Ranma Hew Half 4

'Another attack, followed by another feeble failure, my only comfort is this time I alone do not share all the blame and thus, all the shame,' Xian Pu mused. 

She glared down at the wiggling black piglet, trying desperately to keep its backpack from falling into the artificial river running through the city. 

"Fanged fool," She bit out, snatching the creature up by his bandanna and giving him a shake as his supplies drifted away. 

Shaking him she shouted, "Had you not interfered, had you not distracted me, I could have continued to hound her but you bound me here and so I must track Ranma down again!" 

The pig stared uncomprehending. 

"Useless foreigners, you travel all the way to Jusnekyo and do not bother to learn our language? I am only here by duty and I still know more than you, ignorant pig," This time the pig seemed to at least pick up a few words, particularly the insult. It went from confused to angry thrashing and attempted biting very quickly after all. 

"Oh be silent, you're no threat to me now, nor can you get in the way of my pursuits like this." Now she just needed to determine how best to deal with that brunette. Perhaps if he slew Ranma and she defeated or wed him her her pride and honor would be restored and she could go home again. 

'But that's for later, for now, I should find somewhere safe to store this one and return to my mission.' Killing him would be easier, but slaying something so weak would be shameful. 

Sighing, she stood up, taking in the long streets and wary locals watching her. Signs of the battle in small crated and speckles of blood were clear to see. Her gaze trailed along the path her foes shadows had followed, across the roof tops of shops and towards the docks it seemed. 

'Back to the hunt,' she sighed, moving to collect her Chui when well hone instincts flared.

Spinning around Xian Pu snatched what looked to be a satchel from the air and eyes a girl with bluish hair and light blue, white topped dress staring her down. 

"Ranma-Chan, where is she!?" 

Xian Pu's head tilted in confusion for a moment before it clicked together, "Ah... You that noisy window girl." 

Her would be attacker took up a fighting stance and snarled, making Xian Pu chuckle, "Little girl wants to play?" 

___________________________________________________

Akane liked having Ranma around, she liked her for the girl she was and for the fact it meant she had another martial artist to talk with and learn from.

She wouldn't have flung herself out a second story window on pure adrenaline and concern if she didn't care. 

But despite that there was no denying her pride had taken a pounding these last few days. 

So when some stupid jerk looked at her mockery clear in those ruby red eyes and said, "Little girl wants to play?"

Akane lost it, just a little. 

Letting out a furious shriek, Akane charged, a wide arcing kick the other girl jumped over with insulting ease. 

She followed it up with a series of sharp jabs as she landed, each one aimed squared for her face and each one failing to land. 

'She's reading my moves, just like Ranma!' Akane thought, teeth gnashing as she forced her body to move faster, faster.

But it did nothing to wipe that mocking smirk of the other fighters face. Each dodge was by mere inches by choice as she lazily angled her head to the side to dodge each strike. 

Ranma's words echoed back to her as the girl leaned to the left and Akane pivoted violently at the last second. Her arm contorting and stiffening, wrist twisting with an audible snap against the air and the girls eyes widened, her hair blue back and there was a crack without contact. 

'I got her!' Akane barreled forward and watched as the purple haired fighter flung herself backwards and well out of reach. 

Dropping the pig, the girl grasped her nose and re-set it with a crack, sucked in a breath and spread her lips in a wicked grin. 

"Little girl wants to make it a fight?" She took a stance, "Come then." 

Roaring, Akane charged forward, but just as she approached she jumped to the left and struck out with a kick. 

The blow was blocked and she was nearly knocked off balance, but braced just in time to let loose a nearly random swing of her arms, forcing the other girl to dodge. 

She tried to barrel forward again, but was forced to fling herself to the side at a sharp, swiping strike that severed a chunk of her hair. 

"Hey!" Spinning, Akane loosed a wide, arching kick the other girl bent back to avoid. Her effort to pivot and turn it into a downward strike was too slow, so all she broke was pavement. 

'She ducked low, if I hit her now!' Akane spun on her feet, intent on driving her fist into the other girls skull. 

Only for her to move out of reach in a blur and deliver her own crescent moon kick, right to the side of Akane's head. 

The blow resounded in her skull like a bullet and launched her from the street. 

'Brace!' She curled up, desperately calling on her Chi, 'Don't die, don't die!' Some part of her begged as she slammed against the wall and felt the bricks crack. 

Rebounding off the wall, the world still blurred but at the sight of purple, Akane lashed out with a hook swing. Her fist crashed against a hand and she felt herself being yanked up by the taller girl. 

'Not yet, I'm not done!' A sharp, upper kick barely clipped the girls jaw, but it let Akane gain some distance. 

The foreign fighter shot forward and Akane met her charge, fist clashed against palms, chops were turned back. With each resounding blow, Akane felt her body tremor, until-

It all ended in an instant. 

She felt the gagging, half scream escape her lips before she quite 'felt' the fist in her solar plexus, or the fact she'd been lifted off the ground. 

She barely even saw the world as the other fighter twisted in the blow and then loosed her into the air, letting Akane's prone, pained form slap the pavement. 

Sparks of pain left her to spasm on the ground, hands too uncoordinated to even grasp the wound as she heaved and choked on nothing. 

Then she felt it, a hand on her chest, pressing down firm but calm, those red eyes meeting her, the girl intoning, "Breath, one, two." Each count signaling Akane's chest to move as the girl made her breath in oxygen through the pain, forcing the world back into clarity. 

"Don't move yet, some minutes," She said firmly, finally releasing Akane's chest and reaching up to cradle her cheek. 

'What... What is she going to-' The other girl smiled, and with no trace of mockery said. 

"We fight again later, warrior." 

And then, she was gone. 

___________________________________________________

Ranma's breaths were hard and heavy, the sting of low cut and subtle burns familiar as they were unwelcome. 

Charging across from her, in the due for destruction parking garage was her opponent, his weapon raised in an arcing slash.

His chest did not heave, his breathing perfectly under control, but lines of bruises and his pose showed he was hurting too. 

She weaved around the slice and skidded back to avoid the wave of dust and shrapnel his strike caused.

'A bit stronger than me, but a bit slower, he's not quite as skilled but that weapon makes up the difference, still an even fight,' she mused. 

Leaping forward she lashed out with a double kick which was blocked by the blades handle. Pivoting into a twist, Ranma sought to get closer, only for the lade to be spun against her, forcing her to flip away. 

Grasping a pillar she swung around and released just in time to avoid the oncoming slash that turned it to rubble. 

"Will you ever stop running!?" Her foe seethed. 

Skidding away, Ranma stared at the other fighter and hard, mind buzzing as images splashed across her brain. 

Two little spatulas slashing as she jumped over them; and a bid to do the same today getting her belly cut. 

An older man with long hair in a top knot letting two children try to lift his massive battle spatula; and the sheer weight of her foes own. 

The image of sitting atop a yattai, a gift as her friend chased after them, tears streaming down his face. 

"Uchan?" She ventured. 

The retort was another slashed, feet slamming against concrete and a howl, "Don't call me that! You have no right!" 

Each slash loosed a blade of wind, the cement and asphalt tearing as Ukyo chased her through the parking lot, stone pillars impeding him not at all. 

"Is this about the yattai?" She shouted, rolling around a strike and sweeping at Ukyo's legs only to be forced back by the handle of her friends weapon nearly breaking her skull. 

"The yattai, the yattai!?" He seethed, rebounding off the pillar to chase after her. 

"Well why else would ya wanna kill me!?" She rolled around another slash as Uko's blow tore through the floor. "IF its about me fucking up your family sauce recipe I'm sorry about that too!" 

That stilled him for a moment and his brow scrunched, "You..." He shook his head, "Don't try and distract me, Saotome!" 

"Well what's wrong man, I thought we were friends!" Kicking off a pillar Ranma clipped Ukyo's shoulder with her knee, but failed the follow up to knock him down. 

Swinging his blade in retort, Ukyo left another low cut along her collar bone and shouted. "Don't you dare stand there with that beautiful body and mock me Saotome! Don't you dare lie to me again!" 

Ranma stilled, her expression growing rictus and fierce, "Is this cos I'm not a guy?" 

Ukyo tilted his head in confusion, before shaking it off, "Like that has anything to do with your betrayal!" 

"What betrayal!?" She howled back, "My dads a bustard, I get that he robbed you and your pa, man, but I didn't know! If you wanna beat him up I'll show you where he is!" 

Ukyo's entire frame quaked, a spasm running along strong, square shoulders, and something glistened in his eyes. 

"Don't... Don't take this away from me too," He rasped, "I can't take this again, Ranchan, not again." 

"I... Uchan, what did we-"

"You were supposed to marry me!"

That cry echoed through the domicile and Ranma sucked in a breath, mind whirring and clicking as pieces fell into place and then failed to because... Because if Ukyo thought that was true, if that was true and Ukyo didn't think it could happen now then...

"Uchan... Are you a girl?" Ranma asked, wary and worried to get this wrong.

Ukyo's laugh was tinged with a warped sort of despair. "Not anymore, and never again. My honor was stolen, my families pride as Shinobi left in tatters and now... Now all I have left is what honor a son can grasp by avenging my line against yours!" 

Ranma slowly fell out of her stance, "Even if I didn't know, even if I still think you're my friend?" Ukyo choked something down and Ranma pleaded, "Please, Uchan, we can fix this."

"No! No more lies! No more trust! Not again!"  He howled, tears sparkling in his eyes. 

Ranma swallowed and lowered her guard entirely, "Then go again, Uchan, take your revenge." 

Ranma closed her eyes, crossed her arms and waited, heart pounding in her ears, lungs burning, eyes watering. 

The wind cried as Ukyo drew back their blade and-

It fell to the floor with a clang. 

Ranma opened her eyes to see Ukyo frantically scrubbing away at their eyes, "Men don't cry. Men don't cry," He sobbed. 

Head lolling back, Ranma let out a breath, relief etching itself into her bones, she fell to her knees and dragged Ukyo into a hug. 

___________________________________________________

Were Nabiki anyone else, she might be mourning the loss of her nice, relatively normal life right now as she raced through the Nerima streets, looking for any sighs of blue or red hair. 

Fortunately, Nabiki wasn't anybody else, and so while she might take some time to grouse on the oncoming challenges later, right now she was still in problem solving mode. 

Problem one, Genma Saotome, problem two, three other assholes all trying to kill Ranma, problem three, Akane was missing and now they were both cutting class. 

'Plus I still have that stupid essay due, maybe I'll get Kayuri to do it?' She thought, turning a corner and feeling a tightness she hadn't known was in her chest loosen. 

"Akane-Chan!" She called, seeing her sister alive was a relief, seeing her obviously more than a little scuffed up, less so. But she was walking under her own power, if with a hand over her abdomen and a pained scowl. 

"What happened?" She asked, coming to a stop before the smaller girl and offering her a shoulder to lean on. 

"Its... Not as bad as it looks..." Akane said glumly, "I think... I think that girl lost Ranma-Chan, I don't know about the two guys though... I can't find any trace of them." 

'You got your ass kicked, didn't you?' Nabiki wanted to ask, but kept her peace, she could be sensitive Sometimes. 

Arm wrapping around her little sister, she said, "I managed to bribe Kuno-Chan's stupid ninja to go looking for Ranma-Chan, so for now, let's get you to Dr Tofu." 

"Not there..." Akane groaned, "And why Kuno?" She grumbled, leaning against Nabiki who was already dialing the good doctors number. 

"Already, calling him for another house visit, and cos he's the only person I know with a personal ninja I can bribe." It wasn't much of a bribe really, but the man was pitifully desperate to earn his masters good graces, so offering him a potential 'gift' to seek out Ranma-Chan and keep her updated wasn't a huge price to pay. 

'Sadly, he hasn't found them y-' Her phone buzzed and she glanced at the picture, eyebrows arching at the sight of Ranma and the brunette hugging, both sobbing. 

'Well now, that's interesting,' she thought, "Looks like Ranma-Chan's OK, sis, she should be home soon." 

"That's... Good..." Akane murmured, now sounding less pained and more exhausted. 

"Oh you're gonna pass out aren't you?" Nabiki could already feel Akane going limp against her. 

"Adrenaline... Crash..." 

Nabiki groaned as she squatted down and let Akane slump onto her back. 'This is getting ridiculous,' she thought with a frown, pushing herself through the Nerima streets and through anyone in her way. 

"Hey Nabiki Nee-Sama..." Akane murmured into her ear. 

Sighing, she answered, "What is it little sister?" 

"Thanks for coming for me." 

"... Its nothing." 

___________________________________________________

Notes: 

As I am working on several projects I decided to end this chapter here, despite having at least a few more scenes in mind. Emotionally this also felt like the right spot to call things to an end for this one, at least as far as I can tell, but you tell me! 

This is a weird thing, but one trend, sort of, that I've noted in some fics is having Akane take Xian Pu in a fight. This always kind of gets to me, because while I like Akane, she has not been pitted against peers who fight her seriously, or trained heavily by a major master. So it often feels like using Xian Pu as a warf to make Akane look better. In this chapter I tried to sell the idea that Akane is skilled and strong, even if she isn't at her opponents level yet, so I hope that worked. 

Also, if one looks at the subtext of Ukyo's language their reasons for going after Ranma are, I hope, conveyed. If not, I intend to cover it in the next chapter once they stop crying on each other. 

Also Nabiki continues her, "Circumstances are making me be a good person and I hate it" path.