A Fighting Blind Side Story

Introduction: This is a story of Blind Ranma's childhood during

his training in the Unseen Light with Koga. A lot of readers have

asked me if Ranma had ever encountered the Musk Dynasty and

this tale will deal with that and a few other aspects.

Disclaimer: None of these characters are my own and therefore

the blame must not be placed on me.

<" ">: Chinese language

* *: Thoughts

Can I Keep Him?

Part 1

Ranma at age 12...

In a forest clearing near the village of Nieuchiezu, a young,

sightless boy was busy with his bo staff katas outside the

boundaries of the Training Grounds of Cursed Springs, Jusenkyo.

As he swung his wooden weapon around in intricate patterns of

thrusts and parries at imagined enemies, he also concentrated on

his surroundings as his enhanced natural senses of smell, hearing,

taste and touch reached out and took in as much information as

they could. His developing sixth sense was on the lookout for

anything that threatened him, and his seventh sense was giving

him moderately detailed images in his mind of the forest he was in.

A short distance away, a mother Bengal tiger and her only cub

was stalking some prey near the steep cliffs of Jusenkyo. As the

large cat began teaching her offspring on how to hunt and pounce

on prey, the two became very edgy as they neared the

magically-infused pools of the training ground. Like most

animals, the tigress and her cub had a sensitivity toward things

of a mystical nature, which mirrored Ranma's own sixth and

seventh senses.

The cub mewed a bit and shared the same sensation of

uneasiness that his mother was feeling. The young cat still had

tuffs of baby fur around the ears and tail, as its pelt was just

starting to darken. The stripes were prominently displayed which

will allow the kitten to blend in with grasses and foliage. One

very distinguishing feature was that it had a small notch on the

top of the left ear. The cub had encountered a very touchy lizard,

which had taken a bite out of its ear before scampering off. After

that experience, the cub made it a point to not wander off again.

At this point in time, hunger was the primary concern as the

tigress decided to force away her feelings of anxiety as she

neared her intended kill, which happened to be a very fat boar.

Her cub also needed to be fed as he had just been weaned from

his mother's milk and had started on a diet of meat. As she

neared the boar while her cub was standing a few yards away

and watching, the tigress tensed up and prepared to pounce.

The boar was feeding on some fungi near the edge of one of

the steep cliffs that overlooked the training grounds. There

would be no escape. Taking a deep, low growl, she bent down

low, then leapt out from the cover of some large bushes for the

kill.

Unfortunately, the boar squealed as it saw that it was being

attacked, and just managed to scamper off to one side, narrowly

evading the tigress' extended claws. As her prey scrambled

away, the predatory cat's fate was sealed as she landed on a

very unstable part of the cliff. Her heavier weight caused the

ledge to collapse and the doomed female tiger let off a final

anguished roar as she tumbled down the slopes of Jusenkyo.

The young cub let off a horrified yelp as he saw his mother

fall down the side of the cliff. He hunched down scared as he

suddenly found itself an orphan and alone in the world. For a

long while, he didn't know what to do, but finally, he gathered

enough courage to slowly approach the edge where he had seen

his mother disappear. He carefully looked over the side and saw

a landscape of pools below. The cub then saw that the surface

of the nearest pool was still rippling. Unknown to the young

tiger, he had just witnessed the creation of the Spring of

Drowned Tigress, a very tragic story of a mother tiger that

drowned in Jusenkyo, two minutes ago.

The young cub was still unsure of what to do, when the ledge

he was standing on gave way and he too went tumbling down

the slopes. It seemed that the cub would join his mother as he

let off a pathetic cry, which wasn't likely to be heard by anyone...

except for a certain disciple of the Unseen Light.

----------

Ranma was just finishing his katas, when heard a huge roar,

followed by the sounds of small landslide. He decided to

investigate and went off toward the sound. His seventh sense

was developed enough to allow him to navigate through the forest

with little difficulty, but it and his sixth sense began going

to full alert as he neared the outer boundaries of Jusenkyo. He

winced as he started receiving multiple signals, as if he was

in a huge crowd of people and animals. The essences of those who

had drowned at Jusenkyo was giving him quite a headache, but

Ranma bit down and tried to focus his senses forward. It was

then that he caught the signal of something tumbling down the

slopes of Jusenkyo from above, as well as hear the sound which

resembled the meow of a cat. Ranma shivered a bit at the

memory of the Neko Ken training, but he then realized that

something was about to land into a pool. His mother had warned

him never to go to Jusenkyo, though she had not told him as to

why it was considered dangerous. The only thing she had said

to him was that anyone who fell into the pools would be cursed.

Ranma raced toward the base of the cliffs, just near the edge of

a pool, which happened to be uncursed at the moment and then

sensed that a small shape was just about to land into the waters.

Ranma reached out with his staff and braced himself as

something landed heavily on the end of it. Just as it made

contact, Ranma swung the staff to one side, away from the pool

and set whatever it was safely and gently down on the ground.

He pulled back his staff and reached out with his senses at the

animal he had just saved from creating the Spring of Drowned

Tiger Cub.

The little cat shook his head to clear it and then looked up at

his savior. He then tensed up and went into a kind of defensive

crouch with his claws extended and baring his teeth. The cub let

off a low growl as he tried to make himself look bigger and more

dangerous than he actually was, though he was about half the

size of a large tomcat. He still retained a few tufts of down

around the ears and face, and his stripes were just starting to

show on his fur and tail.

Ranma blanched a bit as he recognized the image in his head.

He had just saved a cat. Though it had been more than six years

since his experience with the Cat Fist training, he still shivered

a bit at the memory. The last thing he had seen before he was

rendered blind was a set of claws. His seventh sense was informing

him that this cat had its claws extended toward him and he could

tell that the animal was both nervous and frightened. Though the

young boy had thankfully not learned the Cat Fist, nor gained the

irrational fear toward cats, he still was a bit edgy whenever he

was near anything feline. A few Amazons kept cats as house pets,

and it took some time for Ranma to get used to their presence.

However, with this cat, he felt something... different. He could

detect that the cat was scared and... was feeling sadness. It was

if he had experienced seeing a traumatic event and was unsure of

what to do. Ranma could relate to that as he remembered back to

that time in the hospital after awakening to a world of darkness.

He could detect a very young, inexperienced mind and decided

that this cat needed someone, just as he did all those years back.

Ranma carefully knelt down and placed his staff off to one side.

The cub tensed up and prepared for any sudden movements. The

young boy recalled back to the lessons that his master had taught

him about encountering wild animals. Beasts could sense the

emotions of others and it would be best if the blind boy did not

emit any feelings or make any sudden movements that might

startle the cub. He began focusing his aura and directed a sense

of serenity and peace toward the orphaned tiger, while slowly,

very carefully, moving his hands toward him with palms up.

"Shhhh... it all right. I'm not here to hurt you."

The cub made a few short swipes at him, but remained his

crouched position as Ranma continued to inch his way toward

him. The blind boy would stop when he detected that the cub was

getting nervous, then start again when the cat calmed down. For

a long time, Ranma patiently made his way toward the frightened

feline, while still emitting his aura in a soothing manner. Finally,

after over an hour, Ranma smiled as his finger lightly touched the

cat's fur and began stroking gently. After another half-hour, the

cat was relaxed enough as Ranma carefully picked up the cub

and cradled it in his arms. The cub began making some purring

noises as the Unseen Light disciple brought it close to him.

----------

Later, back in the village...

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHH!!!!"

Many of the villagers who were passing by Jasmine's home were

startled by her scream after Ranma came in through the front

door and showed her the bundle that he carried with him.

<"RANMA! WHERE DID YOU GET THAT?!" >

<"I found him near Jusenkyo and...">

<"JUSENKYO?! WHAT WERE YOU DOING THERE?!">

<Well, I heard a noise and then I saved him from falling into the

pools. Can I keep him?" >

<"KEEP HIM?! RANMA, DO YOU REALIZE WHAT YOU'VE GOT?! >

<"Yes, he's just a kitten and...">

Jasmine took a deep breath and looked at her adopted son with an

exasperated expression before informing him in a calmer, yet still

firm tone. <"Ranma, that is NOT a kitten! THAT is a tiger cub!

Wherever you found him, put him back immediately! His mother

is probably looking for him right now! Besides, you CAN'T keep

a tiger in the village!" >

Ranma focused his senses on the squirming bundle in his arms

and realized at that moment that the feline he had certainly didn't

smell or sound like the other domesticated cats in the village. He

had thought he had come across a stray. He wondered why he

never noticed it before. He could also feel the more wild spirit

within the cub. Yet, he couldn't bring himself to part the little

guy after spending so much time gaining his trust. Then he

recalled the sadness that the cub had emitted and decided to

probe deeper. He gasped as he detected the sense of great loss

and utter sadness from the orphaned feline. There had to be only

one thing that could invoke such an emotion... and he did sense

another feline presence nearby where he found the cub... at

Jusenkyo.

<"But Mom...">

<"No buts, Ranma! Take him back to wherever you found

him!">

<"But...">

<"Ranma..."> Jasmine warned.

Ranma was about to protest further, but began picking up

sensations which told him that his Amazon mother would

brook no argument.

----------

"I don't want to leave him all alone, Master Koga."

"I'm sorry Ranma, but I must agree with Jasmine. A tiger in the

village is just asking for trouble! You'll have to take back that

cub to its mother." Koga indicated to the cub in Ranma's arms.

"Well... it's not really that easy, Master..."

"What do you mean? Your sense of smell is just as good as mine

and you could probably track down his mother with no

problems."

"Oh, I have a pretty good idea where Shinyu's mother might be."

Ranma said quietly with a sheepish , yet sad tone.

"Shinyu?"

"I sense a brave spirit in this one, don't you? And even though

I've only met him today, I know he'd make a great friend."

Koga couldn't help but smile at his student as he too detected a

strong spirit in the cub, then he became serious again. "Ranma,

what did you mean that you have a good idea where his mother

might be?"

Ranma sadly sighed as he gestured for his master to follow him.

----------

"So that's it." Koga said as he and Ranma stood before the pool

where Shinyu's mother had perished. In his arms, Shinyu tried

to squirm out of Ranma's arms and dive into the pool where his

mother's remains lay.

"Can you sense it?"

"Yes, Ranma. It seems that you are now responsible for little

Shinyu."

"Does that mean I can keep him?" Ranma asked hopefully.

Koga let off a tired sigh. "Shinyu can NOT stay in the village."

He then sensed the sadness in his pupil and added with a small

smile, "However, that does not mean you cannot care for him.

We'll... work something out."

----------

Eventually, Koga and Ranma made a small home for his new pet

in one of the many caves of the Bayankala Mountains. The blind

master had decided that caring and raising Shinyu would help

teach Ranma responsibility and give him a good companion. At

this point in his training, Ranma was still considered an

unwanted outsider in the village and had very few friends among

the Amazons, besides his cousin Shampoo and some of the males

like Razor, the apprentice metal and weapon smith. A pet might

ease Ranma's feelings of loneliness and get him out of his

isolated shell.

----------

"Ranma has a pet?" Cologne asked with interest as she and Koga

sipped some tea at her house.

"Yes. He found an orphaned tiger cub near Jusenkyo and he's

now caring for it. His mother raised quite a fuss when he brought

it into the house. She told him to take it back, but he was already

quite taken with the cub. In any case, with its mother dead, he

couldn't just release it into the wild. It would have perished soon

afterwards."

"A tiger cub?" Cologne said with surprise. "Now THAT'S an

unusual... pet. Where is it?"

"We've set up a small home for it in one of the many caves in the

eastern mountain areas, AWAY from the village of course. We

don't want little Shinyu ending up as a hunting trophy, right?" He

then became a bit sheepish. "We... haven't told Jasmine about it...

and I would prefer to have it remain that way."

Cologne nodded. "Still, raising a tiger cub is quite a responsibility."

"A responsibility that I'm certain that Ranma will be able to

handle. In fact, teaching Shinyu how to survive in the wild will

also sharpen Ranma's senses as well."

"I can imagine. However, I am still uneasy about..."

"Ranma and the Neko Ken?" Koga finished for her. "Do not

worry. I think that with the arrival of Shinyu, we can safely say

that my disciple does NOT have the dreaded Cat Fist. He's gotten

used to the cats in the village and since Shinyu is a big cat, even

though he's still a cub, Ranma has shown none of the madness

of the Neko Ken."

Cologne was silent as she thought about it, then nodded in

agreement. For the last few years, the elder had been silently

fearing that Ranma had learned the irrational and potentially

dangerous technique. For that reason, she had been keeping the

cats of the village at a distance from him. However, with the

boy more than willing to raise a large predatory cat with none

of the accompanying fear or madness, proved once and for all

that Ranma did not learn the Cat Fist during his time with his

worthless father.

----------

One year later...

"Shinyu? Where are you?" Ranma called out as he approached

the cave in which he kept his oversized pet. Over the past twelve

months, Ranma had been secretly raising the tiger cub on how to

hunt and survive on his own. The cat was also a good training

partner to help Ranma with his stealth and tracking skills. Every

time Ranma came to the cave, they would play a little game in

which they would try to catch each other off guard. As of now,

Ranma could detect the presence of his feline friend, but Shinyu

was doing a pretty good job in masking his exact whereabouts.

Over the past year, Shinyu's own personal aura had been taking

on a kind of special property all of its own. Whether this was due

to being in close proximity to Ranma's specialized ki energies or

if Shinyu had somehow learned how to manipulate its own aura,

one cannot say. However, Ranma found it extremely difficult to

detect his pet when it focused its inner power to blend in with the

surrounding area. Even Koga was impressed at how the cat could

minimize detection of its ki. Unless Shinyu relaxed his

concentration, only at close range could the blind boy feel the ki

of his tiger with his sixth sense. Until he was near enough,

Ranma had to rely on his senses of smell, touch, hearing and his

still-developing seventh sense.

Ranma then began to slow down as he neared the cave and went

into a kind of crouching stance. He extended his seventh sense

outward and took in every little detail as his nostrils flared for

any trace of his pet's scent. In his mind, he saw the rough outlines

of the cave entrance, the foot of the mountain, and the lush

bushes which grew all around. He tensed up when his seventh

sense picked up a very rough, almost indistinct outline of

something that was not part of the landscape. He smiled as he

focused in on the shape and then caught a very slight whiff of a

certain feline. Shinyu was hiding in some very thick and fragrant

hedges to try and mask his scent. The boy also could detect the

thermal emanations coming from the tiger's body heat.

Ranma then made it look as if he didn't know where Shinyu was

as he turned his back to where the tiger was and took a few steps

away from him. That was when Shinyu made his move and

pounced on the Unseen Light disciple. A hundred pounds of

year-old predatory feline came hurtling at him with a roar.

However, at the last instant, Ranma ducked, letting Shinyu pass

over him, missing him by inches. He then tackled his tiger as the

cat landed a few meters away. The two playfully tumbled down

a slope before rolling to a stop at the bottom with Ranma on top.

They wrestled with each other for a few more minutes before

they both stopped at the sound of a person applauding.

Koga smiled as he finished applauding and walked toward his

pupil and his pet. "Very good Ranma. I noticed that you managed

to pick up Shinyu, despite his ability to mask himself." He then

crouched down to stroke Shinyu behind the ear. "And you didn't

do too badly yourself Shinyu."

The tiger let of a pleased purr. He had gotten used to Ranma and

his master as their auras were similar. It was at that moment that

the cat suddenly stiffened as he detected something... or someone

was approaching. Koga and Ranma also sensed the presences and

the blind master shuddered a bit as he recognized the ki

signatures.

"Ranma! Take Shinyu and go hide in the cave. Now!"

"But Master! What is...?"

"Do as I say! Unless I tell you, do not come out! Mask your aura.

You too Shinyu! Go now!"

The Unseen Light master leapt off without another word as

Ranma led his pet into the cave.

----------

Koga leapt high and hid himself in the branches of a tall tree.

As the intruders neared where Ranma and Shinyu were hiding,

he subtlety extended his senses to scan them. He frowned as the

heavily armed warriors of the Musk Dynasty passed by.

Ranma's mentor had very bad memories of his encounter with

the rivals of the Joketsuzoku when he was a child. The last image

he had seen with his eyes was the flash of Musk Warrior's knife

during an attack when he was eleven. Since that time, after

mastering the Unseen Light, the blind martial artist had

occasionally encountered the Musk Dynasty during their brief

and infrequent skirmishes with the warrior women. He had even

killed several of their strongest warriors, but always in

self-defense and he made certain to leave no evidence which may

reveal the existence of the Unseen Light. The Musk had been

circulating rumors among themselves that the Amazons were in

possession of some new techniques which could evade detection

by even their ki abilities and could fell their strongest fighters.

Koga's senses counted seven in the hunting party and each had

phenomenal ki and physical abilities. This was only to be

expected as he knew that the Musk depended heavily on the

springs of Jusenkyo for their way of life. They would have

animals dunked into the spring of drowned girl, then lock the

poor beast in its cursed form before mating with them. The

offspring that were created by the unions possessed the powers

of the animal such as enhanced endurance, strength and

heightened senses, as well as increased ki stores. Koga also knew

of what they did to females when they found them, which is why

the Amazons were especially wary of them. It was one thing to

be defeated in fair combat and bring strong blood into their

ranks, but it was quite another thing to be forced into slavery.

So far, the Joketsuzoku still reigned supreme in the Bayankala

Mountains, but they had only been able to hold out for this long

as the Musk lacked the techniques and skills to efficiently use

their the raw ki potential at their disposal.

Koga became relieved when he sensed that the Musk hunting

party had not detected him nor Ranma and his pet. They began

moving away from the cave's location and headed east. Though

Koga was quite capable of taking on the Musk fighters, he had

the safety of his pupil to think about. Ranma represented the

future hope of Koga's school. The blind master had begun to

feel the effects of old age creeping up on him. Once he was

gone, the boy would become the sole heir to his legacy.

When he was sure that the hunting party was far enough away,

Koga leapt down from the tree and hurried back to where Ranma

and Shinyu were hiding. It was at that moment that he stopped

as he detected the presence of another person that was sneaking

around the area. He frowned as he recognized that ki signature

and rushed to intercept him before he found Ranma.

*I'll be damned if I let that fat panda get a hold of Ranma now! *

----------

Genma quietly neared the place where he thought he saw his

missing son the day before. For the last five years, he had been

trying to steal Ranma back from the Amazons, but with no luck

whatsoever. Those blasted warrior women always prevented him

from getting within a hundred feet of the village gates and the fat

martial artist had to bide his time and wait for his son to come

out into the open. A few days ago, he had caught brief glimpses

of Ranma playing around with some big cat around the foot of

the mountain, but whenever he rushed to reclaim his property,

Ranma would be gone from sight.

What he didn't know was that Koga always kept a close watch on

his disciple and kept him away from Genma during their training

excursions. He had also chosen Shinyu's den in one of the

hundreds of caves that were located at the foot of the mountain.

Many of those caves had connecting tunnels and passageways.

One could spend years exploring them all.

The greedy disciple of the Anything Goes rubbed his palms

together with glee. Soon he would have his son and meal ticket

back and his luxurious retirement at the Tendo Dojo would be

assured. He could feel his son's presence was nearby. It wouldn't

be long now!

However, Genma's plans would once again be foiled as he came

to a clearing that stopped just short of the path that led to

where Ranma and Shinyu were hiding. Just as he stepped forward,

a figure leapt down from above and landed down in front of him.

Genma could only say a startled 'huh' before Koga gave him a

hard blow to his paunch, causing him to double over. He

followed through with a whack to the head with his cane.

Ranma's father went down like a sack of potatoes. The blind

man then hurried to Shinyu's den after ascertaining that Genma

would not wake up for a few minutes.

----------

"Where are we going, Master?" Ranma asked as Koga motioned

for Shinyu to follow.

"I'm afraid that we are going to have to move Shinyu to a new

den location. This place is getting to be too crowded." The blind

master replied.

Ranma nodded as he and his pet followed his mentor down the

dark passageway that was at the rear of the cave. The tunnel was

unlit, but since Ranma and Koga were blind and Shinyu had

excellent night vision, there was no need for torches. As the

young boy and his tiger went on ahead, Koga raised a hand and

extended a finger. He pressed a digit to the surface of one of

the walls and focused his ki into the rock. He then turned and

followed Ranma and Shinyu. The spot where he had pressed his

finger to glowed slightly as the ki worked its way into the wall.

----------

Genma just came to his senses, (such as they were), and began

looking around for the person who had suddenly appeared and

knocked him out. He wondered just who that stranger was and

why he suddenly attacked him. He soon put those thoughts aside

as he neared the place where he was sure that his son was.

Nothing could stop him from claiming him now!

It was at that moment that he heard a dull, muffled noise,

followed by the sounds of falling rock. By the time he got to

the place where Shinyu's den had been located at, he stopped

short as he saw that there was nothing left but mounds of dirt

and rocks. Apparently, there had been a landslide and anything

that had been here was probably buried beneath tons of rubble.

Ranma's father snorted in disgust as he saw that there was no

sign of his wayward son and decided to look for him elsewhere.

He let of a disappointed sigh and went off in another direction.

----------

Koga smiled with satisfaction as he sensed Genma moving away

from the area. Ranma, Shinyu and himself were now at another

cave, just a few hundred meters adjacent to the one that he had

caused to collapse. The Delayed Breaking Point had done its job

and he was glad that the immediate threat to Ranma's safety was

over. He was also glad that Ranma did not have to meet up with

the Musk today, especially at his tender age. However, he knew

that Ranma would eventually tangle with the likes of them soon

enough.

What Koga did not know was just HOW soon Ranma would

encounter the rivals of the Joketsuzoku.

----------

A few months after that incident...

Shampoo was out in a forest clearing near the foot of a nearby

mountain, practicing with the new bonbori clubs that Razor had

just fashioned for her. She had just begun using the heavy war

clubs and was relatively clumsy with them as she trained to

adjust to their weight. Many girls in the village had questioned

her decision to use them as her primary weapons, since the

bonbori had no sharp edges and appeared somewhat ungainly

and bulky in comparison with the slim young girl. Shampoo

was passing through puberty and her body had become more

curved as her femininity continued to blossom. Like many

Amazon girls, Shampoo's body underwent changes much

sooner than what was considered normal by the outside world.

When she was eleven, she was already in need of a bra.

At first, (naturally), Ranma didn't know what to make of the

swelling in his cousin's chest when they practiced grappling.

He thought she had some sort of illness. His mother Jasmine had

quite an uneasy time explaining to her son about the differences

between males and females, especially since she couldn't use

any visual aids. She had to resort to... 'hands-on' demonstrations

while teaching Ranma shiatsu techniques. There was no shortage

of willing volunteers to help with Ranma's education, (in many

cases, a little TOO willing for Jasmine's liking). Jasmine couldn't

really blame those girls as her adopted child had begun to grow

ever more pleasant-looking as he approached his teenage years.

And as Ranma's cousin, best friend, childhood playmate and

regular sparring partner, Shampoo was especially aware of how

the blind boy was maturing. In addition to her body becoming

more curved, the purple-haired girl was also experiencing the

effect of hormones on her libido.

Cologne's great-granddaughter continued to swing her weapons

in choppy arcs as she imagined herself being surrounded by

dozens of enemies. Nearby, the Elder watched and nodded as

she assessed the progress her prot�g�e. She then sensed the

presence of something else that was quietly stalking near where

Shampoo was. She looked around and saw the slight rustle of

some bushes, some fifty yards from the clearing. Her eyes

narrowed as she focused in on the hedges. She saw a striped

form and realized that her great-granddaughter was the intended

prey of a tiger!

The ancient woman quickly swept up her staff and mentally

chided herself for not sensing the predator sooner. How did that

beast get so close without her detecting it? The only ones who

could ever come within an arm's length without her knowing

were Koga and his pupil. The two blind martial artists had

mastered some kind of technique that could mask their auras,

putting even the stealth skills of the Japanese Ninja and the

Joketsuzoku to shame. They were as silent as a deserted temple

and could move without making even the slightest whisper.

Just as Cologne was about to spring to save her relative, a cane

was thrust out in front of her. She stopped and looked up, seeing

Koga standing next to her with his walking stick held out.

The blind master shook his head as he smiled at the Elder.

"Shampoo is in no danger. This is just Shinyu's way of saying

hello to his friends."

The only thing that Cologne could say was a confused huh before

she heard a sharp roar and the rustle of branches as the tiger

leapt out and dashed toward Shampoo. Just as the girl turned

around, Shinyu tackled her and drove her to the ground while

knocking the bonbori out of her hands.

"Shampoo!" Cologne cried out as she rushed forward to save her

great-granddaughter from being mauled by that ferocious beast,

but stopped in her tracks when she saw that Shampoo was

actually laughing out loud as she and the tiger playfully wrestled

on the grass. They rolled about until Shinyu had her pinned

beneath him and was affectionately slobbering her face with his

tongue.

Little Shinyu was huge! In the last year, he had grown from a

cute, oversized cub to very large, and quite dangerous-looking

feline with paws that could easily cover Shampoo's face. He

weighed in at around four-hundred pounds and had very long,

razor-sharp teeth that could cut through thick leather or even

metal plates. He was about half the size of a horse and his pelt

was a rich gold with ebony stripes. His form was both as

graceful as it was powerful.

Cologne's staff dropped from her hand as she continued to stare

at the her granddaughter joyfully begging Shinyu to stop with the

Dreaded Washcloth Tongue of Submission. Behind her, Koga

snickered.

----------

"You could have told me that was Ranma's pet tiger, and that it

already knew my great-granddaughter." Cologne said with

annoyance as she and Koga sat on some rocks near the clearing

where Shampoo and Shinyu were playing.

Koga chuckled a bit before addressing her. "You know, it's times

like this that I wish I could see again. That look that you had

before must have been priceless!"

---------

A few more months later...

Genma was once again prowling around in the caves that dotted

the foot of the Bayankala Mountains, determined to claim his

wayward son. He was certain that he had seen his child

somewhere around there, but with so many hiding places and

interlocking tunnels, it was like searching an oversized gopher's

home. The tunnels often became cramped, which made it

difficult for Genma's large bulk to navigate through. The

passageways frequently twisted and looped around each other,

making it hard for him to know which direction he was heading.

And with nothing to illuminate the tunnels, he was forced to

grope about in the dark. Genma had tried taking a torch with

him, but after the first few attempts, he realized that they did

more harm than good. The smoke from the torch would often

get trapped and create a noxious cloud that made it difficult to

breathe, especially in those tight areas. He later made a note to

steal a flashlight the next time he went into town to pilfer some

food.

What Genma did not know was that the maze of tunnels was

created specially to keep him from ever finding Ranma. Koga

had secretly used his Advanced Breaking Point to carve out a

network of decoy tunnels during the nights after he and Ranma

made a new den for Shinyu. All he did was take the existing

pattern of naturally formed passageways, made some dead ends,

and redirected a few others so that they'd circle about and lead

Genma right back to where he started from. Koga had also added

a few dozen booby traps for that booby. There were several

pitfalls with some very nasty thorns lining their bottoms, a few

tripwires which either released a rockslide or caused Genma to

fall flat on his face, as well as some snares. More often than not,

Genma would emerge from the maze with numerous bruises,

cuts and scrapes, and always empty-handed.

Today had been especially rough as Genma groaned after falling

down yet another pitfall. This drop had been especially painful

when he sprained his foot on the landing. He had thought that

there weren't anymore since the last time he had explored the

caves, but unknown to him, Koga had dug several more the

previous week.

A few minutes later, he found his way out, but just as Ranma's

father emerged into daylight from a side exit in the mountain, he

suddenly stiffened when he heard a low growl. His pupils shrank

to pinpricks when he saw a very big, and VERY hungry-looking

cat with stripes in front of him that was crouched low... as if

ready to spring.

Now normally, when Genma was faced with a danger that he

could not win or escape from, (such as his perverted master

Happosai), he'd employ the Crouch of the White Tiger. That

particular move wouldn't work in this case, especially with the

way that Shinyu was licking his chops. After he had bruised and

stumbled his way through those accursed tunnels, plus spraining

his foot in the bargain, Genma wasn't 100% certain that he could

fight off four hundred pounds of fur, fangs and claws. His body

trembled and he swallowed hard as he desperately looked about

for an avenue of escape.

Shinyu was a bit puzzled that this person had a similar scent to

Ranma, but decided that since he also sensed a kind of hostile

aura around the man, the fat martial artist was fair game. Genma

was invading his territory and the tiger already knew that he

wasn't from the Amazon village. He figured that driving the

intruder off would be enough, and if he persisted... well, panda

steaks could be tasty.

However, a Jusenkyo-cursed martial artist was not going to be on

Shinyu's menu today. A sharp voice called out from behind him,

just as he was ready to charge.

"SHINYU! Halt! Sit!"

The tiger obeyed without question and sat down on his haunches

as Koga appeared from behind a tree.

Genma let off a sigh of relief and addressed his savior. "Thank

you, sir! You saved me from that horrible beast!"

Koga's brow furrowed as he reined in his disgust of this man.

"Actually... I wanted to save my prot�g�'s pet from getting a bad

case of indigestion. Furthermore, there's no telling what kind of

disease he might pick up from you. He could get rabies." The

blind master stroked the big cat behind the left ear, just below

the notch.

Genma sputtered at Koga's comment, but then noticed that he

looked familiar. "Say... have we met before?"

"You could say that." Koga replied as he deftly twirled his

walking stick, then took a stance, which wasn't at all friendly.

"Leave here now, Genma Saotome... and never return."

"Huh? How do you know my name?"

"I know all about you, Genma Saotome." Koga replied with a

very cold tone. Shinyu gave a low rumbling growl and went back

into his crouch. "I know of your past crimes and why you are

here."

"N-N-Now wait a minute... w-w-w-what's all this about?"

Ranma's birth father stuttered. He definitely did not like the way

things seemed to be heading. Judging by the blind man's stance,

the fat martial artist could tell that Koga was not someone to be

taken lightly.

"If you think that I will allow you to take Ranma back so that

you may sell and use him to satisfy your greed, then you are

sadly mistaken. Last warning... leave now... or else!"

The little light bulb in Genma's head clicked on when he heard

his son's name. "Ranma?! You know where he is?!"

The blind master nodded. "I do. However, I shall not allow his

pathetic excuse for a father get his hands on him... ever!"

"I DEMAND THAT YOU... ERK!"

Genma's demand remained unfinished when Koga suddenly

threw an arm forward with the palm spread wide. The balding

martial artist suddenly felt a surge of ki being emitted from his

opponent, but he could not see it. Then, something hit hard into

his gut, driving him back with considerable force and causing the

air to be expelled from his lungs. It felt as if he had been hit by

an open-hand strike, but the facts were that Koga had not taken a

step toward him and was at least some twenty feet away when he

attacked.

Ranma's sensei lowered his hand after giving Genma a

demonstration of the Unseen Light's OFFENSIVE capabilities. An

Unseen Light fighter could use one's ki for the seventh sense,

but one can also use it to extend one's reach and strike from a

distance. Koga's control over his ki was so refined, he could use

it like an invisible fist, both to eyes and ki senses. This gave

new meaning to the term 'Unseen Light.'

Genma coughed and wheezed a bit from the unexpected attack

and held his aching gut. He had no idea how that old man had

accomplished it. Even his own heightened awareness had been

caught off guard. He started to believe that the stranger knew

some kind of technique that was similar to his vacuum blades,

which he had long sealed away.

"Unseen Light Special Attack... Spirit Strike." Koga said while

taking a new stance with his walking stick held out in front of

him. "Last chance, Saotome. LEAVE!"

"NOT WITHOUT MY SON!" Genma shouted back as he took a stance. He

believed that he could defeat this man, despite that strange

technique he had used. It was then that he felt several areas of

his body begin flare in pain. His arms, legs and upper torso flared

with sharp, searing sensations that was like being stabbed by knives.

His body trembled and he fought keep on his feet. It felt as if his

whole body was on fire. Finally, after what seemed to be an

eternity, the pain finally stopped and Genma shuddered with

relief while looking back at his opponent with confusion.

"Surprised, Saotome?" Koga asked in a mocking tone. "Let me

explain to you what had just happened. There's a reason why I

called that the SPIRIT Strike. I hit you with a concentrated blast

of ki, aimed specifically at a certain pressure point, which caused

all that ki to run along your own body's natural ki pathways.

What you just experienced was the overload as you body rushed

to expel the excess energy... and I only hit you with a small

fraction of my full strength. Think well of what might have

happened if I struck you with greater force."

This made Ranma's father pause. An intense overload of his ki

pathways would have caused his body to rupture, like in that

anime, Fist of the North Star. However, unlike that anime, this

was all too real.

However, Genma was nothing if not stubborn, (or stupid, take

your pick), as he believed that if he could get close enough, he

could take out Koga before he could use that technique again.

He thought up a plan that he was sure would work.

The Anything Goes martial artist decided to fall back on his

most reliable ploy. He quickly took several steps forward and...

"PLEASE DON'T KILL ME! I'M SORRY!"

Koga became very disgusted at Genma's Crouch of the White

Tiger, which was insulting to Shinyu. He lowered his cane and

that's when Genma made his move. While he was on his knees,

he grabbed two handfuls of soil and then sprang forward,

throwing the dirt into Koga's face. Thinking that he would be

blinded, Genma attacked.

However, Koga had been expecting the attack and just let Genma

throw dirt in his face. His eyes no longer responded to stimuli,

since the nerves had been rendered inactive after he had lost his

sight. This included irritation to the outer membranes of his eyes.

Just as Genma swung a fist at Koga's face, the blind master's

sixth and seventh senses warned him as they tracked the punch.

Ranma's sensei calmly brought up an open palm, intercepted the

fist, and applied crushing pressure to it, making Genma scream

out in pain as he felt cartilage pop and ligaments threaten to

snap. Like Ranma, growing up with the warrior women had given

Koga Amazonian strength and endurance. He then hauled on

Genma's captured hand and rammed a knee into Genma's groin,

causing him to howl. He released his grip on Genma's hand.

This allowed his opponent to stagger back, while clutching at

the family jewels.

"Errrrrrgggggghhhhkk!"

Koga lowered his cane and relaxed in a neutral stance, waiting

for Ranma's father to recover. Beside him, Shinyu was still

tensed and ready to pounce on the fat martial artist if Koga

needed his help. However, the tiger could see that Ranma's

master had things well in hand.

"T-T-That was a... dishonorable... attack! Y-You... cheated!

A TRUE martial artist would... never stoop to such...

underhanded moves!" Genma gasped out.

"Oh?" Koga said, not caring at all. "And I suppose that throwing

dirt into your opponent's eyes is considered fair." *Not that it

mattered to someone who is blind. * He added silently as he

casually brushed the soil from his face. "You, Genma Saotome,

are nothing but a hypocrite. You have no idea what IS honorable.

You only use honor as an excuse to get what you want, and

disregard it when it gets in your way. Your fighting style is the

Anything Goes, which basically has only real rule. There are NO

rules! So how can you say that I cheated?"

Genma gritted his teeth, then tried another secret Saotome tactic.

"Look over there!" Genma pointed to an empty space behind

Koga, then tried to bumrush him.

Of course, Koga's response to that ploy was simple. A very hard

straight kick to the gut, followed by a heel strike to the chin,

nearly dislocating the man's jaw in the process. Genma was sent

reeling, then was tripped up by a sweep kick. Ranma's father

found himself flat on his back and that was when Shinyu decided

to get involved.

The disciple of Happosai went stiff when he felt something

clamp onto his throat. His eyes widened as he saw that Ranma's

pet tiger now had him by the jugular with his teeth pressing into

his flesh, almost to the point of piecing the skin. All the big

feline had to do was bite down a little more and Genma would

be dead.

"Careful Shinyu." Koga said as he knelt beside the now helpless

martial artist. "He'll give you gas and he's mostly fat anyway."

He then addressed the tiger's prey. "What's the matter, Genma

Saotome? Cat got your tongue? Or in this case, tiger got your

throat?"

Genma could only let off a strangled gurgle in reply.

Koga then took on a more serious expression. "Nothing more to

say? Good. It's just as well, since anything you've got to say

holds no value to me. However, you will listen to what I will say

to you now. Ranma shall never be returned to you. He now has a

better chance of making it in this world without you trying to run

and ruin his life. You caused him enough damage with your

foolish training methods and broken promises. I know all about

the families that you had swindled, using your son as a

bargaining chip. Now if it were up to me, I would just say to

Shinyu to risk the indigestion."

Genma's eyes widened and his skin turned a deathly pale.

Koga then added, "However, I do not wish for Shinyu to become

a man-eater and therefore become a danger to others, so this shall

be your FINAL warning. If you are still within Amazon territory

by week's end, I WILL hunt you down and make you wish that

this tiger had eaten you." He then made a series of quick jabs

with an index finger, hitting specific pressure points and causing

Genma's body to become rigid like a statue.

The blind master stood up and stepped back. He snapped his

fingers and Shinyu released his grip on Genma's neck, albeit

reluctantly. The big cat padded toward Ranma's teacher and

followed him into the woods. Just before they disappeared,

Koga called back to Genma.

"Your body will remain stiff for an hour. Although, I could have

just as easily made your heart stop permanently. The shiatsu

points I had used on you will eventually wear off. I expect that

you will be gone afterwards. Goodbye Genma Saotome. For

your sake... and Ranma's, may we never cross paths again."

----------

Genma never gave up on trying to regain his son, but after that

first encounter with Koga, he had decided that going after Ranma

in China was just too hard, especially with that tiger and those

damned Amazons always around the boy. That strange warrior he had

met was also a big obstacle to overcome and Ranma's father finally

came to the conclusion that the best way to retrieve his meal

ticket was outside the influence of those obstacles. He would just

have to bide his time and be prepared for the right opportunity.

----------

A few weeks would pass with no sign of the panda man, and

Koga finally became convinced that for the time being, Genma

was not going to be a problem. However, as Ranma was now

preparing to attend junior high school in Japan, he knew that

Genma would see this as an opportunity to steal back his heir.

He would have to be extra careful and keep a close watch on

the boy during the semester.

----------

"So is everything all set for Ranma?" Koga asked as he and

Jasmine sipped tea in her living room.

The Amazon healer nodded. "Yes. All of his bags are packed

and waiting, including his school supplies and spare clothes."

"And where is Ranma?"

"Oh, he's out saying goodbye to his friends."

"Yes, I'm certain that Shampoo and Razor will miss him."

"And Shinyu." Jasmine took another sip of tea.

At that moment, Koga paused for a long time, then nodded. "You

knew, didn't you?"

Jasmine shrugged. "It wasn't THAT hard to figure out. Ranma

would always disappear mysteriously and then come back a little

tousled and dirty. He would sometimes sneak some fish and meat

out of the storeroom. Whenever I washed his clothes, I would

always find black and gold cat hairs. And I had a little talk with

Shampoo a few weeks ago."

The blind master took a deep breath. "Jasmine, I'm sorry that we

kept this from you, but Ranma was..."

Ranma's adopted mother raised a hand, knowing that Koga

would sense it. "Ranma... may keep him."

"What? But I thought that you would be angry and..."

"At first... I was angry. But then I remembered how happy he

was whenever he visited that big cat. Seeing Ranma happy is all

I ever wanted. And if he has been caring for it all this time, then

he has proven that he is responsible enough, unlike that worthless

father of his. When Ranma comes back from school at the end

of this year, I shall tell him... that Shinyu can stay."

Koga couldn't help but smile as he took another sip of his tea.

----------

Outside in the woods near the village, a boy and his tiger were

having one last merry chase.

To be concluded...

Author's notes

When I reread the rough draft, I realized that this was a long

story and decided to split it into two parts. Sorry it took so long

to finish this part, but real life has been hard. Anyway, in part 2,

we shall see Ranma's ordeals through junior high and his first

encounters with the Musk Dynasty when he comes back home.

We'll be seeing more of Shinyu and he may just become part of

the main Fighting Blind storyline. We'll also be seeing more

secrets of the Unseen Light so stay tuned!