HOW DETERMINED CAN ONE GET?
(Ranma's Day Off)
Several days passed without incident since "The Great Deception", as the girls called the afternoon they pulled one over their Tamibaki rivals. Ranma continued his exercises, learned new skills, and practiced daily with Master Chang. He was so enthused with the daily routine that the days seemed to fly by.
Akane, on the other hand, just sat around and pouted. She was still trying to understand Ranma's remark about her not allowing others to have fun, and it was irking her something fierce. That, tied with the fact that the others were beginning to get suspicious of her all day departures, which had prevented any subsequent trips to the Great School of Martial Abilities, had put her in a sour mood.
The second term of the year for Furinken High School had also started, which had put a further damper on Akane's expeditions. Now, she just looked out her window and sighed.
There was Ranma, in a school populated only by girls, and thoroughly enjoying himself. There was something wrong about the whole situation. Akane just knew there was. Now she was stuck at home, with no way of stopping it. Her mood worsened with each passing day.
Ryoga came to visit at this time, hoping to be able to tangle with Ranma. He was surprised to learn that Ranma had not been around for at least five weeks.
"Just where is he?" Ryoga asked Akane.
"He's about a hundred kilometers north of here," Akane replied sullenly.
"What is he doing there?" was Ryoga's next question.
"He's attending a martial arts school," Akane said sourly. "A girls' school, no less!"
Ryoga's eyes widened in amazement. "A girls' school?" he asked incredulously.
"That's what I said," Akane said irately. She stared angrily out of her bedroom window and into the courtyard.
Ryoga couldn't believe Akane's statement. Ranma in a girls' school? How was that possible? Surely the others would notice his difference, wouldn't they? He then remembered Ranma's special affliction. That would certainly make a difference.
Ryoga suddenly got an ugly thought. Just what was Ranma doing in a girls'school, anyway? Due to his hatred of Ranma, he immediately jumped to a wrong conclusion.
"How dare he!" Ryoga cried out. "I'll stop him before he goes too far!"
"Stop him from doing what?" Akane started to ask, but Ryoga was already out of her room and exiting the house.
As Ryoga ran down the street and towards the bus stop, he ran into Tatewaki Kuno.
"Where are you off to in such a rush?" Kuno asked.
"I'm off to get Ranma once and for all!" Ryoga snarled.
"I take it that he's not at the Tendo residence?" Kuno asked, as he kept pace with Ryoga.
"No!" was Ryoga's emphatic reply.
"Where is he then?"
"At a girls' martial arts school a hundred kilometers from here!"
"What?" came Kuno's incredulous cry, and he stopped dead in his tracks.
"You heard me!" Ryoga snarled. "He's at an all girls' school!"
"Has that boy no shame?" Kuno exclaimed. "First Akane, now this! We must stop him at once!"
The two youths continued to run for the bus stop.
------------
Sensei Chan was preparing to leave the campus for her biweekly meeting. She summoned Ranma to her office before she left.
"You wished to see me?" Ranma asked.
"Yes," Sensei Chan said. "I'll be gone for most of the afternoon and I need to talk to you before I go."
"What about?" Ranma asked.
"Your progress," Sensei Chan replied.
Ranma looked at her quizzically, then began to get a bit nervous.
Sensei Chan laid any fears he had to rest.
"You have accomplished so much and progressed so far in so short a time that we now have to take some time out to rethink your schedule. You therefore have the afternoon off."
"In the middle of the week?" Ranma said incredulously
"Yes," Sensei Chan replied. "You have done that well in your studies."
She looked at Ranma with pride. "You may do anything you want," she said. "You may leave the campus, read, watch television, or just sit back and do nothing. It is all up to you."
Sensei Chan patted Ranma on the shoulder, smiled, then left for the gate.
Ranma was at a loss as to what to do. This was the first time that he ever had a weekday afternoon off. He wasn't too sure about how he should spend it.
Ranma began to think it over. He had already seen the town several times already. He really wasn't interested in watching television, either. He had gone far beyond his requirements in his schoolwork, as well.
Ranma smiled broadly. Maybe it would be a good idea just to lie down on the grass and look at the clouds. An afternoon of lazing about might be just the ticket, after so many weeks of nonstop practice and exercise. This was exactly what Ranma decided to do.
The main problem would be that of privacy. Ranma did not want to be disturbed by the girls, who would be most curious about his afternoon activities. There had to be a place where he would be unnoticed.
It suddenly hit him. The special practice area. It was almost never used. It was the perfect spot for his plans. Ranma set off for the enclosure immediately.
Ranma leaped to the top of the wall and looked over the area. There was a wide flat area at the top of the slope that would suit his purposes quite well. Ranma rapidly made for the spot.
Ranma leapt from the wall to the low building situated at the top of the slope. He then raced along the roof until he came to the spot he wanted. He jumped to the ground, checked for rocks, twigs, and branches, then lay down and closed his eyes.
A contented sigh escaped Ranma's lips. For one of the few times in his life, he felt at peace with the world. He felt like he could lie there forever. However, a noise disturbed his reflections.
Ranma sat up and surveyed the area. The sound came from the far wall. Ranma stood up and slowly walked towards the wall. He leapt up and gave a closer inspection of the area. He found nothing.
Ranma couldn't figure out where the sound came from. He had made very sure that the girls didn't know where he was going. Sensei Chan was out, so she wouldn't be looking for him just yet. The other teachers probably didn't have anything for him to do, either. Yet, there was the distinct impression that something or someone had been in the area, if only for a few seconds.
Ranma prepared to go back to the ground when a slight sound caught his ear. He turned and saw, to his amazement, Sasuke!
Ranma was dumbfounded. He couldn't understand how the little ninja got wind of the summer's events, or why he had even come to the school.
Sasuke smiled wickedly and leapt to the attack. Ranma easily blocked the ninja's attack, and flung him into the practice area. He then turned around and prepared for another attack from the side.
Ranma firmly believed that Sasuke had not come alone. He was right. Leaping toward him from his left was Ryoga. Ranma easily parried Ryoga's kick, and then sent him flying back along the wall top. He then turned to his right. There, boken in hand, was Kuno.
Kuno charged, boken in strike position, as Ryoga got back to his feet and began to run towards Ranma. Ranma dodged Kuno's lunge, grabbed his adversary, and flung him at Ryoga. Kuno hit Ryoga squarely in the chest, and both boys collapsed in a heap on the top of the wall.
Sasuke leaped up at Ranma once more, but encountered only empty air, as Ranma had jumped back down to the training slope. Ranma spun around immediately after he landed, and faced his three opponents.
"Just what are you three idiots doing here?" he roared.
"We're here to stop you and your vile perversions!" Kuno replied angrily.
Ranma blinked in astonishment at this statement. "Perversions?" he exclaimed. "What perversions?"
"You know very well what perversions!" Ryoga snarled.
Ranma shook his head in wonderment. Just how did those two get such wild ideas?
"You are all crazy!" he shouted at his would be persecutors. He then braced himself for their next attack. He had learned long ago that it was quite impossible to talk sense into any of the three "defenders of feminine virtue" he was now facing.
"First the pigtailed girl and Akane!" Kuno wept. "Now this! Do your perverted tastes know no bounds?"
Ranma was getting very angry now. He was being attacked for no good reason, three idiots were accusing him of immoral behavior, and his afternoon off had been ruined, to boot. He would teach these interlopers a lesson they would never forget.
Ranma leapt up to the wall just as the others started to leap down. As they turned around, Ranma leaped on top of them. Sasuke was the first to be sent flying from the entangled mass. Kuno managed to break free, and quickly backed off in order to prepare himself for battle. That left Ranma and Ryoga rolling over along the grass.
The two youths managed to roll over the edge of the slope. Ranma, having been in the area before, knew what to expect. Ryoga did not. Seeing several water puddles in their way, Ryoga broke off contact with Ranma. Ranma leapt to his feet immediately. Ryoga, on the other hand, crashed into one of the stunted, barren trees that dotted the slope. It took him several minutes to get his senses back.
Ranma leapt up the slope and used a flying kick on Kuno. He struck his adversary in the center of the chest, sending him flying backwards. The boken was left behind on the grass. Sasuke rushed to the aid of his master, but was thwarted at all attempts by Ranma.
Ranma now leapt to the roof of the low building. Ryoga, having finally scrambled up the slope, spied him and gave chase. Ranma leapt out of the way, spun around, and kicked Ryoga off the building. Ryoga recovered quickly and once again gained the roof.
The school bell rang for class change, but the battling boys paid no heed to it. The girls streamed out of their classrooms and walked out of the buildings towards the playing field for their physical fitness training. Several heard the sounds of combat and went to investigate. They quickly returned with wondrous news. Ranma was facing off with three male opponents!
The news spread quickly. Soon, all the girls were either sitting on the wall opposite the combatants or were looking out the windows of the upper level classrooms that overlooked the practice area. Several teachers joined them. The latter forgot to scold their students for not getting on with their classes, as they too were absorbed by the combat that was taking place.
Oblivious to all this, Ranma had leapt straight up from where he was standing on the eastern wall and had delivered a devastating roundhouse kick to his three opponents. Sasuke ducked, but his compatriots were not so lucky, catching the full brunt of the kick.
All three got up to rush at Ranma, but he had already somersaulted backwards to the low roof next to the wall. They followed after him and the battle was joined.
------------
Sensei Chan returned early to the campus, the meeting being fairly short this time. Two other teachers from the group had accompanied her. At first, she was concerned by the relative quiet coming from the dormitories and classrooms. Then she heard the laughter and cheers coming from the rear.
All three teachers dashed towards the sound and quickly mounted the wall, several students moving aside for them. The three were just in time to see Ranma take on all three attackers at once. He sent all three flying back, then prepared for their next assault.
Sensei Chan laughed happily. She turned to the two visitors and pointed towards the rear wall. "That Ranma is something else!" she exclaimed proudly. "I give him the afternoon off, and how does he spend it? He continues practicing! Now, that's dedication!"
To be continued...
Several days passed without incident since "The Great Deception", as the girls called the afternoon they pulled one over their Tamibaki rivals. Ranma continued his exercises, learned new skills, and practiced daily with Master Chang. He was so enthused with the daily routine that the days seemed to fly by.
Akane, on the other hand, just sat around and pouted. She was still trying to understand Ranma's remark about her not allowing others to have fun, and it was irking her something fierce. That, tied with the fact that the others were beginning to get suspicious of her all day departures, which had prevented any subsequent trips to the Great School of Martial Abilities, had put her in a sour mood.
The second term of the year for Furinken High School had also started, which had put a further damper on Akane's expeditions. Now, she just looked out her window and sighed.
There was Ranma, in a school populated only by girls, and thoroughly enjoying himself. There was something wrong about the whole situation. Akane just knew there was. Now she was stuck at home, with no way of stopping it. Her mood worsened with each passing day.
Ryoga came to visit at this time, hoping to be able to tangle with Ranma. He was surprised to learn that Ranma had not been around for at least five weeks.
"Just where is he?" Ryoga asked Akane.
"He's about a hundred kilometers north of here," Akane replied sullenly.
"What is he doing there?" was Ryoga's next question.
"He's attending a martial arts school," Akane said sourly. "A girls' school, no less!"
Ryoga's eyes widened in amazement. "A girls' school?" he asked incredulously.
"That's what I said," Akane said irately. She stared angrily out of her bedroom window and into the courtyard.
Ryoga couldn't believe Akane's statement. Ranma in a girls' school? How was that possible? Surely the others would notice his difference, wouldn't they? He then remembered Ranma's special affliction. That would certainly make a difference.
Ryoga suddenly got an ugly thought. Just what was Ranma doing in a girls'school, anyway? Due to his hatred of Ranma, he immediately jumped to a wrong conclusion.
"How dare he!" Ryoga cried out. "I'll stop him before he goes too far!"
"Stop him from doing what?" Akane started to ask, but Ryoga was already out of her room and exiting the house.
As Ryoga ran down the street and towards the bus stop, he ran into Tatewaki Kuno.
"Where are you off to in such a rush?" Kuno asked.
"I'm off to get Ranma once and for all!" Ryoga snarled.
"I take it that he's not at the Tendo residence?" Kuno asked, as he kept pace with Ryoga.
"No!" was Ryoga's emphatic reply.
"Where is he then?"
"At a girls' martial arts school a hundred kilometers from here!"
"What?" came Kuno's incredulous cry, and he stopped dead in his tracks.
"You heard me!" Ryoga snarled. "He's at an all girls' school!"
"Has that boy no shame?" Kuno exclaimed. "First Akane, now this! We must stop him at once!"
The two youths continued to run for the bus stop.
------------
Sensei Chan was preparing to leave the campus for her biweekly meeting. She summoned Ranma to her office before she left.
"You wished to see me?" Ranma asked.
"Yes," Sensei Chan said. "I'll be gone for most of the afternoon and I need to talk to you before I go."
"What about?" Ranma asked.
"Your progress," Sensei Chan replied.
Ranma looked at her quizzically, then began to get a bit nervous.
Sensei Chan laid any fears he had to rest.
"You have accomplished so much and progressed so far in so short a time that we now have to take some time out to rethink your schedule. You therefore have the afternoon off."
"In the middle of the week?" Ranma said incredulously
"Yes," Sensei Chan replied. "You have done that well in your studies."
She looked at Ranma with pride. "You may do anything you want," she said. "You may leave the campus, read, watch television, or just sit back and do nothing. It is all up to you."
Sensei Chan patted Ranma on the shoulder, smiled, then left for the gate.
Ranma was at a loss as to what to do. This was the first time that he ever had a weekday afternoon off. He wasn't too sure about how he should spend it.
Ranma began to think it over. He had already seen the town several times already. He really wasn't interested in watching television, either. He had gone far beyond his requirements in his schoolwork, as well.
Ranma smiled broadly. Maybe it would be a good idea just to lie down on the grass and look at the clouds. An afternoon of lazing about might be just the ticket, after so many weeks of nonstop practice and exercise. This was exactly what Ranma decided to do.
The main problem would be that of privacy. Ranma did not want to be disturbed by the girls, who would be most curious about his afternoon activities. There had to be a place where he would be unnoticed.
It suddenly hit him. The special practice area. It was almost never used. It was the perfect spot for his plans. Ranma set off for the enclosure immediately.
Ranma leaped to the top of the wall and looked over the area. There was a wide flat area at the top of the slope that would suit his purposes quite well. Ranma rapidly made for the spot.
Ranma leapt from the wall to the low building situated at the top of the slope. He then raced along the roof until he came to the spot he wanted. He jumped to the ground, checked for rocks, twigs, and branches, then lay down and closed his eyes.
A contented sigh escaped Ranma's lips. For one of the few times in his life, he felt at peace with the world. He felt like he could lie there forever. However, a noise disturbed his reflections.
Ranma sat up and surveyed the area. The sound came from the far wall. Ranma stood up and slowly walked towards the wall. He leapt up and gave a closer inspection of the area. He found nothing.
Ranma couldn't figure out where the sound came from. He had made very sure that the girls didn't know where he was going. Sensei Chan was out, so she wouldn't be looking for him just yet. The other teachers probably didn't have anything for him to do, either. Yet, there was the distinct impression that something or someone had been in the area, if only for a few seconds.
Ranma prepared to go back to the ground when a slight sound caught his ear. He turned and saw, to his amazement, Sasuke!
Ranma was dumbfounded. He couldn't understand how the little ninja got wind of the summer's events, or why he had even come to the school.
Sasuke smiled wickedly and leapt to the attack. Ranma easily blocked the ninja's attack, and flung him into the practice area. He then turned around and prepared for another attack from the side.
Ranma firmly believed that Sasuke had not come alone. He was right. Leaping toward him from his left was Ryoga. Ranma easily parried Ryoga's kick, and then sent him flying back along the wall top. He then turned to his right. There, boken in hand, was Kuno.
Kuno charged, boken in strike position, as Ryoga got back to his feet and began to run towards Ranma. Ranma dodged Kuno's lunge, grabbed his adversary, and flung him at Ryoga. Kuno hit Ryoga squarely in the chest, and both boys collapsed in a heap on the top of the wall.
Sasuke leaped up at Ranma once more, but encountered only empty air, as Ranma had jumped back down to the training slope. Ranma spun around immediately after he landed, and faced his three opponents.
"Just what are you three idiots doing here?" he roared.
"We're here to stop you and your vile perversions!" Kuno replied angrily.
Ranma blinked in astonishment at this statement. "Perversions?" he exclaimed. "What perversions?"
"You know very well what perversions!" Ryoga snarled.
Ranma shook his head in wonderment. Just how did those two get such wild ideas?
"You are all crazy!" he shouted at his would be persecutors. He then braced himself for their next attack. He had learned long ago that it was quite impossible to talk sense into any of the three "defenders of feminine virtue" he was now facing.
"First the pigtailed girl and Akane!" Kuno wept. "Now this! Do your perverted tastes know no bounds?"
Ranma was getting very angry now. He was being attacked for no good reason, three idiots were accusing him of immoral behavior, and his afternoon off had been ruined, to boot. He would teach these interlopers a lesson they would never forget.
Ranma leapt up to the wall just as the others started to leap down. As they turned around, Ranma leaped on top of them. Sasuke was the first to be sent flying from the entangled mass. Kuno managed to break free, and quickly backed off in order to prepare himself for battle. That left Ranma and Ryoga rolling over along the grass.
The two youths managed to roll over the edge of the slope. Ranma, having been in the area before, knew what to expect. Ryoga did not. Seeing several water puddles in their way, Ryoga broke off contact with Ranma. Ranma leapt to his feet immediately. Ryoga, on the other hand, crashed into one of the stunted, barren trees that dotted the slope. It took him several minutes to get his senses back.
Ranma leapt up the slope and used a flying kick on Kuno. He struck his adversary in the center of the chest, sending him flying backwards. The boken was left behind on the grass. Sasuke rushed to the aid of his master, but was thwarted at all attempts by Ranma.
Ranma now leapt to the roof of the low building. Ryoga, having finally scrambled up the slope, spied him and gave chase. Ranma leapt out of the way, spun around, and kicked Ryoga off the building. Ryoga recovered quickly and once again gained the roof.
The school bell rang for class change, but the battling boys paid no heed to it. The girls streamed out of their classrooms and walked out of the buildings towards the playing field for their physical fitness training. Several heard the sounds of combat and went to investigate. They quickly returned with wondrous news. Ranma was facing off with three male opponents!
The news spread quickly. Soon, all the girls were either sitting on the wall opposite the combatants or were looking out the windows of the upper level classrooms that overlooked the practice area. Several teachers joined them. The latter forgot to scold their students for not getting on with their classes, as they too were absorbed by the combat that was taking place.
Oblivious to all this, Ranma had leapt straight up from where he was standing on the eastern wall and had delivered a devastating roundhouse kick to his three opponents. Sasuke ducked, but his compatriots were not so lucky, catching the full brunt of the kick.
All three got up to rush at Ranma, but he had already somersaulted backwards to the low roof next to the wall. They followed after him and the battle was joined.
------------
Sensei Chan returned early to the campus, the meeting being fairly short this time. Two other teachers from the group had accompanied her. At first, she was concerned by the relative quiet coming from the dormitories and classrooms. Then she heard the laughter and cheers coming from the rear.
All three teachers dashed towards the sound and quickly mounted the wall, several students moving aside for them. The three were just in time to see Ranma take on all three attackers at once. He sent all three flying back, then prepared for their next assault.
Sensei Chan laughed happily. She turned to the two visitors and pointed towards the rear wall. "That Ranma is something else!" she exclaimed proudly. "I give him the afternoon off, and how does he spend it? He continues practicing! Now, that's dedication!"
To be continued...