"Let's see, what else could I need..." Ranma chewed on the end of his pencil as he read over the list of things he wanted Mihoshi to get for him. So far, he didn't have much. All he had been able to think of were enough Nanniichuan to cure his curse and pictures of everybody back home.
Nothing else came to mind. He'd been tempted to add several magic items he might use to the list, things like the super soba Happosai had dug up that had given Akane whiskers or Mousse's masks of invincibility, but then he remembered just who would be bringing him those items, and decided otherwise. He really didn't want somebody like Mihoshi getting her hands on such potentially dangerous items. Knowing her, she'd eat the soba and put on the masks, and Ranma didn't want to imagine how that would turn out.
Ranma shuddered. Better not ask Mishoshi to bring him any more magic stuff than absolutely necessary.
That decision had severely limited the amount of items from his home he could want or need. Apparently, his family – or rather, the family of the guy whose life Ranma had taken over – was loaded. They were pretty much swimming in money. They could afford several maids who took care of all the chores, and Ranma found himself provided with everything he could possibly need. Hell, he had his own scooter and motorcycle and, thanks to Kokin's memories, even knew how to drive them.
“What's that supposed to mean?!”
Hakufu's screeching voice could be heard from the other side of the house, and Ranma closed his eyes. "Jeez, don't those two ever settle down?" he grumbled, rubbing his forehead. "They're worse than Pops and I ever were."
Sighing, he leaned back in his chair and checked his watch. He still had about 30 minutes until the agreed time to meet with Gakushu, which was about 20 minutes longer than it took him to walk to school.
"Guess I might as well leave a bit early. Would get me away from those two at least," he mumbled.
He quickly changed out of his school uniform and into a pair of jeans and a loose red shirt. Then he grabbed a pair of sneakers and left his room. As he was about to pass by the open doors of the living room he briefly toyed with the idea of sneaking past his aunt and cousin, then decided against it. Hakufu might worry if she looked for him and found him missing with no clue as to where he'd gone, and he just couldn't do that to her.
"Aunt Goei, Hakufu, I'm going out! Don't wait up for me, I don't know when I'll be back!" he called out without stopping.
"Have fun, dear!" Goei called after him.
"Hey! Where are you going!?" Hakufu asked.
However, not wanting her to worry didn't mean that Ranma was in the mood to play twenty questions with her. By the time Hakufu's voice faded, Ranma was already out the door and twenty metres down the street.
It was getting close to dinner time, and there was more traffic than usual. Speeding cars and the occasional car horn could be heard in the distance, the smell of burnt petrol hung in the air, and a thick cloud of exhaust fumes obscured the sky over Tokyo.
Ranma closed his eyes and let himself get swallowed up by the hustle and bustle of the big city. After the day he'd had, Ranma found the sound of traffic almost soothing. It was a welcome change from the noise and stress Hakufu caused.
Ranma sighed, opening his eyes and thrusting his hands into his pockets. Hakufu. He didn't know how to deal with her. The feelings for her he had inherited from Kokin were troublesome, a strong sexual attraction coupled with honest affection. He'd tried to resist them, to block them out behind a wall of indifference and dislike, but quickly realised that he couldn't. Hakufu was the kind of person you just couldn't dislike. Her cheery demeanor and enthusiasm for life and battle was infectious.
Before he'd realised it, Hakufu had somehow wormed her way into his heart, and he was laughing at her ditziness and lending her a helping hand when she seemed to need one. In Hakufu, Ranma saw more than a cute chick with huge tits. She was a kindred spirit, someone with the same enthusiasm for martial arts and fighting as himself. She didn't care about fate or politics. She only wanted to fight strong opponents and beomce stronger herself. Ranma had a connection with her he'd never had with Akane, and that made him feel guilty.
Ranma felt a stabbing pain in his chest when he thought of his fiancée. He missed the way she'd smile at him when she was happy, the way her laugh seemed to light up the room. He missed her readiness to help everybody, even if they didn't deserve it. Hell, he even missed their arguments. In short, he missed her.
He wondered what she was doing. Was she all right? Did she miss him as well or she already forgotten about him? Or had she... Ranma swallowed, reluctant to complete the thought. Had she moved on? Sought comfort in Ryoga's or Shinnosuke's arms?
As much as that idea pained him, Ranma admitted to himself that it was quite possible. Akane wasn't the type to wallow and mope.
Maybe it was best if Ranma moved on as well. Mihoshi had told him that he was now stuck here, that she couldn't bring him back to his old world. Maybe it was time he accepted his fate and dealt with it as well as he could.
No, Ranma suddenly decided, balling his hands into fists in his pockets. He would not just give in! There had to be a way to get back! He was in a world where the spirits of 1800-year-old fighters lived on in sacred beads! A world where magic swords had the power to poison or swallow souls! He was certain, 100% positive that other magic existed in this world as well. There had to be. Something he could use to go back home.
He wouldn't rest until he found it and used to go back to the Tendo dojo!
Yes, Ranma thought. It was time to stop moping and time to start acting! He'd promised to protect Hakufu, and he intended to do keep that promise. He would find a way to break the cycle of fate and put an end to the endless fighting, and he'd find a way home.
The first step to accomplishing my goals, Ranma thought as his school came into view, is to find out everything Gakushu knows. He's one of Nanyo's Top Four. I'm sure he can give me something to work with.
Ranma found Gakushu in the court yard, leaning on the wall next to the gate. He was still dressed in his school uniform and his expression was troubled.
"Yo, Gakushu," Ranma said, lazily waving a hand. "What's up?"
"Shuyu." Gakushu nodded at him. "I'm glad you could meet me."
"No problem." Ranma shrugged. "Why'd ya want to meet up?"
"There are several matters that concern me," Gakushu said, "and they all have directly or indirectly to do with your cousin."
Ranma frowned, crossing his arms over his chest. "You're talking about that assassination business."
"Among other things, yes," Gakushu said. "However, while that is troublesome, it is not the most troublesome problem we might be facing. I am more concerned with your cousin, and the kind of feelings she causes in me."
Ranma growled, not quite believing his ear. The big guy had called him out for this? "I swear, if you called me out here just to talk about your crush on Hakufu, I'm going to hurt you."
Gakushu blinked, as if surprised Ranma had misinterpreted his words in such a way. "I assure you, you misunderstood me. I was not talking about feelings of attraction, rather the opposite. When I fought Hakufu, I felt real fear. Fear unlike anything I've ever felt before. The kind of fear one might feel when staring into the jaws of a hungry dragon. I have never experienced such fear before, not even when I fought Ryomou or Kannei."
"What?" It was Ranma's turn to blink. "Are you kidding me? You slapped Hakufu around like an amateur! How can you be afraid of her?"
"Can't you sense it?" Gakushu asked, his voice carrying a strange note of urgency. "When you feel her aura, can't you feel this strange ... malevolent being, just lurking under the surface, ready to jump out and lay everything in ruin?"
Ranma frowned as he thought back. He'd witnessed Hakufu fight several times, but he'd never felt anything like Gakushu was describing to him. "I'm sorry." He shook his head. "I've never felt anything like that from Hakufu. Are you sure you didn't just imagine it?"
"Quite sure," Gakushu said. "I am not the only one who sensed it, either. Both Saji and Ryomou have sensed it as well."
"Damn." As if life didn't suck badly enough already, now he apparently had to deal with some kind of evil spirit that was trying to possess Hakufu or using her body as a temporary home. "I hope you're wrong, but I don't think you made that up either. I'll keep a closer eye on Hakufu from now on."
Gakushu nodded. "Good. The other matter I wished to speak to you about is directly connected to that evil ... entity slumbering inside Hakufu, I believe. As you are aware, an order to assassinate Hakufu was sent out this morning."
"Oh yes, I'm aware of that," Ranma growled, taking a threatening step towards Gakushu. "And when I find out who's behind that order, I'm going to beat them so bad, their great-grandchildren are still going to feel it!"
Gakushu's face seemed to lose a bit of colour, and Ranma saw a bead of sweat trickling down his cheek. "I think I know who gave the order-"
Grabbing Gakushu by his west, Ranma smashed him against the wall hard enough to create a crater. "Who? Who was it?" he demanded. "Tell me!" He shook him, smashing his head against the wall and leaving smaller indentations. "Tell me, dammit!"
Gakushu grabbed Ranma's wrists and tried to push them away, but Ranma wouldn't budge, and Gakushu paled further. "It was Saji!" he blurted.
Ranma quickly let the taller fighter go and turned away, panting as he tried to reign in his emotions. "I'm sorry," he said. "I don't know what came over me. Well, that's not quite true." He gave a humourless chuckle. "I do know what came over, I just don't like it. When it's about Hakufu, I tend to lose control of my anger."
"I understand," Gakushu said, his voice not quite steady. He took several deep breaths before he went on. "After the battle this afternoon, I confronted Saji. I've suspected that something was not quite right for some time now, ever since Enjyutsu disappeared and stopped seeing anybody except Saji. This latest order just reinforced my suspicions. Enjyutsu has never been the type to seek confrontations. He usually prefers to avoid conflict if possible and is always wary of crossing the wrong people. Ordering the assassination of a new fighter of unknown strength was completely unlike Enjyutsu."
"I see." Ranma turned back to face Gakushu again. "Go on."
"When I confronted Saji with my deductions, he did not deny them. He even admitted that he was the one who had given the order in Enjyutsu's name."
"Yeah, yeah, you've already said as much," Ranma said, barely managing to hold onto his patience. "Did Saji also happen to tell you why he gave that order?"
Gakushu paused, likely put off by Ranma's tone, before he went on. "He said he wanted to awaken the evil beast inside Hakufu. The one I told you about earlier. I'm sorry, but he did not tell me why he would want to do such a thing. And I cannot guess as to his plans either. As far as I can see, awakening the evil within Hakufu would only lead to misery for everyone involved."
Ranma suppressed a snort. He wasn't quite convinced the "evil beast slumbering inside Hakufu" was real, but if Gakushu, Ryomou and Saji believed it was, he wouldn't dismiss it outright.
Gakushu didn't say anything further. He only eyed Ranma as if the smaller fighter might attack him any second. Ranma couldn't really fault him for that, not after the way he'd reacted earlier. "Was there anything else?" he asked.
"No. That was all I wanted to tell you."
"Thank you for being so upfront," Ranma said, bowing his head. "Now I'd like to ask you a few questions of my own, if you don't mind."
"Very well." Gakushu crossed his beefy arms over his broad chest and fixed the smaller fighter with an expectant look.
"Okay, first I'd like to know if you've heard any rumours about magic of any kind. Spirits, cursed objects, holy relics, anything."
"Magic?" Gakushu looked as if Ranma had told him Santa Claus was real.
"Don't look at me like that!" Ranma said. "We're reenacting battles that have already been fought 1800 years ago in China because we inherited sacred beads containing the spirits of the warriors who fought them!"
The corners of Gakushu's mouth twitched. "I see. If you put it like that..." he trailed off and frowned. "I'm sorry," he said a minute later, "but I can't think of anything."
"No problem," Ranma said with a shrug. He hadn't expected it to be that easy. Still, it was at least worth asking. "My second question is a simple one: Do you know of any way the fate of the beads can be broken?"
Gakushu chuckled. "No. And I do not think there is a way. If there were, wouldn't somebody have done it in the last 1800 years?"
"You'd think so, wouldn't you?" Ranma mumbled to himself. Louder, he said, "That's about what I expected." He fell silent as he was again reminded of the enormity of the task he had burdened himself with. He'd known that breaking a cycle of fate which had been going on for 1800 years would be no easy task. He'd expected it to be difficult, actually. Now he was beginning to suspect that it might be an almost impossible task.
Gakushu made a noise, and Ranma broke free of his thoughts. "What is it?"
The bigger fighter nodded towards a shed hidden amongst a grove of trees at the side of the school building. "Saji."
"Huh. I wonder what he's doing here this late."
"I do not know, but I intend to find out," Gakushu growled. "As soon as I am sure he is gone and won't be coming back."
"You know, that's actually a pretty good idea," Ranma said. "I think I'll follow him, maybe he'll do something that gives us a clue what he's up to."
"Very well. Shall we might again tomorrow before school to discuss what we found out?"
"Sounds good," Ranma said, already moving across the yard to keep Saji in sight. "See ya tomorrow!"
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(Posted Sun, 05 Jun 2011 03:51)
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