TATTOON RANMA

Disclaimer: What? I would have thought by now you’d all know that I don’t own any of these characters.

< >: Thoughts

[Italic]: Song lyrics

Note: Nothing’s Gonna Stop Us Now originally sung by Starship.

Chapter 13

Part 2

Burning the Final Bridge

“RANMA NO BAKA!!!!”

Eric Kobayashi sighed as he quickly released the love of his new life and turned to face the bane of his old one.

Akane was fuming and snarling with rage as she had just seen Ranma in the arms of another girl... kissing a blonde, foreign bitch! If she had seen him with Shampoo or Ukyo, she wouldn’t have been quite as angry. The Amazon was nothing more than a brainless primitive with an oversized chest, while the okonomiyaki chef was just a cross-dressing tomboy. Neither one of them was of any consequence as a rival, so Ranma would remain with her. But now, here was that sex-changing pervert with a gaijin and was openly showing affection in public!

It was bad enough that her father and Nabiki were in jail and Kasumi was no longer supporting her side of things, but now this SLUT dared to take liberties with what belonged to her! Ranma was a pervert and an idiot, but now he had forgotten who he was supposed to be loyal to! Well, she’d remind him just after she beat the hell out of this hussy!

“YOU CHEATING BASTARD! HOW DARE YOU!? WHO IS THIS BITCH?!”

Eric showed absolutely no remorse toward his former fiancée. In fact, he felt nothing but contempt. He wasn’t Ranma any more and therefore, Akane had no right whatsoever to him in any way. However, she was acting like she still owned him like some object, and that was something that he hated.

As he thought about it, that’s was all he ever was to that uncute tomboy, a possession. She didn’t have to do anything. The engagement was simply handed to her by some half-assed promise by two morons who were probably drunk during the time.

Akane had never been truly challenged, before he came into her life. And when it was apparent that he was her better in every aspect, (especially in the martial arts), then she would lash out at him, knowing that she didn’t have to face the consequences of her actions. Her father would always defend her. Her other suitors would never see anything but the perfect princess. And Ranma, he was the worst of the lot, as he would never fight back against her.

She was totally against the arranged marriage and treated him badly at every opportunity. And yet when it looked as if he was going to be taken away from her, she felt threatened. However, once the threat was over, she’d go right back to abusing him. That’s what spoiled brats did with their toys, and Akane was certainly spoiled.

Well, Eric wasn’t going to be anyone’s toy anymore.

“Who the HELL are you? I don’t care for people who insult my fiancée. You’d better take back what you said about Balla.” Eric growled.

“Don’t give me that, Ranma! I always knew you were a pervert, and here you are, going out with some foreign witch! She should be thanking her lucky stars that I don’t use my martial arts to...”

“BWAAAAAAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAH!”

At that point, Eric let off a series of laughs, which stops Akane’s tirade. The Tendo girl became even more infuriated as her former betrothed continued to mock her. “What’s so funny?”

Eric laughed for another minute before replying. “You! I find you to be one of the BIGGEST jokes in the world. You? A Marital Artist? Oh come on! You don’t have the slightest IDEA as to what a martial artist is like!”

“WHAT?!?!” Ranma had made fun of her skills before, but the way he was doing it now went far beyond simple teasing. And this made her even more infuriated.

Eric smiled as he composed himself. It was time to let her know how he REALLY felt about the so-called best martial artist in Nerima. “Here you are, threatening someone with something that you don’t even have! Since when were YOU are martial artist? I’ve NEVER seen you act like a martial artist. In fact, you do nothing but bring SHAME to the martial arts, ‘cause you use what little skill you have in the art to bolster your ego, and hide the fact that you are nothing.”

“How dare you!?”

“What? You gonna threaten me with your martial arts too? Oops! I forgot, you don’t know any. All you know is that you want everyone to take you serious about being something that you’re not. And I KNOW you’re definitely not serious about being a martial artist. In fact, you’re not even serious about anything period.”

“Ranma...” Akane began to grit her teeth and glared murderously at him.

“I mean, why should anyone take you seriously? You’re nothing but a spoiled brat. Never had to work for anything. Always had to be saved. Don’t want to face the consequences of your actions, and just about all the time, you never had to. Sounds like someone who doesn’t know what the real world is like out there, eh Balla?”

“Well, I suppose...” The Tattoon Priestess agreed cautiously. “But surely, she can’t be all bad.”

“That’s one of the things I love about you, Balla. You always try to see some kind of good in everyone, even when we first met. But Akane’s a lost cause. She doesn’t even make an effort to see through anything or anyone who doesn’t fit her views. She just makes snap judgments and never bothers to take the time to learn.”

“You...” Akane was near boiling point as she readied to whip out her mallet and pound Ranma and his whore into oblivion.

However, Eric was unconcerned as he pushed her final buttons. “And you know what, Balla? I can’t understand what anyone could see in her. She’s not all that cute. She can’t cook, even with the recipe staring right in front of her. Hell, she’s hopeless in just about everything domestic. She’s totally clueless when it comes to simple stuff like respect for others and never apologizes when she makes a mistake. Heck, she’s not even a martial artist, even though she wants to be recognized as one. Doesn’t even acknowledge when she’s 100% wrong. I can’t even recall any time when she ever said that she was sorry. I don’t think she could do anything right. In other words, she’s absolutely, undeniably, unquestionably... USELESS!”

At this point, Akane exploded.

“RANMA, NO BAKA!!!!!!”

Definitely the WRONG thing to say.

WHA-BOOOOOOOOOOOM!

Akane was sent flying back more than a dozen feet after receiving a blow to the face. She lost her grip on her hammer and felt tears welling up in her eyes as a sharp pain flared on the right side of her cheek. She looked up in total disbelief at Ranma, who was still holding up his right arm with the fist clenched. He hit her! He had actually hit her! A large bruise formed on her cheek as it began to swell and a trickle of blood appeared.

Balla became very concerned as she felt Eric’s anger rising again, but her beloved gave her a reassuring glance before turning back to Akane.

Eric showed no regret whatsoever as he lowered his arm and gave her a look of disgust. “What? You were expecting me to stand still and let you pound on me? Just for telling the truth? Oh please! All I did was act in self-defense. That’s what martial arts was made for in the beginning. It’s about control and discipline, and you most definitely don’t have any. Martial arts is also about dedication to improving your body and mind, and you’ve never been serious about that either. To you, martial arts is just a way for you to exert your ego over others and hide the fact that without it, you’re nothing. Like I said before, you don’t know squat about what it is to be a martial artist. You bring nothing but DISGRACE to the martial arts.”

“But I didn‘t ...” Akane was in absolute disbelief that Ranma could turn on her like this. After all those times he defended her. It must be that gaijin witch’s doing! Akane wasn’t in the wrong! She couldn’t be!

“Don’t try to put the blame on others for your faults! That’s one of the things I REALLY HATE! You’re pathetic, Akane, just like Kuno and all the others! And what really makes me sick, is that I let all that stuff happen. I should have just let you take your lumps, instead of having to take them for you! Well I ain’t taking any more of your FUCKING lumps, and I sure as HELL ain’t going to let anyone; not your father or mine, not Ryoga, not those damn Amazons, not Ukyo, not Kuno, not any of those other FUCKING bastards from Nerima, and especially NOT YOU, is going to make me do anything that I don’t want! Free ride’s over Akane! Clean up your own messed-up life and leave me out of it!”

“You can’t mean...?”

“Oh yes I do! I don’t want anything to do with you or your GODDAMNED family. And as far as I’m concerned, you can all go eat SHIT and DIE! I’ve had enough of this crap! And now, there’s just one more thing I have to do to make certain that I never have to see you again!” Eric then began to approach her menacingly and Akane began to feel real fear for the first time since she met him.

“What are you going to do?”

Eric snarled as the Primary Mark on his forehead glowed. “It all started with martial arts, and you’ve already brought a lot of dishonor to it. Now I’m going to make sure you NEVER disgrace it again.”

----------

The streets of Hiroshima echoed with the distraught screams of a certain ‘martial artist’ as she was given her final lesson.

----------

Later...

“Eric?” Balla asked as she and her beloved stood and watched the sunset from the balcony of their apartment.

The former Nerima resident let off a long, wistful sigh as he watched the orange-red orb dip down toward the horizon. He brought the Tattoon Priestess closer to him as he spoke in a quiet and tired tone. “I suppose you think that I went too far again, right?”

“Actually, I was surprised at the restraint you showed with her. After all that you told me about this Akane, I fully expected you to go even worse than you did with Ryoga. You really have gotten better.”

“I was tempted. Believe me, I was VERY tempted to pay her back a THOUSAND fold, for every time she hit me with that stupid hammer, kicked me when I was down, and beat me to within an inch of my life, just because I couldn’t bring myself to fight back or when she jumped to the worst conclusions about me. Then I thought... what would be the point? She wouldn’t have learned anything from a beating and the way she takes hits, it wouldn’t have given me any satisfaction. So I decided to hit her where it hurts the most... her pride. Now she’s going to have to learn the hard way that SAYING that she’s a martial artist and BEING one are two different things. And she’ll have to work things out on her own, now that she isn’t going to be protected any more. No more excuses and no more blaming others because of her own shortcomings.”

“So do you think that she will learn anything from this?”

“I don’t know and I don’t fucking care. She’s made her bed and now she’ll have to lie in it. I’ve burned that last bridge and I ain’t going back. That life’s over and I like the way my new life is headed. As long as you‘re with me.” He drew Balla closer and kissed her deeply. The Tattoon girl felt herself floating on air as she returned the kiss.

It was finally over...

----------

Three years later...

[we hear the background music of Nothing’s Gonna Stop Us Now]

In Balla’s mountain village in Tibet, the crowds applauded as the High Priestess Balla and her husband, the Warrior Priest Eric, finished with their official vows and kissed. Balla was dressed in beautiful ceremonial robes, while her mate was clad in a tunic, leggings and cape. In the crowds, Nodoka, Atsuko, Lisa, Brody and Deiner continued to cheer.

As the couple faced the well-wishers, Balla couldn’t help but feel glorious as she held onto her husband’s arm tightly. She smiled even brighter as she was greeted by her sister Kandor. After almost two years of headaches, fights and several destroyed towns, the two siblings had finally reconciled and Kandor was allowed back into her home.

At that point, fireworks were going off all over the village, lighting up the evening skies as we see in Heaven, a satisfied Urd, Belldandy and Aphrodite.

----------

In a Japanese prison, Soun Tendo continued to weep in his cell as his dreams of joining the Anything Goes Schools had been forever dashed. With a sentence of five years for harboring two known felons and attempted kidnapping, his credibility as a martial artist and good standing in the community was forever tarnished.

In solitary, serving a sentence of ten years, Genma continued to try and plot an escape. So far, his plans had been foiled as the guards had gotten wise to his tricks and kept him inside an electrified cell. They had also threatened to sell him to a zoo in a forced panda breeding program, too keep him in line.

As for Happosai, he was given twelve years with permanent laundry duty. The constant smell of men’s underwear kept his power levels low with absolutely NO contact with anything female.

---------

At the wedding ceremony, Balla and Eric enjoyed themselves as they feasted and talked with Eric’s father-in-law, the Chief of the Tattoon Tribe. They never left each other’s side and would always gaze into each other’s eyes lovingly.

Nodoka smiled with her sister as she imagined the kind of grandchildren Eric and Balla would give to her. With Genma no longer a part of her life, she could finally look forward to the future.

As if reading her mother-in-law’s mind, Balla leaned over to whisper impishly into her husband’s ear. Eric immediately blushed at what his wife said. Who knew she was THAT kinky?

----------

In a women’s prison, Nabiki sighed as she sat in her cell and hoped that her cellmate wasn’t in THE mood. She had been given nine years for blackmail and racketeering, though she was counting on getting out in two more years for good behavior.

As for the other two Tendo, sisters...

----------

----------

“AKANE MY LOVE!”

Wham!

THA-BOOOOOOOOOOOM!

Akane picked up her sore body off the ground, after slugging that idiot Kuno into the sky. Ever since her final encounter with Ranma, she had to be very careful. He had cast some kind of spell on her, which caused her to feel the pain and impact of her own violent actions, (at twenty times the intensity), every time she struck out in anger or pride. As a result, the so-called best martial artist in Nerima had to refrain from using that which she was proud of, lest she wanted to feel the consequences.

The Tendo home was in a state of ruin after she and Kasumi had returned to Nerima. Kasumi had retreated into her own private shell and it would take many months of emotional therapy and support from Dr. Tofu before she finally got on with her life. When she at last took hold of her life, she started to discipline her sister as her deceased mother would have done and what she should have.

Naturally, Akane did not like being treated as thus, but the other spell that Ranma had cast upon her, caused her extreme pain if she did not curb her temper.

Like it or not, Akane would have to learn the hard way about life...

----------

Balla and Eric smiled as they lay on their wedding bed and underwent the physical act of expressing their love for each other.

In Heaven, Urd paid off Aphrodite on their bet on how long it would take before the pair had consummated their marriage.

----------

Somewhere in world, Ryoga squealed as he was once again turned into a pig against his will. He had managed to get his human form back after he had been sent to Jusenkyo, but the Tattoon Curse he was under, forever denied him any chance of getting revenge on Ranma. Even the thought of getting revenge would change him into a pig for thirty days. Hot and cold water would have no effect and spending a month as a pig was always Hell for him.

P-chan seethed as he ran for his life as a pack of wolves chased after him.

<CURSE YOU RANMA!>

----------

In Tokyo, Mousse had been given a life sentence in prison for attempted murder. The Chinese Amazons had abandoned him, and in the only letter he got from Shampoo, he had been informed that she had married someone else. With nothing else to live for, he committed suicide.

At the Kuno Estate, Kodachi had assumed the position as head of the Kuno Clan. Naturally, her brother had protested this, but with his permanently crippled hands, he could not practice Kendo nor fight against his sister’s takeover. He was later committed to a mental asylum.

In Osaka, Ukyo started a new business and cut all ties with her Ran-chan, thinking that it was for the best that her childhood friend remain dead to her and hoped that at least he was happy now.

----------

In the Tattoon Village, the celebration continued on into the night as Eric Kobayashi and Balla Kobayashi continued to move forward in their life together.

Nothing was going to stop them now.

THE END

Author’s Notes

Yeah, I know that most readers were expecting a bloody end with Akane, but as Eric said, what would be the point? Sure it would have been satisfying to see her get what she deserved, but by this time, Eric/Ranma feels that he needs to move on with his life and Akane now has to face reality without her so-called martial arts and with no one protecting her. I think that’s punishment enough and Eric/Ranma has already suffered more than humanly possible.

This story started out as just a bet with a friend, and I’m pretty surprised at how far I managed to take it. I wanted to focus on how Ranma would react if he was pushed too far and I think I did a pretty good job overall. I’ll admit that the end was watered down, but it only served as a kind of epilogue and at least, Ranma got a happy ending. I enjoyed writing this and it’s now time for my other fanfics.