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"You didn't concentrate enough, Cologne." Ranma reprimanded as he saw the wisps of chi disperse in the air. He was sitting cross-legged in front of his newest student in the middle of the clearing.
The Elder for her part was panting hard as the strain of concentrating such ridiculously high amounts of chi took its toll on her aged body. She turned to Ranma with a disbelieving stare. They had only been practicing for two hours and she felt as if she was dying. Did he really expect her to get this technique down so quickly? Sighing in defeat at his scowl, she took long calming breaths and started to concentrate again.
On the sidelines, Soap and Setsuna watched each with different feelings.
Soap was remembering her first lessons with Ranma with a feeling of longing. She hated him for years, but with time understood that was a part of his teaching method. She chuckled lightly, thinking to herself about the many students that felt the same way about her.
Setsuna watched with interest as Ranma taught his Art to that old woman. She looked intently mainly because this was a part of her man she had never seen before. Of course, he had always been resourceful during the Silver Millennium, but never before had she seen him act so reverently towards something.
It had been a surprise yesterday to learn Ranma was actually one of the founders of the Chinese Amazons. More a surprise to find Soap was Ranma's student. She asked him about it that evening before they went to sleep. His answer was quite simple. "She's the best of my students." That could only mean he had more than one student. This reminded her once again of the time they spent apart. So many things they didn't know about each other. She sighed.
Soap heard the sigh and turned to the green-haired woman. "Something wrong?" She had spoken to Setsuna very little, but could already guess why Ranma had fallen for her. She was so much like him in many aspects.
Setsuna looked towards Ranma as he demonstrated another chi technique to his new student. "Just thought about how much time together we lost." She didn't know why she was being so straightforward with the woman. Maybe because she felt she could trust her, or because she didn't get the satisfaction of being mysterious around the other senshi. The fact was she felt like being open with her feelings, something she hadn't felt in thousands of years.
Soap nodded in approval and pride as Cologne managed to get the technique half-decently. The elder had a knack for learning that made all the other Amazons seem like retards. "Something's coming, isn't it?" She asked rhetorically. "Cologne being accepted as a student at about the same time Ranma-sensei meets you again. His calling of his other students for a meeting, when we haven't had one in over two thousand years."
Setsuna nodded. "You're right. I don't know exactly what we'll be facing, Ranma's presence makes it impossible to foresee the future, but I feel the conflict coming. Something from our past is coming."
"Just how far in the past? I never got an answer from sensei about how old he was." Soap said a little frustrated.
Setsuna smiled inwardly. *It seems like Ranma hasn't changed at all. Neither have I.* She turned back to seeing Ranma and Cologne. "I'm a little older than Ranma. A couple hundred years. But for us it's not such a big difference."
Soap sighed audibly at the cryptic answer. *Just like Ranma-sensei.* She thought with resignation.
Back in the clearing, Ranma had called a break for Cologne to catch her breath. He was sitting casually as his student took labored breaths. "You're going to kill me." She accused, not for the first time in the last couple of hours if she had made the right choice.
Ranma smirked. "I thought the 'Great Matriarch of the Amazons' would be good enough to get this techniques down easily." He said demeaningly.
Cologne felt her blood boil at the insult. She was about to bop him right on the head when she remembered part of the deal she had made with him. She allowed her features to contort into a smirk much like his own. "I'm not the 'Great Matriarch of the Amazons' anymore, remember?" She still hurt voicing those words, but she had to accept them if she wanted to continue training with this 'boy.' She knew her time as Matriarch was close to an end anyway.
Ranma raised an eyebrow at that. "Oh? But you still are. You haven't arranged things to leave the village. So you are still Cologne, Matriarch of the Amazons."
Cologne nodded. "Indeed, sensei. I will probably need a week to get everything ready."
"You have two days." Ranma said seriously. His lips formed a smirk Cologne had come to fear over the last couple of hours. "You should also think about what to tell Shampoo."
"Why would I need to...?" Cologne started to ask but stopped short as she felt a presence getting near. She cursed herself for not expecting her impatient great granddaughter to come looking for her.
"AIREEN!" Came the yell of joy from the bubbly Amazon. Cologne nearly didn't see Ranma move out of the way of the glomp. She was still amazed at how far outclassed she was by someone she had thought of as a great fighter, but inferior to her. Ranma jumped over the purple haired Amazon and as soon as he landed jumped horizontally out of reach to come to a rest in between Soap and Setsuna. Cologne was sure that if she had blinked she wouldn't have seen a thing.
Shampoo was on her way to Soap's training ground. Her great grandmother hadn't come back yesterday, and she wanted to return to Japan to keep the pressure on Ranma. She didn't want to leave him alone with the stupid spatula girl, not after what she'd seen last week. Ukyo and Ranma were getting along better, and that wasn't good for her.
As she neared the clearing where she was sure she would find Soap, she had the feeling that she was being followed. She scanned the area without giving any signs of doing so. She found nothing, but couldn't shake the feeling of being watched. Thinking it was the feeling of the place instead of the fact of actually being followed, she ignored the feeling and sped up.
Just as she reached her destination, she received a shock. There was her great grandmother, sitting across from Ranma and smiling. That could only mean she had finally gotten Ranma to follow the Amazon Laws. She happily ran to her husband. "AIREEN!" She cried in joy. She was about to glomp him when suddenly he vanished in thin air and the ground met her. Due to the shock she was unable to land properly, so she had a mouth full of dirt for her attempt at glomping her husband.
Soap ignored Shampoo's raising form as she noticed another one in the edge of the clearing. She smiled widely. *Another has arrived.* She waited expectantly, waiting to see Cologne's reaction on this one. She smiled even wider as she felt Ranma's left arm over her shoulders.
Shampoo stood up looking everywhere for her Aireen. She found him on the edge of the clearing. He sat comfortably, his arms around two beautiful women that looked at her with smiles on their faces. She narrowed her eyes dangerously as she prepared her bonbori for removing the obstacles. In her rage-filled state she failed to notice one of the women was Soap, the Amazon master of martial arts.
Cologne watched Shampoo prepare to attack Soap and Setsuna. She had a mental image of Shampoo after said fight and it wasn't something she wanted to happen. Soap was simply too good for her, while Cologne could feel an incredible magical aura around the green haired woman. Standing up, and finding it a surprisingly easy thing to do after the exercises Ranma had put her through, she prepared to stop Shampoo. She didn't get a chance as a male voice was heard from behind her.
"Stop!" It was both commanding and calm at the same time. Cologne and Shampoo turned to see Mouse looking at the purple haired girl seriously, and without his glasses, which was an incredible feat.
"What stupid Mouse want?" Asked an enraged Shampoo. She wanted to beat those two women, but maybe a warm up would do her good.
Mouse remained calm as he answered with another question. "Do you want to die, Shampoo? That's what will happen if you attack Soap with the intent to kill." His tone of voice was completely different to his usual begging when dealing with Shampoo.
Cologne noticed this and her eyes widened in shock. *This can't be happening!* She turned her gaze to Soap, who to her horror was laughing at the situation.
Shampoo didn't hear Mouse's words, she just heard him opposing her. Her grip tightened on her weapons as she imagined Mouse's face bashed in. This was her chance at getting Ranma for her. He was here, mere miles from the village and away from that accursed island called Japan. If Mouse thought he could interfere he had another thing coming. Shampoo charged the male Amazon.
Soap laughed so hard Ranma had to keep her from falling. She couldn't believe another one of them had been so close and she had no idea. The village idiot, the boy the elders laughed at and didn't consider more than a myopic fool, was more than any fighter in the entire area could handle.
Cologne saw Shampoo rush towards Mouse, her bonbori prepared for a twin strike and a quick victory. Nothing was unusual there, her great granddaughter was too confident in her own abilities. She hesitantly turned her eyes to Mouse and noticed that he was standing perfectly still, waiting for the attack to come. She had expected this, she knew Mouse was not what he appeared to be. And even then she was surprised by what happened next.
Mouse saw the attack coming and sighed in disappointment. Shampoo still had a long way to go if she wanted to be at least a decent amateur in the Art. She had let her skills deteriorate over the last couple of years because she thought she was the best fighter and didn't need to improve. "The truth is there are much better fighters in the village than her." He whispered to himself as he stepped to the left, avoiding the attack by more than a foot. Shampoo put so much into it that she wasn't prepared to redirect it. Taking advantage of her mistake, he delivered a strike with the back of his hand to Shampoo's elbow. An audible snap was heard, followed by a cry of pain and the thump of bonbori that left Shampoo's hand.
The purple haired Amazon eyed Mouse in disbelief, the pain in her right arm forgotten for the moment as she stared at the still calm male. He stood straight once again, as if the exchange hadn't taken place. His eyes completely focused on her, as if waiting for something. The next thing she knew she felt hands working on her elbow. She looked down to see Cologne studying the injury. It was quite clear for the young female Amazon that the fight had been finished even before it began.
Mouse left Shampoo to Cologne's care and walked towards Ranma. His calm behavior not wavering in the slightest.
Cologne was impressed with the efficiency Mouse had shown. He managed to dislocate Shampoo's elbow with no damage whatsoever, only a lot of pain. She easily resettled it and turned back to Mouse ready to berate him for hurting Shampoo. She looked as Soap saluted him as her superior. Cologne fell off her staff with the shock.
Shampoo was currently seeing everything as if it was a dream. The way Mouse had moved left her incapable of reacting to anything. She didn't know what it was that did it, but she found herself mesmerized by the grace and power he held with such control.
Soap straightened after saluting Mouse. "It's good to see you again, Wa To."
The man smiled and waved it off. "The name is Mouse now, Soap."
She jumped forward and hugged him. "Why didn't you at least visit me once? You've been in the village for at least twenty years now."
Mouse returned the hug without being surprised by it in the first place. He was expecting it. "Ranma wanted me to remain hidden so that Cologne wouldn't suspect a thing, but he wanted me close enough to help if necessary." They broke the embrace and turned to where Ranma was, Setsuna by his side. "I see you have encountered each other again."
Ranma nodded while Setsuna remained silent. It took her only a couple of seconds to remember the voice and the face. "Wa To?" She asked.
He nodded. "Indeed, senshi of Time." He bowed deep as one does to royalty. For in fact each senshi was the princess or queen of her planet.
Setsuna let a small smile appear on her lips. She turned to Ranma with a lifted eyebrow. "Anyone else I should know about from back then?"
Soap heard the question and turned to Mouse accusingly. "You never told me you were from Ranma-sensei's time."
Mouse smirked. "You never actually asked about it."
"Excuse me?" The four of them turned to see Cologne and a very subdued Shampoo. "Could someone please explain what's going on?" The elder asked. It was quite obvious from her expression that it wasn't a question but a demand that she was making. Either way they decided to answer her.
Ranma motioned for everyone to sit under a tree. He sat next to Setsuna and eyed everyone. Setsuna looked interested. Mouse was amused at the turn of events. Soap was still a little frustrated at not knowing how old he really was. Cologne was dying of curiosity. Of course, all of them were outwardly as calm as the walking dead. He could only tell their emotions because of the chi they emanated. Only Shampoo was an open book to everyone. It was clear she was seeing her dream going away, and it was tearing her apart. Ranma felt a little sad for the young Amazon, but knew she would come out of it stronger than before.
Taking a deep breath, he started. "We should wait for everyone to get here first." A massive facefault was the result to that one. Everyone, Setsuna included, met the hard floor and then gave Ranma the evil eye. "Hey, don't look at me like that. I don't want to repeat myself." He smiled. "Besides, they're already here."
They turned to see two other people get near. Cologne was still amazed at the chi mastery each and every of Ranma's students had. She couldn't feel their auras at all. She was also quite impressed with Ranma himself, for he was able to detect them from a distance quite accurately.
Cologne and Shampoo were ready for anything now, so they didn't react outwardly to Tofu and Taro sitting next to them. "Now that we are all here..." Ranma started, and seeing that no one interrupted him he continued. "... let's begin. First, Cologne has just joined the rest of you as my student." The elder felt great elation at the smiles everyone directed her way. She couldn't really understand what it was that made these people's opinion so important to her. "Now, allow me to introduce Setsuna." He motioned for the green haired woman. "Setsuna, these are my students. Mouse you already met. My second student was Tofu. Soap followed when we founded the Amazons three thousand years ago. Taro I met about seven hundred years ago. Cologne you already know, and Shampoo is her great granddaughter." They nodded to each other in acknowledgement.
Ranma sighed and continued. "I'm sorry things have to be rushed like this. I would like to have more time for a proper reunion, but we don't have that time."
Mouse nodded in understanding. "This is a war council then?"
Ranma nodded. "We need any help we can get, but I'm not lying to you. This is a war for power. It is quite possible you will all live as you have so far if you decide not to take part of it, regardless of the winner. I won't force any of you to take part in the conflict."
They all nodded their understanding and looked at each other. Mouse smiled as he turned to Ranma. "What are we facing, Ranma?"
Taro nodded. "I'm not letting you get killed. You've got lots of stuff I want to learn."
Soap smiled at her sensei. "I believe this means we get to do some butt kicking."
Tofu adjusted his glasses. "I can't let you all go on your own. Someone has to make sure your injuries are treated."
Ranma smiled at his students. He knew they would back him up against anything, but either way gave them a choice. He didn't think of them as students, really. They were more like friends studying the Art together.
"Aireen?" Shampoo asked hesitantly. Her tone of voice gave out the fact that she didn't think she could call him that anymore.
Ranma shook his head. "I'm sorry, Shampoo." The girl stood up and stormed out of the clearing. Tears were clearly seen as they ran down her cheeks. Mouse looked at Cologne and shook his head to stop her. He then ran after the purple-haired Amazon.
After a couple of minutes of silence, Ranma stood up. "I believe we should wait till Mouse and Shampoo return to start making plans." He extended a hand to help Setsuna to her feet.
Taro smirked. "Care for a spar, guys? I haven't had much fun in the last couple of years." He cracked his knuckles as he looked at Cologne, Tofu and Soap.
Cologne chuckled. It had been a while since she was treated like a peer instead of a superior being. She liked the former better. She nodded her assent as she stood up.
Tofu started walking to the center of the clearing. "Same odds as usual?" His tone of voice gave away his excitement. He couldn't remember the last time he fought without using only shiatsu. A good punch or kick would feel good.
"Same odds as usual?" Soap asked, to which she received a not from Tofu.
Cologne silently asked Soap. "What odds?" Even if she felt welcome by the others, she still felt more comfortable with Soap. Maybe it had something to do with the fact that she was the only other woman in the group.
Soap turned to her as Tofu stopped in the center of the clearing. "We all gang on Tofu and hope to win." Seeing Cologne's shock she nodded and explained. "Tofu is far older than I am, so he has trained with Ranma-sensei for a long time. We usually say 'same odds' meaning we all gang on whoever is the oldest one. We still haven't been able to win against Mouse or Ranma-sensei."
Cologne had to make efforts not to swallow her tongue. "You mean Mouse can take out all of you?" She believed he was extremely skilled and powerful, but she didn't think he would be 'that' good.
Soap laughed at that. "Cologne, Mouse is far stronger than you would believe."
Tofu cleared his throat to get their attention and asked. "Are you ready?" Receiving nods from three directions he fell back into his fighting stance. "Whenever you're ready." He didn't have to wait long.
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On the sidelines Setsuna watched as Ranma's students fought it out. "They're very good. I'm not sure any of the senshi aside from Saturn could take out one of them in hand to hand."
Ranma nodded. "I just hope they are ready for what is to come." Setsuna noticed he was worried about their welfare. This was a side of Ranma that he rarely showed at all. Saturn was the first person to see this Ranma, and in more than twenty-four thousand years only a select few had seen him like this.
Setsuna took his hand in hers. "Don't worry, Ranma. We'll be ready."
Ranma let a chuckle escape his lips. "Endymion and Serenity can take care of themselves. Saturn is one hell of a powerhouse." His face turned somber. "But the rest of the senshi aren't ready. They're pathetic compared to what they were capable of. Ryoga and Hinako can fight better than anyone." He sighed. "But there's only so much ground we can cover with such a small group."
Setsuna squeezed his hand. "You're forgetting something. I didn't remain idle all this time either."
Ranma turned to her and could read in her red eyes that she had a surprise for him. *She obviously didn't remain idle.* He knew her better than that.
They both turned skyward, knowing that blue sky would soon be tainted red. They just didn't know if it would be their blood or their enemies'.
END PART 7
Author's notes: The chapter was pretty much a reunion. I'll work on the individual characters in later chapters as each one of them will be revealing more and more of their past. Also, we'll start to see Setsuna's 'preparations' as well as the other Nova siblings'.
Some characters will be way OOC, but I'll do my best to explain why as the story continues. Hope to have more action in the next chapter. And I'm definitely working on the sparring session.
See you in Part 8! |
