.
Though Ranma couldn't see it, the girl's smirk grew only more sinister. “Ryofuu Hosen, Rakuyo High School, third-year, A-rank fighter... has arrived.”
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(Posted Mon, 02 Mar 2009 18:33)
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