Cat Fist Fury Insert standard disclaimer here. <>: Thoughts Chapter 5 Fight! It was a bright and sunny day at Himoto High as the soccer field behind the gymnasium was being prepared for the No Holds Barred Tournament. Bleachers were being filled to capacity as students filed in to watch the spectacle. Near the front of the gym, Ranma met with his fellow teammates as they prepared for the day's events. Students from at least five other high schools had come to this tournament to cheer on their teams. On the other side of the field, the Furinkan team, also known as the Nerima Wrecking Crew, assembled to plan their strategies. "Fear not, fellow warriors! I, the Great and Noble Tatewaki Kuno shall lead you to victory this day!" "Spare Shampoo this stupid talking!" A curvaceous purple- haired girl said. She looked at the older boy who was wearing samurai robes and waving a wooden sword. "Shampoo agree to fight here to see if there really strong warriors! Stupid stick boy shut up mouth!" "Oh Shampoo!" A Chinese boy said in a dreamy voice as he glomped onto another person. "I'm so glad I'm with you!" Mousse promptly got bopped on the head by a bamboo umbrella, which caused him to drop like a bag of cement. Ryoga was clearly steamed that the myopic Master of Hidden Weapons had once again mistaken him for Shampoo! "Keep off you stupid jerk!" "Ryoga! Hi! You made it!" Ryoga turned around and saw Akane Tendo approach and he turned all starry-eyed. "H-H-eh, hi Akane! What brings you here?" The youngest Tendo gave him a smile, which made him blubber even more. "Silly! I'm part of this team! I'm glad you made it on time!" Ryoga became a little embarrassed as he twiddled his fingers. "Y-yeah. I started out five days ago, so I could get here on time." "You finally got somewhere on time." The group turned to see Ukyo approach, dressed in a boy's uniform and sporting a huge spatula on her back, plus several minis on a bandoleer. Kuno looked at her with disdain. He then approached Akane and glomped onto her, saying, "Today Akane Tendo, I shall prove my worthiness to you! Once I have single-handedly won this tournament, I shall date with thee!" Akane promptly gave him a hard uppercut and sent him sprawling. Kuno landed on his face and moaned, "I think I shall rest here until the tournament starts!" Ranma and his team went to the judges' stand and looked up at the board. "Looks like we're up against Nosoto High." Sodan remarked. "Lucky break for us." Kosho remarked. "Furinkan will be fighting against Shinida. We'll be able to hold our own for a while. We'll also be able to see their fighters in action." Ranma simply nodded as he gazed toward the stands where Furinkan's team stood ready for the contest to start. His expression hardened when he saw that giant spatula. There was no doubt in his mind. It was his old buddy Ucchan. His heart began to sink, as he knew that before this day was out, he would have to fight his childhood friend. "Hiyah!" Kosho screamed as he threw his opponent out of the ring, using a judo throw. Ranma watched as Kosho slowly stood up and had his arm raised in victory by the referee. So far, the first matches were easy enough. Kosho had chalked up his third victory, while Shang and Sakoto had eliminated the last two fighters of Nosoto's team. Now as his teammates returned to their bench to take a rest, they watched the field as Furinkan High took to the field. The first match was between Tatewaki Kuno and a kendo fighter from Shinida. The two faced each other off as the announcer introduced them. "In the white tiger corner, from Shinida High, Sentaro Makina! In the blue dragon corner?" "HOLD!" The announcer became silent as Kuno held up his bokken. "I shall give my own introduction!" Kuno announced as his chest swelled with pride. "I am the undefeated captain of my school's kendo club! The rising new star of the high school fencing world! My peers call me the Blue Thunder of Furinkan High!" A crack of thunder and lightning peeled off in the distance as Kuno finished his introduction. "Tatewaki Kuno, age 17!" The crowd moaned as he finished. Ranma looked around and asked, "I take it he's said this sort of thing before?" "He say it so many times, it getting very annoying!" Shang responded. "Though this is first time I hear him call himself Blue Thunder!" "Yeah! Last week I heard him call himself the Shooting Star!" Sakoto added. The announcer quickly composed himself and motioned for the match to start. The referee blew his whistle and the fight began? and ended ten seconds later. The kendoist from Shinida tried to stab at Kuno's face, but was surprised when Kuno parried the blow, then pivoted his parry into a slash. His opponent was shocked to see his own bokken snapped into two pieces. As he looked dumbly at his useless weapon, Kuno delivered a downward blow to his foe's head, rendering him unconscious. As the referee declared him the winner, Kuno puffed out his chest more as he glanced at Akane with a smug look. Akane returned it with an angry glare. "Looks like Kuno's in rare form today Akane." Akane turned to face her sister Nabiki, who had taken a seat next to her. The older girl had short brown hair and carried herself with a businesslike air. "The odds I got on Kuno today are good!" Akane glared a bit at her older sister. "Hmpf! I can still beat him!" "I don't know Akane. He may prove himself better than you today!" "No one's better than me! I'll prove it today by winning this tournament!" "We'll see Akane. But be sure to put on a good show! I've got some good odds that you'll at least make it to the quarter-finals!" The next match was between Mousse and a person from Shinida who carried a Bo staff. Ranma watched as the referee signaled for the match to begin. The student tried to hit Mousse with the end of his weapon but the Chinese boy easily dodged out of the way, while calmly holding his arms out in front of him, with hands inside the sleeves. His opponent tried a series of strokes and jabs, but Mousse evaded those without counterattacking. By now the student had become angry and yelled out, "Fight!" With these words, he thrust his weapon at the Chinese boy's chest. It was then that Mousse's arms pulled out something from his robes and made a slashing motion. The Bo staff was reduced to splinters in a split second. Before he could react, Mousse made a blurring motion with his hands and struck forward. "FIST OF THE WHITE SWAN!" The student from Shinida didn't know what hit him. Mousse had moved so fast that the object the he had pulled out was a blur to the naked eye of any observer. Any observer except Ranma. As Mousse's opponent was knocked to the floor of the ring and lapsed into unconsciousness, the former Saotome's eyes narrowed. With his enhanced senses, Ranma had seen what Mousse had used to hit his adversary with. Sodan noticed Ranma's expression. "Hey Cojiro! Did you see what he just did?" Ranma nodded. "Yes. He's not going to get me with that one." The remaining fighters from Shinida were quickly dispatched. Shampoo displayed her raw power and skill as she pummeled a large wrestler to the mat with her steel maces. Akane Tendo took down a karate student in a minute, finally tossing him out of the fighting area. When Ukyo and Ryoga came up to fight, Ranma took special interest in their matches. Ryoga faced off against a huge sumo wrestler. With a single sweep of his bamboo umbrella, the eternal lost boy had knocked the 300lb+ student to the mat. It was then that he noticed Ryoga's body begin to glow with a green-white light. The sumo got back on his feet and launched himself at Ryoga. He began raining hard blows on him, but the Hibiki boy didn't even feel the attacks as his aura began to build up. After a minute of nonstop pummeling, Ryoga finally retaliated with a hard cross to the sumo's chin. This caused the sumo to stagger back a few feet. Before the stunned eyes of the audience, he cupped his palms before him and released his chi. "SHI SHI HOKODAN!" A huge blast of energy ripped forward and impacted against the sumo with tremendous force. The student didn't even have a chance to register what was happening as he was flung out of the ring. "What the hell was that?" Sakoto asked. "The Roaring Lion Bullet." Ranma replied as he watched Ryoga leave the fighting area. His teammates turned to him as he explained. "While I was traveling through China, I came across some masters who could use their emotions to focus their chi energies as an attack. One person was a former engineer who discovered that he could use his depression as a medium for his chi. He called it the Shi Shi Hokodan." "Can you do stuff like that?" Shang asked. Ranma nodded. "I learned how to do the Shi Shi Hokodan, but I really couldn't do it very well, since I couldn't get depressed enough to make it effective. But, I've learned to adapt it to something I could use." The final student from Shinida faced off against Ukyo. As soon as the referee blew his whistle, the okonomiyaki chef launched a barrage of razor-edged mini spatulas at her opponent. The boy was forced to dodge the projectiles and while he was distracted, Ukyo unslung her large spatula and delivered a hard blow to his head. CLANG! The student was hit solidly by her spatula and was out like a light. "Ouch! That's gotta hurt! That guy really knows how to deal out pain!" Kosho remarked. Ranma said nothing as he watched his childhood friend leave the ring. There was no doubt in his mind. After sifting through the scents of the crowds around him, he finally focused on Ukyo. He was absolutely positive that Ukyo was a girl. Humans gave off pheromones like animals, though to a very minute degree. Ranma's nose was sharp enough to pick up these trace odors and even discern between males and females. Ukyo was definitely? female. Ranma shook his head sadly as he remembered all the happy times they had shared together. Then he frowned as he remembered why Ukyo would be so mad at him now. Genma Saotome, his father, had broken up the best friendship he ever had. He truly was not looking forward to when he would face off against his former friend. Ranma stepped into the ring as he prepared to face his first set of challengers. He found out that he would have to face off against all the members of Shankara High's team, since his other teammates had sustained minor injuries. They assured him that they would be recovered enough to challenge Furinkan High. "In the blue dragon corner, we have Shin Koga!" The announcer gestured to a large and heavily muscled individual that was brandishing a pair of nunchakus. "In the white tiger corner, we have Cojiro Shinkara!" Ranma smiled as he made a signaling gesture with a wave of his hand. "Let's fight!" Ranma decided to put his enhanced speed and strength to work, without resorting to his special Ultimate Neko Ken techniques. These were only high school students and his tiger-based skills were capable of causing serious injuries and even death. His opponent wasted no time in launching his attack. Lunging forward, he swung his weapon at Ranma's head. However, his opponent was already dodging the blow, moving with a speed and grace that was beyond belief. Jumping high so that the club would pass harmlessly underneath, Ranma turned and delivered a reverse spin kick to his adversary's temple. The blow appeared to be a light hit to the audience, but with Ranma's increased strength, the impact felt by Shin was devastating. The larger boy was knocked out of the ring and sent flying into the crowd, twenty feet away. The audience was left with their mouths open. The fight was over in less than two seconds! Shin was left dazed and was seeing stars. The Furinkan team looked at the newcomer with mixed expressions and comments. "I would have done it faster!" Kuno said with arrogance. "He isn't much! I could do that!" Akane remarked with disdain. "Not bad." Ukyo said. "Not too bad for start!" Shampoo said with a hint of interest. "He's no match for a Master of Hidden Weapons! That was just a fluke!" Mousse said confidently. Ryoga said nothing. Ranma's next opponent held a wooden bokken as he entered the ring. Ranma calmly gauged his stance and nodded, as he decided the easiest way to take him out. As soon as the referee blew his whistle, he lunged forward in a flash and struck a couple of pressure points on his opponent's arms, causing him to release his weapon. Before the startled boy's mind had registered what was going on, he saw his own bokken come crashing down between his eyes. WHACK! The kendoist dropped to the mat on his face as Ranma casually stepped back, twirling the bokken like a baton. At this display, the Nerima Wrecking Crew lost some of its casual disregard for the newcomer. Nabiki gave off a low whistle as she looked at her watch. "Wow! He took him out in 1.3 seconds!" Akane frowned at her sister's comment and said, "Hmpf! It's easy to defeat someone who just stands there! I could still take him out! Any of us could, right?" Akane looked at her teammates for support. The rest of the team was still fixated on watching the newcomer as they slowly nodded. The third person to go up against Ranma was a wrestler who outmassed his opponent by nearly double and was about a foot taller. However, as soon as he grabbed at his foe, Ranma reacted with that same uncanny speed and had the wrestler's left wrist in an iron grip. The representative of Shankara High soon found himself flying out of the ring as Ranma casually tossed him over his shoulder. The student's face impacted against a steel lamppost and the match was over. By now, the Nerima Wrecking Crew was starting to reevaluate their conceptions about this newcomer. The fourth match was over with a spectacular move by Ranma. The giant bruiser he faced up against was nearly eight feet in height and weighed in at about 400lbs! However, as soon as Ranma grabbed him, the grappler found himself hoisted into the air. Ranma held him up with one hand, then body slammed him to the mat. He then grabbed the big guy by the legs and began swinging him around like an Olympic athlete competing in the Hammer Throw event. As soon as he gained enough momentum, Ranma released his opponent and sent him flying. The crowds had to duck for cover as the fighter-turned-projectile was sent crashing into the gymnasium, some two hundred yards away. Shampoo looked at Ranma with awe and said. "Shampoo must admit, he very strong!" The last person who was supposed to go up against Ranma had decided that he had seen enough and forfeited. After seeing the newcomer from Himoto polish off his teammates as easily as if he had been going through warm-up exercises, the student decided to play it safe. In the background, Ranma's team cheered on their new member as they realized that they were heading to the finals. After a few more matches, the two remaining schools left were Himoto and Furinkan. By now, his teammates were ready to face off against the Nerima Wrecking Crew. The final set of matches was to be a total elimination series. Each team would pit their members against their opposition with one-on-one bouts. Each member would continue to fight until he or she was defeated. The winner would be the team who had at least one member left. Himoto High's team found they were at a bit of a disadvantage as they numbered only five, while their opponents had six. The order in which each member was to fight was chosen at random by the judges. Ranma became worried as he was placed last in line for his team. The first bout was between Kosho and Kuno. Despite Kosho's assurance that he was ready, he was still a bit winded from his last bout. He had also suffered a pulled tendon in one of his arms after tossing out his last opponent. As a result, his reaction time was slower. He was unable to block Kuno's strikes for long and when a solid hit caught him on the back, he went down. Ranma cried out as Kuno gave his opponent a hard blow to the head, knocking him out. Then he decided to add insult to injury as he gave a savage kick to Kosho's midsection. "Hey!" Ranma shouted out as he began to feel his temper rise. He began to advance on the ring but was held back by Sakoto and Sodan. The referee was giving him a warning, which Kuno blatantly ignored as he casually waited for his next opponent. As Kosho was being carried out of the fighting area, Ranma glared at the smug kendoist. Sodan was next to face off against Kuno, but he didn't last long. He managed to evade some of the kendoist's quick strikes, but his speed was nowhere near Kuno's. Falling for a feint, Sodan was hit on the head with the hilt of Kuno's bokken. Sodan went down. Kuno simply laughed as he held up his bokken in triumph. "Against the awesome might of the Blue Thunder, no mere mortal could stand against me!" Kuno also defeated Shang and Sakoto in short order. Shang had received a side blow to his left flank, causing him to fall out of the ring. Sakoto was far too massive and slow to dodge and was subjected to hundreds of bokken strikes. When it was all over, Ranma found himself the last member of his team still able to fight. As he quietly entered the ring, Kuno laughed maniacally. All he had to do was defeat the last member of the Himoto team and victory would be Furinkan's. Or rather victory would be his! Ranma's expression became dark and menacing as he watched Kuno. With those thoughts, Ranma took up a new stance. His fists opened up and formed 'claws' as he began focusing his chi. A battle aura began to form and glowed with red. The audience became silent as he waited for Kuno to stop laughing and face him. Kuno was a bit unnerved to see his final opponent seem to glare at him like a tiger ready to pounce on him. He quickly smothered his thoughts as he readied his wooden sword. Before the referee signaled the start of the fight, Kuno decided to taunt his adversary. "So? this is it. With your defeat, I will once again prove to all that I, Tatewaki Kuno am the greatest warrior of all time! Not that anything that Himoto High had any competent fighters to begin with! Mere peasants that not even worthy to grovel at my feet!" Just as the referee blew his whistle, Ranma let out a tremendous roar that sounded like his tiger form. This startled both Kuno and the audience. Before the arrogant kendoist knew it, Ranma was already in front of him and delivering a downward slash with his claws. In a nanosecond, his bokken was reduced to thin slices. Kuno was still standing in shock as Ranma spun and delivered a hard backhand to his face. The Blue Thunder was sent flying out of the ring and collided with a nearby billboard, smashing through it and collapsing it. The crowd stood in awe as several judges ran over to the pile of rubble and checked on Kuno's condition. After a minute, they signaled to the others that the kendoist had survived. Ranma stood and waited for his next challenger. The Furinkan team stood with their mouths open. They had never seen Kuno get defeated so quickly and badly before. They had seen Akane defeat him, but she had never been able to do it that efficiently. Nabiki stared at her watch and said, "Holy! He beat Kuno in? one tenth of a second!" "So what?" Akane said. "I beat Kuno all the time! Here I thought I wasn't going to have a chance against this guy! Looks like I'll be able to show everyone that I'm the best fighter!" Although Akane said those words with confidence, a small part of her began to worry. The next match was between Mousse and Ranma. Mousse was confident that he would be able to defeat this newcomer and prove his worthiness to Shampoo. As soon as the referee blew his whistle, he exploded into action. He began his assault by lobbing smoke bombs at his opponent, hoping to confuse him. The ring was briefly covered in a thick black cloud. However, when he lunged at his opponent with a wicked-looking club, he discovered that Ranma was not there. Mousse was then smashed hard in the shoulder and back as Ranma came up behind him and delivered several blows. The smoke may have confused his sense of smell, but not his hearing. He had heard the myopic martial artist's approach and dodged his attack. Ranma then turned and let loose with several more punches. When the smoke cleared Ranma and Mousse faced off. The crowd clearly noticed that the Chinese boy sported several large bruises on his face and was a bit unsteady. Ranma calmly took a new stance and waited. Mousse was more than ticked off as he launched a barrage of chains and sharp projectiles, which Ranma easily dodged, as he closed the gap between him and his opponent. Mousse couldn't believe the speed, in which his foe was moving and decided to give him his final attack. Blurring his hands, he took out an object and shouted out. "FIST OF THE WHITE SWAN!" However, much to his surprise, Ranma evaded the blow, kicked the object out of his hands and sent it flying upward. Before Mousse could pull out another weapon, Ranma's claws glowed with an eerie red light. "TIGER CLAW FRENZY!" Ranma's arms blurred he began slashing at his opponent with unbelievable speed. Within one second, he delivered more than six hundred slashes, which reduced the Chinese boy's robes to tattered rags. The attack had also cut whatever remaining weapons in his clothes into scrap metal. When Ranma leapt back, Mousse stood dumbfounded as his clothes fell apart. His upper body was covered in red marks. When the pain of the attack reached his brain a half-second later, Mousse passed out and fell on his face. It was then that the object that Ranma had kicked out earlier landed on the mat beside him. It was a training potty that was shaped like a duck. By now, the members of Team Furinkan had become more concerned. The newcomer had just displayed a technique that was both unbelievable and extremely effective. One person in particular was very interested after seeing Mousse be so easily defeated. She put on a face of determination as she stepped into the ring, bonbori held at the ready. As she took a stance, Ranma's eyes widened a bit. Ranma thought for a moment, then shrugged as he prepared for her first attack. As the referee blew his whistle, the two leapt to the attack. Immediately, Ranma noticed that Shampoo was a far more seasoned fighter than Kuno and Mousse. Her attacks were especially strong as he blocked and dodged. She was as powerful as the rumors said she was. Ranma began fighting a defensive pattern as he analyzed her moves. Ranma then noticed a weakness in her legwork. Apparently, her heavy steel maces were putting her off balance a bit, causing her to exert a bit more to compensate. With that in mind, Ranma found his opening. As Shampoo delivered another series of strikes, he moved forward and gave a horizontal slash before leaping back. Shampoo thought that Ranma had missed and charged at him. Just as she raised her weapons and sent them toward his head, the steel maces fell off their handles and clattered to the mat. This all happened too fast for Shampoo to stop her charge. As she tried to halt her forward momentum, Ranma spun around and delivered a smooth kick to her midsection. As she went down, he moved toward one of the broken maces and used a foot motion to flip the sphere into the air. Shampoo scrambled to her feet attacked him with fists flying. She then shouted out her special technique. "KATCHU TENSHIN AMAGURIKEN!" Ranma was caught off guard by the sudden blurring of Shampoo's hands. He was hit at least three hundred times in the chest and face before he stepped back a few paces. Despite his enhanced strength and endurance, his body felt a bit sore from the assault. Shaking his head a bit, he took a stance, then lunged back at her and delivered his own counterattack. "TIGER CLAW FRENZY!" After seeing Mousse get savaged by that particular attack, Shampoo knew that the best way to counter it was to simply stay out of reach. She used several evasive maneuvers, which had her dancing around the ring. At first she thought she had outsmarted her opponent, but then she saw him? smiling? She left even more confused when he suddenly stopped his assault and leapt back. He casually stood with his arms crossed and waited. Shampoo looked at him for a moment, then decided to launch another attack. Then it hit her. The broken mace that Ranma had sent into the air came crashing down on Shampoo's head. Shampoo fell to the mat in a heap. The audience was stunned. The previous attack had been a decoy to get her to move under the descending weapon. Ranma smiled as the referee declared him the winner. Ukyo and Akane entered the ring and carried their unconscious teammate to their bench. Ranma thought as the announcer signaled for a five-minute time out. As Ranma sat on his bench, he looked over to where the opposing team sat. His gaze first looked at the one named Akane. She had an angry look about her as she returned his gaze with a glare of her own. His eyes then trained themselves on Ukyo, who was at the moment dabbing a wet rag over Shampoo's forehead. The Amazon was still a bit dazed as she lay on the bench. Ryoga was standing near Akane and was giving him a look of appraisal. Ranma sighed as he looked to his own empty bench. His teammates had been taken to the infirmary, along with Mousse and Kuno. Ranma let out another depressed sigh as he thought about how much his team had gone through to get to this final set of matches. It was now all up to him to win it for Himoto High. With that in mind, he stood up and prepared for the next match. "In the blue dragon corner," The announcer began after the time out expired. "Representing Furinkan High, Akane Tendo of the Anything Goes School of Martial Arts!" He then gestured to Ranma. "In the white tiger corner, Cojiro of Himoto High!" There was a great amount of cheering coming from the male members of the audience. Ranma mused as he began sizing up his opponent. The girl was shorter than he was by about nine inches. His enhanced senses began reading her aura. Akane rushed at her opponent and threw a hard, straight right, which Ranma easily dodged. Ranma almost unconsciously began weaving and evading her next series of attacks. Ranma then weaved around a dozen more blows. Akane couldn't understand it. She was throwing solid punches and kicks, but this boy was dodging as if they were nothing. He didn't seem to be even taking her seriously. This lack of attention began to make her temper rise. Wasn't she the best martial artist in Nerima? Didn't she always beat up Kuno and fifty other boys every day? Akane tried another combination, only to have those evaded as well. He wasn't even fighting back. He was mocking her and her skills! She then began throwing even more punches and kicks, forcing him toward the edge of the ring. Akane threw a full-strength punch at his face. Ranma simply leapt over the blow and did a flip over her head, landing behind her. As Akane was still moving forward from her attack, he took advantage of her being temporarily off balance. Reaching out with an arm and extending an index finger, he gave a firm push at the back of her head. Akane yelped as she toppled forward and? out of the ring. As she did so, he heard a lot of boos and hisses, as the crowds became a little ugly. Akane fell on her stomach and then looked up. Her expression turned from shock to rage as she glared back at her opponent. She scrambled to her feet and charged at her opponent. The referee blew his whistle, stopping her and alerting the crowds. "You have lost the match! The winner is Cojiro!" "How dare he do that to Akane!" Ryoga shouted as he began charging the ring. The referee blew his whistle, while Ukyo moved up and placed her spatula in front of the lost boy, halting him. "One more outburst like that and Furinkan forfeits the tournament!" One of the judges said from their podium. At these words, the students from Furinkan suddenly grew quiet and audience became deathly silent. Ranma looked around in confusion as he wondered what was going on. "Ease off Ryoga!" Ukyo said as she lowered her spatula. "If you attack him now, we'll lose for sure! And you know what will happen if we do!" Ryoga gave Ranma an intense glare, then backed off to join Akane at the bench, who was still fuming at her humiliation. Nabiki couldn't help but rub it in. "Well Akane. You SURE showed him who's the best martial artist!" "Shut up Nabiki!" A few minutes later, Ranma was against the one person with whom he didn't want to fight. Ukyo stood at the ready with her giant spatula as the referee blew his whistle. She immediately charged at Ranma and started swinging. Ranma countered each of her attacks with kicks and punches, trying to find out a way for him to win without seriously hurting his old friend. Being so close to her was also a bit of a distraction. Her pheromones were coming in strong and it was hard for him to keep focused. Ranma was almost clipped by her weapon as it narrowly missed his head. Mentally chiding himself for not paying better attention, he then went on the offensive. Ducking yet another series of blows, he moved forward and got inside her defenses. Jabbing forward with his fingers, he hit several pressure points on her arms, making her relax her grip on the handle. With a swift drop kick, he sent the huge cooking utensil upward. Leaping high, he met the spatula at a height of twenty-five feet. His hands glowed with a blue light as he formed his claws and made a downward slash with both hands. "RIPCLAW SLASH!" When Ranma landed the crowd and Ukyo were stunned. The metal spatula fell to the mat in six neatly cut pieces. Ukyo stared at her remains of her weapon in shock. Her face then took on a mask of rage as she took out her throwing spatulas and launched them at her opponent. With a single swipe of his claws, Ranma reduced the deadly projectiles to metal confetti. Ukyo began to get desperate as she reached into her okonomiyaki outfit and then threw what looked like thin ropes. Ranma was a bit surprised that she still had something to fight with. His slight distraction cost him as the ropes snared his arms. "What the heck are these?" Ranma asked as he got a better look at what was holding him. "Those are my special Rubber Yakasoba Noodles!" Ukyo replied as she somehow produced a bucket and then leapt toward him. She then said, "Here's another of my special ingredients, Tempura Flakes and Gunpowder!" She then dumped the contents of the bucket onto her foe, which caused a huge cloud and several explosions. Ukyo stepped back and waited for the cloud to disperse. For a long moment, no sound came from the cloud and Ukyo shrugged, assuming she had won the match. "Hm. Nothing left but the cleanup!" It was then that something burst forth from the cloud. It was her own noodles, which wrapped themselves around her body, pinning her arms to her sides. When the dust cleared, Ranma stood while holding the other ends of the noodles. He looked at Ukyo's surprised expression with a stern look, then sighed as he said in very quiet whisper, "Forgive me Ucchan." "Huh? What did you just call? erk!" Ukyo found herself pulled forward and then thrown out of the ring. She landed on her back on a soft patch of grass. She looked up at the ring in confusion as the referee announced Ranma's latest victory. "And now for the final match!" The announcer said as Ryoga entered the ring. "In the blue dragon corner, Ryoga Hibiki of Furinkan High!" There was a loud cheer from the students from Furinkan. "In the white tiger corner, Cojiro Shinkara of Himoto!" Another loud cheer came from the crowds, this time from Himoto High supporters. "You'll pay for what you did to Akane!" Ryoga shouted as he took on a stance. Ranma took his own stance and began measuring up his final opponent. Ryoga was already attacking as soon as the referee blew his whistle. Rushing toward Ranma, he began swinging his umbrella. Ranma however, was just too fast as he evaded the first few strikes with catlike quickness. As soon as Ryoga's umbrella came down at his head, Ranma's hand came up and caught it. Using his inhuman strength, he wrenched it from Ryoga's hands and then sent it crashing down on the lost boy's skull. WHAM! Ryoga staggered back, more from surprise than pain at being hit by his own weapon. Ranma thought as he watched his adversary shake his head to clear it. Ryoga then became enraged as he pulled off his bandanna and launched it at him. Ranma ducked underneath the flying piece of cloth, thinking that it was some sort of joke. He changed his opinion a moment later when he looked behind him and saw the bandanna slice through a nearby sign. Looking back at his opponent, he saw Ryoga begin pulling out more bandannas from his forehead, revealing yet another one beneath it. He launched a dozen or so of the homemade shurikens at him. Ranma wasted not time in countering the attacks. With a series of quick slashes, he reduced the bandannas into harmless tattered pieces of cloth. He then rushed forward and got inside Ryoga's defense, delivering several solid blows at his midsection. Ranma took special care to pull his punches, since he knew that hitting him full strength would have been fatal. To Ranma's surprise however, Ryoga simply stood unmoving and took each punch. Ranma stepped back and looked at him with confusion. Ryoga gave him a smug grin and said. "Is that the best you can do? Those punches felt like a baby was hitting me! Let's see how you like my punches!" Ryoga sent a hard right cross to Ranma's chin, then winced in pain as he pulled back his fist. Ranma also stood there and looked back at Ryoga. "Well, I was surprised that you had such good endurance, but then again I was holding back that last time. Let's see if you can take it when I hit you a little HARDER!" Ryoga tried another series of vicious punches, but Ranma ducked under the assault and planted a blow to his gut. Ryoga's breath whooshed out as he felt pain flaring in his belly. The punch was far more than he expected as he was sent flying toward the end of the ring. Only by doing a tuck and roll, did he manage to prevent himself from being knocked out of the ring. The last fighter of Furinkan High picked himself painfully off the ground and took a stance against his opponent. Ryoga began focusing his chi. Ranma immediately noticed the power buildup and he also began concentrating. Both combatants glowed with bright auras as the crowd watched in anticipation. They knew what was going on. Ryoga suddenly threw his hands forward and released a huge blast of green energy. "SHI SHI HOKODAN!" Ranma then thrust his hands forward and released his own attack. "RAGING TIGER BOLT!" Ranma's attack was composed of blue energy and was shaped like an oval as it collided with Ryoga's fireball. For a moment, it appeared as if the two attacks would cancel each other out. Then Ranma's attack blasted through Ryoga's and struck him full force in the chest. Ryoga screamed in pain as he fell to his knees. He then looked up and said, "N-no way! Nobody could defeat my Roaring Lion Bullet!" "Says you!" Ranma replied as he began powering up his chi again. "Your chi attack is based on your emotions, specifically your depression! My chi attack not only uses my feelings of determination, but it also absorbs power from nature! Like this!" Ranma's eyes began glowing red, then flared as he launched another attack. "CAT'S EYE BEAMS!" Twin beams of red-hot energy lanced forth and struck Ryoga. The lost boy's body flared anew with pain as he felt a searing heat envelop him. Before he had time to even scream Ranma made a slashing motion with his right arm. "CRESCENT SLASH!" A large blast of red energy shaped like a quarter moon flew forward. Ryoga barely managed to duck under the attack. The crowd watched in awe as the attack flew onward and struck the nearby gymnasium, easily slicing off a large section of the roof. Ryoga was in serious pain as he saw Ranma beginning to glow with an intense aura. Concentrating what little strength he had, Ryoga released his most powerful attack. "ULTIMATE SHI SHI HOKODAN!" A huge green ball of energy exploded upward from Ryoga and started to descend on Ranma. However, just as it was about to crash down on top of him, Ranma's eyes became solid red and he let loose his technique. "ULTIMATE NEKO KEN, FINAL ATTACK! BERSERKER RAGE!" Ranma's aura flared as he moved forward at a speed that registered as a trailing blur. The green fireball impacted harmlessly at the spot where Ranma had been a nanosecond before. Before Ryoga had even a chance to react, his opponent was already upon him. Ranma leapt up and began subjecting his opponent to an intense mauling. His hands shaped into claws and began slashing at his foe with a ferocity that made his Tiger Claw Frenzy technique seem tame. In less than one second, Ryoga was slashed more than two thousand times! His body jerked and swayed as it was thoroughly shredded. As the last slash went by, Ranma grabbed the battered boy and threw him up into the air. Concentrating his chi he leapt up after him to deliver the final hit. Just as Ryoga was starting his downward descent, Ranma crossed his arms together, then whipped them out in downward, diagonal slashes. His claws trailed blazing arcs of energy, which enveloped the lost boy and exploded. Ryoga landed on his face in a torn up heap. Although he had received far deeper cuts and gashes than Mousse did, Ranma had made certain that the technique had rendered him unconscious and not dead. He lightly landed on the mat a few feet away and waited. The audience stared in absolute silence as they all looked to the judges. The referee ran up to the beaten form of Ryoga and checked for signs of life. A moment later, he signaled to the judges that the Hibiki boy would recover, and the head judge announced Ranma to be the winner of the tournament. The crowd that was composed of Himoto students cheered him with an ovation that was deafening. However, the Furinkan High students watched in shocked silence. One stranger had defeated their best fighters and now, they were going to pay for their loss. Ranma looked with a puzzled expression at the Furinkan High side of the crowd as he was carried off on the shoulders of excited shoulders of his fellow students. To be continued? Author's Notes Below, you'll find a small explanation of each of Ranma's special moves. Tiger Claw Frenzy: This is the original Cat Fist technique, but is under Ranma's conscious control. In the anime, we've seen him shred through tree trunks and other materials within seconds. Its speed is even greater than the Chestnut Fist. It is fast and it is extremely useful for close-quarters, able to deliver an average of six hundred strikes per second! It doesn't have much in terms of damage, compared to his other techniques. Rip Claw Slash: By focusing his chi, Ranma is able to strengthen the power of his cat strikes to the point in which they are able to slice through stronger materials such as stone and even tempered steel. He is not able to deliver many strikes with this technique, but he doesn't need to since the skill can cause greater damage. Cat's Eye Beams: Through some unknown process that is inherent in both his human and tiger form, Ranma can shoot out beams of heat or concussive force. The range and the extent of damage of the beams are not yet known but Ranma has been able to melt metals with them. Raging Tiger Bolt: Unlike the Moko Takabisha that we know in the mange and anime, this chi blast is far stronger than the normal Shi Shi Hokodan. It does not draw its power from Ranma's ego or pride, but rather from his determination. Since he is patterned after a tiger, his will to survive is far greater than his desire to be the best. His animal form is a thing of nature, so Ranma is able to tap into nature's power. His journey through China has also helped him as he learned from masters who were able to tap into the chi of their environment. Crescent Slash: A variation of the Raging Tiger Bolt that is flattened out and given an edge for cutting. Ranma is able to slice though materials from a distance with it. Berserker Rage: Ranma's finishing move, in which he allows himself to partially submerge into the ferocity of his beast form. Ranma is able to rush toward his opponent at unbelievable speed and deliver an amplified version of the Tiger Claw Frenzy. The damage is still the same, but at four times the speed! The final part of the move is actually a midair Rip Claw Slash with both hands. In this case, Ranma had purposely held back, as he knew that a full- powered strike would have sliced Ryoga to pieces! In any case, I hope the rewrites so far has cleared up some of the discrepancies and explained a few things. I intend to continue on as I go along.