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Back to first grade Prologue; Ranma/Ichinensei ni Nacchattara crossover
Topic Started: Feb 12 2010, 12:02 PM (530 Views)
Dumbledork
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CHAPTER 1

A crying, seven year old boy was running through the streets of Nerima. ‘Damn them all to hell. My life is over. How can I ever meet my mother looking like this? Manly? What a joke. There’s nothing manly about this puny body’.


‘No! Calm down, Ranma! There’s always a way. You got out of worse situations. Think. There must be a solution to this’. He stopped running and the tears slowly dried up as some of his customary self-confidence came back. He continued his way at a more sedate pace, deep in thoughts and the tactical part of his brain working in overdrive. ‘Looking for the mushrooms won’t help. With Ryoga’s sense of direction who knows where he might have found them the first time. Hmmm… Who could I ask? Who here knows the most about magic and might have a cure’? He considered everyone he knew, allies and enemies alike, but the list boiled down to two people who might be able to help him… and to be frank he’d rather not ask any of them ‘The lech is old as dirt and has a lot of experience with magical artefacts. Too bad his attempts always backfire and I’m usually the one who has to pay for it, and since the falling out we had a few days ago we’re not even on speaking terms. I doubt that he’ll willingly help once he sees me. He’ll find it hilarious; I’m sure of it’.

‘That leaves one other possibility. The ghoul is a crafty old biddy and knows a lot about magical lore. And from what I’ve seen so far the Amazons have a large quantity of magical artefacts and cursed items and know how to use them, but I’m not too keen on being in their debt. Who knows what they’ll ask of me… except for the obvious, of course.


‘But then, there have also been times when Cologne has helped me and taught me some incredible techniques. Okay, there has always been an ulterior motive, but the Amazons are not inherently evil like the old perv and Nabiki, they just live by their own rules. Yes, Cologne is my best bet. Guess I’ll head to the Nekohanten and hope that the price I’ll have to pay for a cure won’t be too steep’.


‘I just don’t know how to handle the matriarch. She’s one of the most cunning people I know and she’ll exploit any weakness I show; she’ll probably come up with another one of their obscure laws to make me marry Shampoo or have me be their slave. No way in hell will I ever accept that; I don’t want to be either a slave or breeding stock’.


He was trying to find think of any alternatives, but his efforts were in vain since he couldn’t come up with any better ideas. Sighing loudly he sat down on a bench to compose himself before entering the lion’s den. The one person he had to look out for was Mousse. Shampoo wouldn’t attack him and Cologne had other means at her disposal. Mousse however was a loose cannon; an honourless bastard who didn’t care for any collateral damage or endangering innocent people in his quest to kill Ranma… even if half of the time he got the wrong person. Yesterday’s incident had proven that point once again. Out of the blue he had attacked chibi-Ranma and chibi-Ryoga without even knowing who they were, just because they looked like younger versions of his rivals. And what a beating it had been. The pigtailed boy was barely able to move after he’d been put through the wringer. Mousse would pay for that the pigtailed boy vowed… well, once he was back to normal of course. But that was for later. For now he had to make sure he could talk to Cologne before he was spotted by the duck. At least Cologne would protect him from the insane boy… or so he hoped at least.


While he was sitting there lost in his thoughts he remembered. Every event that ultimately led to his flight vividly came back to him.


***FLASHBACK***


Ranma and Ryoga had been stuck in their child bodies for two days now and were getting more and more desperate to get back to their original age ever since Akane confiscated the last of the mushrooms and spores after she got exasperated with their constant squabbles about who would be the first to get a mushroom. Their constant fights had caused a lot of damage to the house and the shorthaired girl was not sure that there would be much of the structure left if the mushrooms were kept in their reach. So she put the flower pot into her room where the mushrooms could slowly grow without interference. That didn’t stop the impatient kids though, and they sneaked inside the teenaged girl’s room and wreaked havoc inside, upending every drawer and searching every corner to find their salvation. But when they heard the owner of the room come back they hid inside a drawer of the dresser in fear of what the unbalanced girl might do to them if she found them.


Akane was shocked when she saw the state her room was in and she silenty vowed to make the culprits pray. Before she could go on a rampage however she heard Nabiki’s voice calling her.


“Hey, Akane, the mushrooms are 16 cm now.” Nabiki had retrieved the mushrooms from her sister’s room earlier that day since she knew that Ranma and Ryoga would try to get the mushrooms at any price and deemed them safer in her own room, which in the end was the case.


This lifted the girl’s mood at once and all thoughts of punishing the burglars left her mind. “That’s great news! Thanks for watching them, Nabiki.”


The boys became restless when they heard the news and as soon as Akane had left the room they tried to get out of the dresser. Unfortunately, the drawer was stuck and they had to blow it up to get out. Just at that moment a happy Akane walked into the room with two plates with one mushroom of time on each of them. Unfortunately the loud explosion had incinerated the fungi on the spot.


“Where’s the mushrooms?” Ranma asked in a hopeful voice.


When the young girl showed them the charred remains the boys’ faces fell.


“I… I’m sorry,” Akane answered sadly, “those were the last ones. Please try to be brave… and start your lives over again,” she continued, tears forming in her eyes.


After hearing the shocking news Ranma lost it and ran out of the room as fast as he could and fled from the Tendo compound.


Ryoga was rooted on the spot, shaking his head in denial as he was slowly falling to pieces.


Akane smirked; she was quite proud of her little act and they deserved a little payback for destroying her dresser. “Relax. I was just joking,” Akane calmed the young boy down. “Gods, you really fell for it.”


“Really?” Ryoga asked full of hope.


“Yes. In fact, I hid the remaining mushrooms and spores in Nabiki’s room as I was sure you’d try a stunt like this. And now, with Ranma gone for a while it should be safe to retrieve them, but only if you promise to behave yourself, Ryoga. I know it’s mostly Ranma’s fault for always picking on you, but you’re not entirely blameless either.


Ryoga promised to be good. The female martial artist knew that she could trust the bandanna wearing boy’s words. “Wait here. I’ll bring you one.”


The fanged kid didn’t dare moving from the spot as he would just get lost once again. And that wouldn’t do, especially now that he was about to be cured and finally could get revenge on the bane of his life. He was already coming up with ways to permanently deal with his nemesis. He didn’t have to wait long since the youngest Tendo was back less than a minute later.


“Here you go,” she handed the kid two 16 cm mushrooms. The second one is for Ranma if you should find him before us. There’s a spare in the pot and we can always grow more.”


He took the mushrooms and immediately swallowed one, relieved when he felt his body grow. Too bad he didn’t take into account that his clothes wouldn’t grow with him. With a loud “RIIIIIIIIIP!” the clothes fell apart leaving the rapidly blushing teenager standing there in the buff.


Akane’s built-in pervert radar activated and with a shout of “PERVERT!” she malleted the poor boy through the wall and into Nabiki’s room. Unfortunately, the wall wasn’t the only thing that had been damaged by the attack as Ryoga had landed on the worst possible spot: the flowerpot the mushrooms were growing in.


Not even worse for wear he got up and dusted his clothes off. The others had followed him into the room and when Akane’s eyes fell on the ruined mushrooms she almost fainted. The pot was in pieces and all that was left of the mushrooms was a barely recognizable goop. “Oh no! The mushrooms!”


Ryoga followed Akane’s gaze and when he saw the damage he chuckled. That was simply perfect. It couldn’t have gone any better if he had planned it. Finally his revenge was perfect. With the mushrooms gone there was no way for Ranma to ever recover his normal age. He had finally won. Akane was his now since he was sure that the love of his life would never date a little kid.


When he saw the Tendos and Genma approach he did his best to look as miserable as possible, but he found it very difficult to hide his glee. “I’m sorry. I… I fell on the mushrooms. I didn’t mean to,” he apologized, and was quite proud of his performance. The idiots really bought it.


Akane was weeping as she saw the disaster, once again cursing her temper. “It wasn’t your fault, Ryoga. I know you’re not a pervert like Ranma. I overreacted once again, and because of that I destroyed the last chance for Ranma to get back to normal.” She was really crying now and gladly accepted her older sisters’ embrace when they hugged her protectively, pain visible on both of their faces.


“Don’t worry, sis,” Nabiki tried to calm Akane down. “Ranma will find a way out of this mess. He always does.”


“Do you really think so?” She asked her mercenary sister.


“Yes. I’m sure of it. Nothing keeps him down for long as you should have noticed by now. Don’t give up hope.”


“Nabiki’s right,” Kasumi added her two cents. “Ranma always manages to bounce back. We’ll help the both of you through this any way we can.”


“Thank you,” she answered and gave her sisters a timid smile.


***END FLASHBACK***


Ryoga had left the sisters to their grieving and when he passed the bathroom on his way to who knows where he spotted one of his outfits peeking out of the hamper. Astonished at his newfound luck het quickly put his clothes on and left the house in search of his defeated nemesis. Once he was a safe distance away he couldn’t keep his joy in any longer. “YES! I did it. I defeated Ranma! HAHAHAHAHA!” He maniacally shouted, not caring about the strange looks he got from the passersby and danced through the streets, not unlike a certain doctor after he’s been exposed to Kasumi. ‘Now I just need to find him and rub it in his nose’. Apparently his lucky streak continued as he stumbled upon the pensive boy a few moments later. Ranma was so deep in thoughts that he hadn’t noticed the heavily muscled person’s approach until he was being lifted into the air by the scruff of his neck.


The surprised child barely managed to turn his head and was shocked to see his rival standing there in his teen body, grinning sinisterly. “Ry---Ryoga? Why are you back to normal? Did the effect of the mushrooms wear off?”


The fanged boy just chuckled and was really savouring the moment. Seeing Ranma’s shocked an envious look was a dream come true for the vengeful martial artist. “No it didn’t. I’m afraid the effects are quite permanent. Akane had some mushrooms left. If you’d stayed you would have seen that she was just acting. But then, this is what she intended. What better way to get rid of an unwanted fiancé but to tell him that he’ll have to relive his childhood. You didn’t know, but she really hates your curse. After all, she has no secrets for P-Chan. And I’ve heard her rant often enough about how much of a freak you were and probably were getting your jollies with your female form. She’s never really accepted your curse and is afraid of what other people might think if she got married to a sex changing perverted freak like you.”


Ranma didn’t know that Ryoga was making that up of course, but after all that has been happening to him lately he was rather out of it and the thought of questioning the veracity of Ryoga’s speech didn’t even cross his mind. The news was enough to completely break his heart and he started to cry in earnest, letting go of all of his bottled up feelings.

But the fanged teen wasn’t finished and reasoned that now was the right time to give the coup de grace. “Oh, before I forget, don’t bother going back to the dojo to get the cure. I made sure to destroy all the remaining mushrooms as well as the spores. And if I were you, I wouldn’t return at all. After all, who needs a little kid that can’t even defend his fiancée? With all the trouble you always cause and all the rivals out for your head you’d better get away as fast and as far as possible if you don’t want to put the Tendos in danger.”


Ryoga could have stopped there, but the years of frustration and hate had finally taken their toll on his already destabilized mind and the angry had finally snapped. In his anger he remembered every bad thing that had happened to him in his life and his deranged mind made the pigtailed boy responsible for all of it. Without any regard to Ranma’s safety he did the worst thing he could do to his nemesis; he viciously pinned the depressed and completely helpless boy to the floor face down and with his free hand applied the ultimate weakness moxibustion to Ranma’s back.


He had known about the technique for quite some time of course, as he was there when Ranma was under its effect, and it was through sheer dumb luck and getting lost in a temple somewhere that he had stumbled upon the chart explaining the process. He took a few minutes to study it, but when he heard people approach he left very quickly, leaving the chart behind. He knew from experience that scrolls like this one were usually kept by fanatic cultists or intransigent priest who didn’t take kindly to people snooping around, and he barely escaped with his life the last time he met some. Unfortunately he hadn’t gotten very far in his studies, but he knew that he could use the technique successfully, just like he knew that everything was always Ranma’s fault. If his rival could learn techniques on the fly there was no reason why he couldn’t.


After he had finished he let the sobbing child go. “You’re pathetic, Ranma. Can’t even take your punishment like a man. No, you have to cry like a little girl. You disgust me. Get away from here.”


But the pigtailed boy didn’t leave. He got up and attacked an unresisting Ryoga, who condescendingly stared down at his former nemesis.


“You bastard!” Ranma cried while he ineffectively punched the older boy in his legs. “What have you done to me? How dare you?” He continued hammering at the teen’s legs, but the blows didn’t have any effect whatsoever. It didn’t take long for the weak boy to exhaust himself.


Ryoga chuckled at his enemy’s useless efforts to actually make him feel pain, but very soon he lost his patience. He grabbed the now exhausted boy and threw him into a nearby trashcan. “Now get lost!” He ordered. “If I ever see you again, I will kill you. That’s a promise.” He then walked away slowly, like he didn’t have a care in the world, but inwardly he was rejoicing. That had felt good. He was finally rid of the biggest pain in his life. He wouldn’t have killed the child of course; he wasn’t that much of a bastard, but he was confident that Ranma would have preferred being killed rather than being rendered defenceless. Additionally the pigtailed boy had to live with the knowledge that he had been utterly defeated by the one whose life he had been making a living hell for many years. All he needed now for his life to be perfect was Akane professing her love to him, but with Ranma out of the picture that shouldn’t take long.


Unfortunately, Ryoga had been on a vengeance trip for so long that being depressed and angry at people had become a second nature, and now that Ranma wasn’t a threat any longer he needed a new enemy, who was easy to determine. The fanged martial artist hadn’t forgotten the beating Ranma and he had received from Mousse the day before when they were in their child forms, just because the damn duck had thought they looked like ‘Ranma and ‘Ryoga’. He would pay for yesterday’s unwarranted attack. “MOUSSE! BECAUSE OF YOU I’VE SEEN HELL!” He shouted in a berserker range and ran along, confident that somehow he would find the visually impaired Amazon.


Meanwhile, a terrified Ranma cowered in the trashcan for a few minutes and when he was sure Ryoga was gone he slowly lifted his head and looked around. Not seeing any enemy in the vicinity he slowly climbed out of the litter bin and walked away with his head down. This sucked, but things weren’t completely hopeless. Cologne had removed the seal once and he was sure she could do so again. No, the main concern he had at the moment was getting safely to the Nekohanten. In his present condition even weaklings like Gosunkugi wouldn’t have any trouble defeating, or even killing him. Therefore he used his best stealth skills, acquired over years of intense training, to get safely to the restaurant. It took him over twenty minutes to get there, but in the end he had safely reached his goal.


Seeing no one around, he carefully approached the door and wondered what to do next. Knocking would be useless since he didn’t have the strength to knock hard enough to make any sound. He tried the doorknob, but the door was locked. Not having any better ideas he knocked after all and much to his surprise he had enough strength to make a sound. ‘Maybe the moxibustion isn’t affective again after having been cured once. I should have made sure right away. That’s what you get for giving pigboy too much credit.’ He tried some thing, but very quickly realized that the moxibustion worked after all. He hadn’t lost all of his strength, but unfortunately most of it. He could barely lift five pounds. ‘Ah well, the old ghoul will probably have an explanation for it.’


Ranma heard someone approach and unlock the door. He just prayed it wasn’t Mousse, and when he saw that the matriarch herself was there he breathed a sigh of relief.


“What can I do for you son-in…?” The crone blinked once… twice and looked rather puzzled at the boy standing in front of the door. ‘What the…’ She didn’t understand. The ki signature of the kid was unmistakably Ranma’s; she had already felt it before opening the door, but the reduced size of the martial artist came as a real surprise and left her speechless. ‘A brother? No, that can’t be. There are no two similar ki signatures in the world.’ She had seen a lot in her admittedly long life, probably much more than any other person alive, but she was completely unprepared for this new craziness. It could only be her son-in-law. ‘But then, how…’


“Sorry about that,” he apologized and scratched the back oh his head with his hand.


This simple, but typical gesture for her son-in-law put any doubts she had had to rest, and she chuckled loudly. “Only you, son-in-law. Things like these can only happen to you. And here I thought I’d seen it all. This I really need to hear. One thing’s for sure. Life I never boring with you around. Come in and tell me about it. I’m sure there’s quite a story behind your…,” she looked down at the small boy, “… state.”


Ranma followed Cologne into the restaurant. “Sit down. I’ll prepare us some tea and you can tell me how you ended up like that.”


The pigtailed boy was fidgeting in his seat while he waited for Cologne to come back. Experience has told him that he needed a lot of patience with the old woman and that he couldn’t risk irritating her if he ever wanted to return to normal. He didn’t have to wait long though, as Cologne came back but a few minutes later.


After pouring hot tea into Ranma’s cup and her own she sat down, took a large sip from her cup and comfortably settled into the chair. Seeing the unsettled state her pigtailed boy was in she patiently waited for him to start his tale.


And what a tale it was. He told her everything that had happened to him over the last two days until right to her last confrontation with Ryoga and the dirty trick he had pulled on her. “…And then I came here since you’re probably the only one who is able to remove the seal.”


“I must say that Ryoga has really impressed me this time. I haven’t been giving him enough credit it seems if he were able to learn that technique. Ah, it doesn’t matter. You came to the right address. The seal is easy to remove when you know where to apply the counterpoint. However, there’s nothing I can do about the effects of the mushrooms. I’m really sorry about that. I’ve heard of the legendary mushrooms of course, and believe me when I say that I have been looking for them myself, but didn’t have any luck. It isn’t too surprising that Ryoga should be the one to find them as he ways seems to stumble upon magical or cursed items as well as faulty cures for Jusenkyo curses.”


The pigtailed boy sighed in dismay. Not much did ever go his way. Well, at least he would get his strength back. That was better than nothing. “Okay, the removal of the ultimate weakness deal will do for now. What do you want for the cure? I can already guess, but my answer is no. I won’t marry Shampoo; I’m just not interested in her in that way.”


“Don’t worry about that at the moment,” Cologne chuckled much to the pigtailed boy’s surprise. “After all, Shampoo can’t marry a child, and until you regain your rightful age that won’t change. But please, don’t dismiss my Shampoo like that. Just give her a fair chance. She genuinely loves you and doesn’t pursue you solely because of our laws. I’ve talked to her and she has agreed to tone down her enthusiasm. Take her on a date or two and see what happens. That’s the only thing I’m asking for the cure. Think about it. You have to admit though that she’s very beautiful and a much better catch than that overly violent Tendo girl.”


Ranma thought about it and not finding any hidden motives he agreed. He took off his shirt and let the matriarch examine his back. The shock that appeared on her face was unexpected however and the martial artist got a very bad feeling. Things were about to get even more complicated. “What--? What is wrong?” He chanced, although he was very afraid of the answer.


“The fool! The damn fool,” she cursed.


“What? Who is a fool?” The boy panicked.


She looked pitifully at the tense martial artist, but he had to know. “The Hibiki boy, of course. He has made a heavy mistake. Wait, I’ll show you.“ She hopped out of the room, leaving a quivering Ranma behind.


She came back very soon with something in her hand. When she came closer the child saw that she was carrying a hand mirror. “Do you remember what the seal looks like? It was rather pronounced and easy to see, yes? Well, look at the new one and tell me what you see.”


Ranma did as told and noticed the difference immediately. “It look a little fuzzy, less defined than the first one. What does it mean?”


“It means that the idiot didn’t apply the technique correctly. You need to use mugwort to obtain the desired effect, something he hasn’t done. I’ll try to remove it, but I’m not very confident that it will work.”


She swiftly applied the counter but to her and Ranma’s dismay it didn’t work, just as she had predicted.


“It’s over,” Ranma lamented. “My life is over. No way can I ever become my father’s heir in this state.”


“I’m not so sure of that,” the matriarch reassured him. “It’s true that Ryoga has screwed up, but that doesn’t mean you can’t get your strength back.”


“Huh? How?” The pigtailed martial artist was now thoroughly confused. He knew that he had lost most of his strength so the technique had worked.


“You simply have to wait. You noticed that the mark is not really pronounced, right? Well, that means that the seal hasn’t been applied correctly and it will fade in time. You will gradually regain your strength. The bad news is that I don’t know how long it will take. A few months certainly, although a few years is more likely. I can assure you one thing however. The more you train, the faster the seal will erode. The ultimate weakness moxibustion technique is used to seal the victim’s strength, making it impossible for them to ever regain their strength without the application of the counterpoint. Well, the incomplete technique works differently as proven by the fact that you still retain some of your strength. I gather that the more you train the faster the seal will disappear. This might even be a chance for you to reach a higher level once the seal has worn off, especially if your newly gained strength is added to your existing one.”


“Maybe you should consider your reduced age as a blessing,” she continued. “Just think about it. How many people would like to be in your place and have the possibility to get a new lease of life; to correct some of the errors they had made in their lives and maybe find happiness? You’re a child again without most of the responsibilities your teenaged self has to deal with. After all, who’d expect a six- or seven-year-old to marry anyone? I know that you hate your life and are tired from all the usual craziness that surrounds you. Well, consider this an opportunity. Maybe you could even leave your father for some better parental figures or stay with your mother. Or even better, why not simply accompany us back to China? The Amazons would gladly adopt you into the tribe.”


Ranma considered the elder’s words and had to admit that the old bat had a point. On the other hand she always had an agenda and the adoption proposal might just be another ploy to get him to follow them to China and not being allowed to leave ever again. Additionally he loved his liberty too much to ever join a tribe made up of psychos with screwed up laws. He was sure that he could find another way; he’d just have to be looking. If only Dr. Tofu hadn’t left Nerima. He was probably the only genuinely caring person he knew to ever help him without an ulterior motive. He’d have to look it up. Maybe someone knew his new address.


“So, what is your answer, Ranma?” Cologne impatiently asked and startled the pigtailed boy out of his thoughts.


“That’s a very important decision I have to make. The one thing I’m sure of is that my mother is out. She still only knows me as ‘Ranko Tendo’. What do you think she’ll do once she finds out what has happened to me? The curse was bad enough, but now I can’t even be a man half of the time. She will also be very disappointed once she learns about how weak I’ve become. I’m hardly a man among men now, am I? And I have no intention of dying anytime soon, honour be damned. Your offer is tempting, but I’ll need some time to think about it. I’ll give you an answer tomorrow.”


That was also his cue to leave. He had already decided that he would refuse the offer; there always was a price to pay when dealing with the warrior tribe, and it usually wasn’t in his favour. He didn’t outright decline the offer though because he was afraid that the elder might use some more drastic methods to ‘convince’ him to join them.


“I understand. It’s a very important decision so I’ll wait. Oh, one more thing before you go.”


Ranma turned around wondering what the old woman wanted now.


“The kisses are revoked whatever your decision will be.”


Ranma fell on his ass after hearing that surprising statement. “Huh? Why?”


“Kids are exempt from the kisses. I know, technically you are 17, but your body has regressed back into that of a kid, and that’s enough for you to qualify as a child. I know that you find our laws barbaric, but they’ve kept the Amazons strong over the millennia. Kids are to be cherished and no Amazon would ever purposely injure or molest a kid. If they do they are punished very severely. Shampoo’s punishment for returning without you was magnanimous compared to what those monsters have to face.”


This was new to the pigtailed boy. “It that is true, what about Mousse then?”


“What about the idiot?” Cologne inquired.


“Just yesterday Mousse attacked both Ryoga and me and gave us quite a beating just because he mistook us for our teenaged selves. And he’s not even the most unbalanced of my rivals. Just imagining what the others would do makes me shudder.”


“Did he now? Well, well, well. In that case the duck and I will have some words once he gets back. I don’t mind him attacking you when you can fight back, but this is serious. What if he’s mistaken some more kids for you? I’ll put a stop to this right here and right now. He’s been making a fool of himself and by proxy his tribe for much too long.”


This was Ranma’s cue to leave. Maybe now he wouldn’t have to deal with the duck ever again. “Thanks for your help, elder. I really appreciate it.” He gave a polite bow and left the restaurant.


‘That was a bust’, he thought. ‘I’ll check Tofu’s clinic and ask his neighbours. Maybe one of them can tell me where he moved to’.


He checked the walls and the door of the clinic but couldn’t find a new address anywhere. He asked a few neighbours and one of them did indeed know the doctor’s new address and gave it to the pigtailed boy. “Thank you very much. You were a great help.” He thanked the old woman and left.


As it was already evening was wondering if it might not be better to wait a day before visiting the doctor. After all it would take at least three hours by train to reach Tofu’s new address. But where should he spend the night. The dojo was out for obvious reasons and he was too much of an easy target to stay anywhere in Nerima. The best solution was to take the next train and sleep somewhere at the destination.


His mind made up he walked as fast as possible to the nearest station all the time considering his options. The elder was right. This could be the perfect opportunity to start a new life, far away from all of his problems. Unfortunately that was easier said than done. He doubted that the Tendos and his father would let him go that easily, not to mention the Kunos who probably have the means to find him wherever he goes. There was also honor to consider, although that was becoming less and less of an issue with all the dishonour the panda has brought to the Saotome name. The biggest problem was his reduced age. Kids can’t live alone in a city and it wouldn’t take long for the authorities to either send him back to his father or to an orphanage if he refused to tell them where he lived. He also had no way to earn money for food or lodging. After all, who would give a job to a kid? His reduced strength also made living alone very dangerous. In his current state he wasn’t a challenge to anyone with some decent training. Sure, he had his skills, but he couldn’t put much strength behind his blows.


Ranma wasn’t into long-term planning, so he decided to do what he did best: play it by ear. First he’d consult with Tofu and if that should be a bust he’d improvise.


Deep in thought he mechanically walked through the streets and didn’t notice the stalker who had been carefully following him for the last few minutes, staying out of range of the martial artist’s honed danger sense.


Said stalker didn’t go unnoticed for long however. Ranma was suddenly pulled out of his musings by a loud clang and a string of Chinese curses. He looked at the spot where the noise had originated from and paled when he recognized the cause of the disturbance. I was Mousse who was trying to get out of a large trashcan.


The visually challenged teen managed to get up and put his glasses back on. Seeing that his cover had been compromised anyway he attacked the pigtailed child at once. “SAOTOME! I know it’s you. I overheard your little chat with Ryoga. It’s time to pay for all the humiliations I have suffered because of you!” He shouted maniacally and Ranma could see the madness in his eyes. The myopic boy had finally lost it, incensed by what he believed to be an easy victory. He had followed the pigtailed child back to the Nekohanten and overheard the whole conversation with Cologne without them noticing him, but it was apparent to the young martial artist that the visually challenged teen didn’t believe in the Amazon creed of not hurting children. Mousse on the other hand was glad to see that the bugging device he bought from Nabiki was working as advertised.


‘Oh shit’! Ranma thought as he dove out of the way of the attack, his many years of combat experience being his only saving grace. His father may have been a sadistic, moronic bastard, but he had managed to turn his son into a world class martial artist, and even if he was deprived of his normal strength at the moment his danger sense and battle instincts were intact. He knew however that he stood no chance against Mousse in his current state and so he did something he would have never done if he had been in full possession of his power and not overwhelmed by the situation: he ran away. Mousse was in no hurry to follow his nemesis since he knew that catching his normal enemy wasn’t even a challenge at the moment. At first he wanted to simply kill Ranma on the spot, but seeing the frightened state his enemy was in he decided that drawing out his victory and making the boy believe he had a chance of escaping was much more entertaining, especially since he loved hunting.


As he was about to follow the frightened boy and start the chase he sensed a presence behind him, but before he could react he received a heavy blow to the head and fell unconscious. The small figure lifted him into the air and pogoed back to the Nekohanten. “This time you have gone too far as you have violated on of our most sacred codes. There’s nothing I can do to save you from the rightful punishment that such an act entails,” she told the dazed boy with regret in her voice. He was an annoying dimwit, but she had known the boy for many years and he was usually only a minor nuisance, but she couldn’t close her eyes on his latest blunder, especially since she told Ranma that there would be consequences. She wouldn’t risk the chance of getting the talented boy to join the tribe in defence of Mousse, even if she usually tolerated his behaviour. No, showing leniency after giving Ranma that speech about their laws concerning children would definitely ruin any chance of getting the boy’s loyalty. It was really a shame. He had potential, and if he hadn’t wasted it in his obsessive and pointless pursuit of her granddaughter he could have become an excellent fighter and an asset to the village.


Unfortunately, Ranma hadn’t witnessed any of this and was still running at full speed. He didn’t get far however, since he tired much faster in his smaller form. He stopped and was heavily panting as he tried to catch his breath. He turned around and was relieved that the duck apparently had let him go. In frustration he punched a street light as hard as possible. ”DAMMIT! That HURT” He shouted in pain and waved his throbbing hand around, trying to cool it down. “Note to self: never do something stupid like that again.” After the pain was gone he walked away at a more sedate pace.


This last incident, however, had proven once again how dangerous the ward was for him and reinforced his resolve to visit Dr. Tofu as soon as possible. He wasn’t not all that far away from the Nerima subway and train station and since he couldn’t travel long distances on foot anymore taking the train was the best solution. He checked the railways route map and cursed when he saw that it would take at least three hours to get to his destination. He bought a ticket and waited for his train. Ten minutes later he was on his way to his last chance at a cure.


Having had a very difficult day and his young body tiring faster he had trouble staying awake, but he knew that if he dozed off now he’d surely miss his exit. When he heard the intercom announce his stop he followed the other passengers out of the railroad car and looked around for a nice sleeping spot. He found one behind a large tool shed and promptly fell into a deep, albeit troubled sleep as he was having nightmares throughout the night.


That was probably the reason why the sound of the passing passengers and the speeding trains woke him up rather early the following morning, since he usually slept like a log. Rubbing his eyes the little boy panicked when he didn’t recognize his surroundings. However, the previous day’s events came back to him very quickly and he remembered why he had made the long trip, but his rumbling stomach reminded him that there was something more important right at that moment: breakfast. He stepped out of his hiding place, unnoticed, and left the station looking around for a diner, tea house or any other place where he could get something to eat.


Across the street he noticed a friendly looking bakery. He entered the small shop and bought a few sandwiches which he wolfed down in under a minute. Usually he’d eat a lot more, but his younger body just didn’t have the same appetite his regular one had, which was fortunate for his wallet, as the trip wasn’t cheap. He had just enough money left for the trip back.


He walked along the sidewalk and periodically asked the passers-by for directions. He had to admit that there were some advantages to being a kid again. The people were very helpful and took their time to guide the cute child around. All the while he was memorizing the important landmarks, just like his father had taught him over the years. It was always important to know one’s surroundings and locate every possible escape way, a credo which the panda had taken to heart… and it had saved their lives more than once.


As he was looking around he passed a cute little girl with long black hair and who was about his current age about to cross the street. She was wearing an elementary school uniform consisting of a pink shirt, a green tie, a red beret and a red skirt-jacket combination. A sudden gust of wind blew the beret off her head and onto the street. The panicking girl ran after her headwear, not paying attention to the truck that was about to run her down. A nerdy high school student wearing glasses was about to intervene and try to save the child, but someone was faster.


When Ranma noticed the truck and realized that the girl wouldn’t make it he immediately rushed at her and pushed her out of the way. The girl was falling backwards and, completely surprised by this sudden attack, she just then realized the danger she had been in. Unfortunately, she had to witness the fate of her saviour with her own eyes, and it was something she’d never forget as long as she lived. The boy was hit frontally and full force by the truck and the impact had been so heavy that the unfortunate child was sent flying and crashed to the floor more than 10 meters away from the place of contact.


Ranma had never felt that much pain in his life as he landed in a large puddle on the street, a leftover from the rain that had fallen during the night, changing him into a her.


The young girl could feel that life was leaving her and as her eyes were closing for the final time her last thoughts were of a sarcastic nature. ‘I really shouldn’t be surprised. My whole life has been a waste and a joke so why should my death be any different? Even in death I can’t be a man’. Then she knew no more.
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