Ranma ½ - The Martial Arts
Tournament – The Finals
Akane watched the match before her own with growing
apprehension. The Amazon girl was too confident, too… smirking, Akane
noted
with annoyance, glancing over at Shampoo once more and looking at the
expression
on her face. Shampoo noticed Akane looking at her and smirked even more
wickedly, making Akane growl and turn away abruptly, though not before
fidgeting some.
“Great-grandmother was right,” Shampoo muttered to herself
in glee. “Games with head of other contestant do work!”
Meanwhile, Ranma was completely unconcerned with the
mini-war between the two girls and sat happily on the sidelines, eating
some of
Ukyo’s okonomiyaki with gusto. Ukyo also grinned, but for her it was a
struggle
to keep the sweet, slightly dopey-looking smile on her face as Ranma
unwittingly wove himself further and further into her trap. Ukyo
giggled and
glanced over at Nabiki, who was running the okonomiyaki stand for
today. Since
that episode with Akane and Ukyo tickling her feet, the business had
picked up
considerably, with a greater number of young men waiting in line for
some
Japanese pizza. Ukyo had to admit this was in no small part thanks to
Nabiki’s
own salesmanship.
“Don’t you want some extra topping?” Nabiki asked sweetly.
“This special sauce makes the okonomiyaki with squid taste twice as
good!”
“Well, I dunno…” the young man at the stand said
uncertainly. “I like the one with squid just the way it is…”
“But I worked so hard on this sauce… won’t you at least try
some?” Nabiki asked with a quick wink. Blushing slightly, the young man
paid a
bit extra and let Nabiki pour some sauce from a bottle onto his
okonomiyaki.
“Nabiki’s always been good when it comes to money,” Ranma
said to Ukyo around a mouthful of his own pizza. “She’ll make you a lot
of
money, I’m sure.”
And I’ll make even more when I win this tournament, and on
top of it I’ll get a date with you… Ukyo giggled to herself and winked
at
Ranma, then walked over to Nabiki. “Say, Nabiki… what exactly IS that
special
sauce you keep coercing these young men into getting?”
Nabiki shrugged nonchalantly. “Soy sauce.”
“SOY sauce?” Ukyo asked.
“They won’t know the difference,” Nabiki said airily.
“Look.” The young man who had just purchased some pizza was staring at
the
girls in the ring and munching robotically. “It could be tap water and
they’d
never know the difference.”
Ukyo just gave Nabiki a slightly strange look and returned
her attention to the ring, where the first bout had just been concluded.
“Now, for the second round of the quarterfinals… Akane vs.
Shampoo! The young, pretty hometown girl against the exotic beauty from
“Akane isn’t pretty!” Ranma yelled. “She’s violent and – “
THUD!!
“Shut up, Ranma!” Akane growled, having thrown the slightly
startled announcer’s stool at him.
“Ah… anyway,” he stammered, going on with his pre-fight
speech. “Ladies, take your places in the ring!”
“This is it… I’m sorry, Akane, but I can’t let you date
that jerk Ranma,” Ryoga muttered to himself, eyeing the ring from
behind a set
of bleachers. Akane saw him anyway and waved, making him blush. “Gyaah!
Can I
really… sabotage… Akane?” Ryoga then looked over and saw Ranma making
faces at
her. “That settles it… no matter what the cost, I can’t let you take
Akane, Ranma
Saotome…”
“So, Ranma Saotome, you think you can have Shampoo? Heh
heh… Not a chance,” Mousse chuckled to himself, looking at the ring
from the
other end of the bleachers. “Shampoo, I do this for your own good.”
Apparently Shampoo was not of the same opinion. “I see you
Mousse! You not mess Shampoo up or you clean floors for ten year when I
finish!”
“Eeek!” Mousse whimpered, ducking behind the stand until
she looked away.
“Ready, and… go!” the announcer cried, backing away from
the pair of them.
Akane brought her hands up and flexed her fingers quickly.
“Come on, then. If you’re so confident, how about you make the first
move?”
Akane grinned.
“Akane not be so haughty when Shampoo use – eeek!!!”
Shampoo was cut off in mid-sentence as another chain whipped through
the air
where she had been standing. “Mousse! I told you stop that!”
Mousse ignored her and tossed another salvo of chains at
Shampoo.
Akane was slightly bewildered, but she knew an opportunity
when she saw one and stepped forward to go on the offensive. Just as
she was
about to strike, however… something wrapped itself around her ankles
and sent
her to the mat with a truncated screech. Looking back, she saw that one
of
Ryoga’s headbands had tied her ankles together…?
“I…I’m sorry Akane!” Ryoga stuttered. “B-but I can’t…”
“What do you mean you can’t – EEK!” Akane rolled away from
the next blizzard of bandannas – and rolled right into Shampoo’s leg.
“Aha!” she said triumphantly, springing onto the backs of
Akane’s legs and bending her knees so that the girl’s bound feet were
in the
air, soles up.
“Ack!” Akane cried in surprise. She looked up, hoping that
the next round of chains would stop Shampoo – and watched in dismay as
Ryoga
deflected them from their intended target.
“Hey! What do you think you’re doing?” Mousse yelled.
“What does it look like? I’m making sure Akane loses!”
Ryoga yelled back.
“That’s not fair! Shampoo is the one who is supposed to
lose!” Mousse countered, launching an attack of his own and beginning a
battle
around the perimeter of the ring.
“Akane going to give up for sure!” Shampoo said with glee,
locking one arm around Akane’s legs and, concentrating for a moment,
running
her nails down Akane’s soles.
“GHeeeek! EHEheheheheheh!!! HEheheehhahaha!!!!
Ahahahahheheheeh no hahahehehehe!!!” Akane cried out, wriggling and
twisting
her upper body, trying to get an angle where it might be possible to
reach
Shampoo, but with the Chinese girl sitting on the backs of her legs, it
was
nearly impossible to reach her. Akane, realizing that wouldn’t work,
next
recalled what Nabiki had said. Don’t let it bother me… don’t let it
bother me…
she repeated over and over to herself. “Heheheehahahahahee…! Hahahaaha
ahahahehehe! Hehehehehehe…”
“Hey!” Shampoo stopped, and did a half-turn to look at
Akane, somewhat irritated. “Why you stop laughing? Tell Shampoo what
you do!”
“You wish!” Akane growled, planting her arms on the mat and
giving her legs a mighty kick, tossing Shampoo into the air. She landed
across
the ring on her feet, and grinned.
“Akane maybe won that bout, but Shampoo use special
technique right away next time!” Shampoo assumed a stance.
“It’s – over for you!” Akane grunted, leaning down to untie
her ankles – and promptly toppled over as another bandanna wrapped
itself around
her, effectively hogtying her, both ankles and one hand together. With
a little
screech she fell over onto her back.
“Gotcha!” Ryoga exclaimed triumphantly, as Shampoo moved in
for the kill…
Akane saw her coming, albeit upside down… as she concentrated,
she saw that just as Shampoo reached her, it seemed as if the girl had
six
arms… then it happened.
“GYAHAHAHAHHEEHEHHAHAHAHAH AHAAHHA AHAHHEHEHAH AHAAHAHA
EHEHEHEHEHAH AHAHA AHAHA HEHEHEHE!!!” In the blink of an eye Akane was
in
hysterics. It felt as if there were fingers in every possible square
inch of
her upper body – wriggling under her arms… “GHAHAHAHAHEHHEEHH
AAAAAAAAHAHAHAHAAH!!!!” Tracing along her ribs and sides… “AHAHHEHEHE
GYAHAHAHHA AHAHAHEHEEEHEHEHEHEH AHAHAHAA!!!” Skittering along her belly
and
poking into her bellybutton… “GHAAHHEHAHAHAHHWAHAHAHAH AHAHWHWHAAH
AHAHAHA
AHAHAHAH!!!!” Everywhere… everywhere at once! “GHAHHAHAHAHAHAAH NO NO
PLHEHEHEHEHAHAHAHAHHEHEHEEHZEZEEHEHEEH HEEHEHEHEHEH NO
NAHAHAHAHHAHAAHHA!!!”
Akane knew that she had no chance… which was why it surprised her when
all of
the sudden, the tickling subsided.
“Hehhehehehe… huh?” What happened…? Akane wondered. That
other girl was laughing for a minute straight… why did it…? Her answer
lay just
a foot away – Shampoo was wrapped head to toe in chains.
“Whoa!” Ranma exclaimed. “Did she really just grow six
arms?”
“That is the Strike of the Asura,” Cologne said gravelly. “A
technique developed over four thousand years of –“
“Yeah,
yeah, I know,” Ranma snapped impatiently.
“No,
Shampoo did not grow six arms… instead, she is able to manipulate her
battle
aura to feel like physical touches…” Cologne explained. “And she can
move them
at incredible speed… far faster than even you can move your arms, even
with
your Chestnuts Roasting on an Open Fire technique.” (Author’s Note: I
forget
the real name of the technique. Sue me.) “Akane was only able to resist
because
Shampoo used the technique for a mere fraction of a second before that
boy
stopped her.”
“Yes! Haha!” Mousse exclaimed triumphantly. “Got her!”
Akane, still a bit weak and giggly, managed to untie herself with her
free
hand, and pounced joyfully on the Amazon. Not wishing to risk anything
further,
she went right for the weakness – the feet. “Akane! Catch!” Mousse
cried out, tossing
a pair of hairbrushes at Akane, who deftly snagged them and began to
run them
along Shampoo’s soles.
“GHEHHHHEHEEHEHHAHAHAHAHAAHAHAH!!! HAAHEHEHEHAHAHAHAHAH
AHAHAAH NO NO PLEHEHEHEHEHEHEHZE SHAMPOO SORRY AHAHAHHA AHAHAHAH AHAAH
NO
MOREEHEHEHEHEEEHEHEEE!!! NO TICKLES PLEHEHEHEHEHEHEHHEHEHEHZE!!
HAAHAHAHAHHEHEHEHEAA!!!” Shampoo cried out, laughing like a banshee.
Akane,
with that evil smirk on her face, wasn’t about to show any mercy.
“Maybe you’ll keep this in mind next time you think about
cooking up some evil plot!” Akane said forcefully. “You’re finished,
Shampoo!”
Akane rolled the hairbrushes under Shampoo’s toes.
“GYEEHEHEHEEHEHEHEHEEHEHEHEHEEHEHEHEHE
EHEHEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE
EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEK!!!!”
Shampoo’s screech of laughter reverberated around the area.
“That’s it!” the announcer called. “Time! Akane is the
winner!”
“All right!” Mousse cried out, as Ryoga muttered in
annoyance. Mousse took off and fled.
“Mousse!!!! You get back here! Shampoo thrash you good!”
the Amazon girl yelled, extricating herself from the chains and running
after
him.
“Ah well, it was a good try,” Cologne said. “That boy
showed more backbone than I thought he would… hmm… well, I guess that’s
it for
us, son-in-law.”
“Nyah!” Ranma cried. Cologne hopped away after Mousse and
Shampoo.
“Phew… heehee…” Akane giggled, still worked up from the
battle. “Wow! It’s your turn, Ranma.”
“Heh heh!” Ranma said, cracking his knuckles. “This’ll be a
cinch! I know Ukyo’s weak spots inside and out!”
“I know you do, Ranma honey,” Ukyo said, mocking sweetness
shot through in her tone. “Oh, and silly me, I wore my leggings. It
just makes
me that much more vulnerable.”
Akane blinked. She’s up to something… why would she be so
confident…?
Ranma, in his usual cockiness, failed to notice anything
out of the ordinary as he clambered up into the ring and showed off
some more.
Ukyo climbed up in a more sedate manner, though the announcer held the
microphone protectively lest Ukyo try and snatch it for some more
promotion.
Ryoga, in the meantime, was trying to think of a hiding
spot so Akane wouldn’t come after him and yell… he spotted a hose
nearby and
ran over.
“P-chan!” Akane cried in delight as Ryoga, now in pig form,
scuttled across the grounds and leapt into Akane’s arms. “Oh, where
have you
been? I’ve missed you! Heehee!”
Ranma noticed this and growled in annoyance, but resolved
to let it pass for the time being. Instead he faced Ukyo, who giggled
and
winked at him. “I’m not going to go easy on you just because we were
friends!”
Ranma called out.
“I wouldn’t have it any other way, sugar,” Ukyo said.
“And… go!” the announcer said, stepping back a few paces.
“I’ve got you nooooooooooooooooooooooow – what the?” Ranma
cried, as he stumbled and fell halfway across the ring. “I feel so…
heavy! What
the – what’s going on?”
Ukyo smirked and walked over to where Ranma lay, completely
stretched out on the mat. “Remember that okonomiyaki you ate just
before this
match? Well, it had an extra special ingredient in it… a little sauce
that
makes your muscles weak for a little while! You can’t move, Ranma
honey.”
Ranma struggled and tried to get up, but he found that
indeed he was too weak to do much more than wiggle.
“Oh, Ranma, you goof,” Akane sighed, putting a hand to her
forehead.
“H-hey! This isn’t fair, Ukyo! I wasn’t gonna – “
“No rules, remember, Ranma?” Ukyo said, chuckling as she
knelt over Ranma’s prone form, easily pulling aside his loose shirt and
dancing
her nails along Ranma’s sides.
“EEEEEEEK!! EEHHEHEHEHEHEH!! HHAHAHEHEHEHAH!!! AHHAAH!!!”
Ranma shrieked, trying to thrash or roll away but only managing a
feeble
wiggle. Ukyo giggled.
“How cute!” she said, skittering her nails up and down
Ranma’s sides, reaching into his underarms and navel to find where was
the most
sensitive point. Apparently, thus far all parts were equally sensitive,
equally
VERY sensitive. Ranma shrieked with laughter.
I’ve only got a minute or so to think of a way out! Ranma
thought in panic. Otherwise I’ll be stuck on a date with Akane or
Ukyo…! But I
can’t move… what can I do…? “GHAHAHHEHEHHEHAHHAH AEEEEEEEEEEEEK
HEEHAHAHAH STOP
STOPPIT GHAYAHAHAHAHAHAH!!! HAHEHEEHAHAAAHH NO PLHEEHEEHEHEEHEHEZE!!!”
“Do you surrender, Ranma?” the announcer asked intently.
“NOHOOHOHOHHOOHHOHOHO!!! I’LL NEVER!!!
AHAHAHAHEHhehHHAAHAH!!!!” Ranma tried frantically to think of a way to
do
anything! But it was hopeless… Only a few seconds remaining… and then
Ukyo
stopped.
“Ehehehhehe…hehehehe… eh? Ukyo? Ukyo…???” Ranma managed to
turn his head and look behind him.
“If Shampoo no get to date Ranma, then no one dates Ranma!”
The Chinese girl was back with a vengeance, and forgoing her special
technique
for the sake of watching Ukyo squirm. Shampoo had Ukyo’s stocking feet
in an
arm lock and was viciously running her nails on the other girl’s feet.
“NAHAHAAHAHAHAHEHEHEHAHAHAH AHAHAHHA HEY YOU
STAHAHAHAHAHAHAAP STAY OUT OF THIHIHIHIIIIIIIIIIIS!!! HEEHEHEHEHEHE!!!”
Ukyo
tried to kick her feet free but Shampoo had a vise grip on them. In a
moment of
clarity, though, she noticed that Shampoo had carelessly left her own
feet
pointing back at Ukyo… With a frenzy born of intense tickling Ukyo
grabbed one
of Shampoo’s feet and went after the base of her toes.
“GYEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEK!!!” Shampoo shrieked, temporarily
losing the rhythm on Ukyo’s feet as she felt Ukyo’s fingers dance on
her toes,
playing a hideous game of ‘this little piggy’. Then Shampoo, too,
regained
enough control to dig her fingers back into Ukyo’s stockings. The
result was
chaos.
“GHAAHHHEHAHAHAHA AHAHAHHA HAHAHEEHEAHAHA AHHAHE HEHEHE
AAHAHH AHAHAAAAHAHAHAA HHAHAH AHAHEHEEH EHAHAHA A HAHAHA
AHHHEEHEHEHEHHEEH
EHEHEHE EHEHEHHAHH AHAHAHA AHAHAHA AHAHAH A HAHAHAH AHEHEEHEHEH E HEHE
EHEHEHEHE EHEHAHAH AHAHAAH AHAHAHAHHA HEHEEHEHHAHAAH AHAHAHA
AHAHAHHEHEHEAHHAHAAH!!!!!”
The two girls rolled about on the mat, their laughter mixing together
and
booming out over the arena, as the crowd cheered wildly and the
announcer
shouted, trying to be heard over them.
“Oh my! It looks like Shampoo and Ukyo have gotten into a
massive tickle fight! Who will come out on top, and what will it mean
for
Ranma, saved from defeat by Shampoo?”
“It means that I’m going to win this match!” Ranma
proclaimed defiantly. Already, he could feel the strength returning to
his muscles.
Not much, barely enough to allow him to get to his knees, but it was an
improvement.
“GHAHAHHAHEHEEHHE SHAMPOO SHOW YOU WHO BOSS!!!
EHEHHAAHAHAHAHAHHAHA!!!”
“LOOK WHO’S TALKING HEHEHAHAHHGHAHAHA
HAHAHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHAHAHAHA!!!!!” Ukyo lost her concentration as
Shampoo found
a spot at the base of her toes and dug in viciously.
“Squeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!!!” From Akane’s arms, P-chan shot
out, headbutting Shampoo and causing her to topple backwards with a
squeak.
“Ryoga?” Ranma said incredulously.
“I’m sick of you thinking you can just come in and
interfere to get your way!” Akane said, also climbing into the ring.
“I’m going
to teach you a lesson you’ll NEVER forget!”
“C…count me in!” Ukyo said, scrambling to her feet and
breathing hard, trying to shake the residual giggles. “I want to get
this
little witch back!” With a yell, the both of them lunged at Shampoo,
pinning
her to the mat. Ukyo held Shampoo’s arms above her head and Akane set
to work
all over Shampoo’s upper body, tickling under her arms first and making
her way
down…
“Ghahahehheheahah ahaahahahahheeh!!
HAhaahahhHAAHAHhehehe!!! AHahhAAHahahahhahehehhehee heheheheh!!!
HEHEHEHEHEH!!!
AHAHAHAHH!!!!” Shampoo laughed increasingly louder, as her belly and
sides were
more ticklish than her underarms, and Akane spent some time giving
Shampoo’s
sides squeezes and pokes, enjoying her bucking and giggling.
“Who’s the boss now, Shampoo? Hmm?” Ukyo said, mocking
Shampoo as Akane worked her over.
“Looks like our violent little Amazon has a soft side!” Akane
chuckled in return. “Two of them!” Akane dug her hands into Shampoo’s
sides
again.
“GYEEEEEKE EHEHEHEHEHEHHE EHHHHEAHHAAH!!! AHHAHAHEHEH!!!
NAHAHAHAH!!” Shampoo squealed, tossing her head back and forth.
Meanwhile Ranma had regained his feet and was watching the
melee with interest, not saying anything and letting them go about
their work.
“Well, should we move on to the best part?” Ukyo asked with
a grin.
“By all means,” Akane answered with a smile, stopping her
own tickling, and Ukyo released Shampoo’s wrists.
Shampoo smirked in triumph. “Big mistake!” With a quick
motion, her hands assumed a particular stance… “Ancient Chinese Amazon
technique! Strike of the Asura!” And, again, it seemed as if Shampoo
merely
poked Akane…
“GHAHAHHAHAHHAH A AHHAHAHEHEEH AHAHH AHAH AHHAHA OH
OHAHHAHEHEHEHEH OOHOHOHOHOHOHOAHAHAH EHEHEH NO NO
NAAHAHAHAHEHHEHEAHHAAHHAHAAH
STOOOOP PLEHEHEHEHEHEHEHEHHEHEHEZE AAHHAAHHEHEHEHAHA GYAHHAAH!!!” Akane
was
rolling about the mat in a flash,
laughing insanely as she swatted to ward off the attacks that had, in
fact,
already taken place and were just now being felt by her body’s nervous
system.
Ukyo backed away a step, and Shampoo grinned. Ukyo took off running
chased by
Shampoo, and the only laughter that remained was Akane’s.
“Well… although technically there are no rules… you’re not
supposed to leave the ring… and she doesn’t look to be coming back for
awhile,”
the announcer opined as Ukyo cleared the horizon. “That means Ranma is
the
winner! And the next match is Ranma vs. Akane… both combatants are
already in
the ring. So…” the announcer glanced at the still-hysterical Akane and
shrugged. “Go!”
Ranma stretched lazily, and watched the residual effects of
Shampoo’s technique do their work. Akane was still down laughing.
“HGHAHAHAHHEHEHE
HAHA HEY HEY WAIIIIT EHEHEHEHHAHAAHAHHAHA THIS ISN’T FAIHIIIIIR!!
EHEHHEHEHAAHAH AAAAAAAHAHHAH GAHAHAHHEYEHEHEHEHAHAHHAH!!!! STOPPIT!!!
HEHEHEHEHE!!!”
“No rules, Akane, remember?” Ranma grinned lazily. He
waited for the countdown to reach zero.
Meanwhile P-chan was dancing a little dance of glee along
the sidelines. Without his even having to do anything, Akane was going
to lose,
and not date Ranma! Best of all, she wouldn’t even be able to blame him
for
this… and he could always claim the other thing had been Mousse’s idea
all
along…
With that, and Akane finally winding down, but still
giggling and completely unable to move, Ranma was again declared the
winner,
without really even lifting a finger. Akane’s father, Soun, carted his
weak and
giggly daughter off of the ring and into the stands.
“Well, Ranma is still in the tournament. And there’s only
one opponent left to go. I think we’ve got this prize wrapped up, eh
Saotome?”
Soun asked.
“Yes! To think that we’ll finally have some money… I’m so
proud!” Genma looked starry-eyed at the prospect of having more than
1000 yen
to his name.
“Remember, Saotome, first you have to pay for the repairs
to my dojo…”
“Oh yes.” Genma sat down, coughed, and did his best to look
sage. “Of course. I hadn’t forgotten, Tendo.”
As luck would have it, Ranma’s final opponent decided that
it wouldn’t be worth the effort to try and fight him for first prize.
So,
cheering and congratulating himself, Ranma walked up to the first prize
table…
“Wait a minute!” the announcer called. “You still have one more match
to go.”
“What? Against who?” Ranma demanded. “The other girl
forfeit! I won!”
“But you still have to fight the final match,” he replied.
“Against the founder of the tournament herself… Kusuguri!”
“Kusuguri?” Akane wondered to herself. “Who would have a
name like that…?” (Author’s Note: The name is a derivative of ‘tickle’
in
Japanese. I didn’t know that until MC told me. XD)
“H-hey!” Ranma exclaimed as the woman walked out of the
ladies’ changing rooms. “You’re that girl…”
“Indeed I am,” Kusuguri said with a slight giggle. “My name
is Kusuguri and I’m the founder of the Tickling School of Martial Arts.”
“Tickling school?” Ranma asked, slightly agape.
Kusuguri nodded with a gentle smile and another giggle. “Oh
yes. I always did like making people laugh – jokes, pictures, tickling,
anything. And I never could stand to hurt someone else. So I made my
own school
of self-defense martial arts that wasn’t harmful to anyone.”
“Whoa… well, ah, nevermind then. Let’s just get this over
with so I can claim the grand prize!” Ranma exclaimed, leaping into the
ring.
Kusuguri gracefully swung a long leg over the edge and pulled herself
up. As
Ranma had remarked before, she was pretty, with long brown hair, blue
eyes and
an elfin little mouth that was always smiling. Her form was lithe and
looked to
be quick and fit: Ranma could tell that this was not someone to be
taken
lightly. Thus, as she removed her business suit to reveal a workout
outfit,
Ranma steadied himself and prepared for an actual battle, not just a
pushover
or a fluke. The effects of Ukyo’s weakening sauce seemed to have worn
off, so
Ranma felt 100% for this battle.
“And let the final match of the Martial Arts Tickling
Tournament commence!” the announcer cried, ringing the bell.
“Yaaaah!!!” Ranma yelled, charging forward, hands at the
ready to strike quickly… he aimed for Kusuguri’s sides. Kusuguri didn’t
leap
away or strike back as he had expected – rather, with a graceful
flowing
motion, she leaned out of his way, and quick as a whip had snuck her
fingers
under his arms. “Eyeeheheheheheheeeek!!” Ranma cried, stumbling and
clapping
his hands to his underarms.
“Wow, she’s fast…!” Akane said, watching from the stands.
“That’s
amazing!”
Ranma turned, this time really determined to get an attack
in, and Kusuguri’s pleasant smile did nothing to improve his mood.
“I’ll get
you this time!”
“Oh, I’m sure you will eventually,” Kusuguri said
pleasantly. “I’m rather ticklish if I do say so myself. It should be
quite a
fun show!” Ranma advanced more cautiously this time, edging closer and
closer
to Kusuguri, who still showed no sign of adopting anything like a
fighting
stance. Ranma noticed that every time he took a step, Kusuguri’s eyes
would
flicker towards his feet. An idea began to form in his head… to
experiment, he
changed his stance so that one foot was in the air… and Kusuguri struck
in that
moment.
“GYAHAHAHEHEHAHHHEHHAHHEHAHAHEHAH!!!” Ranma squealed,
hopping backwards a few steps and rubbing his bare foot on the mat to
try and
get rid of the tickling sensation. “How’d you do that?” he snarled. He
had
barely seen her move…
Kusuguri giggled. “You’re going about this all the wrong
way… you’ll never beat me if you keep trying this tactic.”
“Shut up!” Ranma shouted, lunging at Kusuguri – and feeling
the other woman’s nails find his sides and rake up and down quickly.
With a
giggle and squeal Ranma fell face first onto the mat. Kusuguri took her
chance
and was sitting on Ranma’s back before he could roll away or react.
“Oh dear me. You seem to be in a ticklish situation!”
Kusuguri giggled again and reached for one of Ranma’s feet. Ranma
kicked his
feet hard, preventing her from getting a grip of any kind on his ankle.
“My,
my. Still the stubborn one, aren’t we? It’s OK… most of my students
take awhile
before they understand this lesson.”
“Shut up! You’re getting on my nerves!” Ranma growled.
“Getting on his nerves…?” Akane mused to herself. “Ranma!”
she called, standing up. “That’s it! Don’t let her get to you! If
you’re going
to be so uptight she’ll pick you apart!”
“Whaddya mean I can’t let her get to me? I’m so damn
ticklish that – EEK!! EHEEHHAHAHHAEHHAHHEHAHEHAHEHA!!” Ranma squealed
as
Kusuguri caught his foot in a moment of distraction and ran her nails
gently along
the sole.
“Oh dearest me,” Kusuguri sighed. “Such soft soles. These
call for… feathers.” Kusuguri reached into her outfit and withdrew a
feather, a
long soft white one. Ranma’s eyes bugged.
“Hey oh no don’t you dare touch me with that –
GHYAHAHAHHAEHHAHHAHhHHAHAHEHEHAHAHEHAHAHHAH
EHAHHA EHAHEHAHAH EHEHEHEHAHAHAHAEHEAHHAHAHEHAHAHAH AHAH A HAH EHAH!!”
Kusuguri
swept the feather from heel to toes, in particular concentrating on the
arch
and toes. Ranma seemed to be most sensitive there, and seemingly within
a few
seconds she had ascertained all the ticklish spots on his foot…
“And Kusuguri has Ranma in a leg-lock foot tickle!” the
announcer called. “If she doesn’t get out soon she’ll be
disqualified!!!”
Not now, Ranma pleaded, not after I’ve come so far! I have
to win… have to! “Don’t let it get to you, Ranma!!!” Akane called.
Right… sure,
Ranma thought sarcastically, while laughing his head off and pounding
the mat
with his fists. Don’t let it get to me… ! “GhahAHAHHAHHEHEHAHHAHAH!!
AHHAHHEHEHEEH STOP STAHAHAHAHAHAHAP STOPPIT HEHEEHEHEHEHAHAHAH
GYAHAHAHHA
AAAAAAHAHAHAHHA!! AHAHEHEHEHEHAHAHA!!! NO NO NAHAHAHAHHAAHHAHA!!!”
“That’s right! You have such a pretty laugh,” Kusuguri said
sweetly, running the feather up and down along Ranma’s soles. She
reached up to
give his side a quick tickle… Ranma saw his chance. Twisting his upper
body
nearly all the way around, he grabbed her arm and tossed her aside,
sending her
flying into the mat.
“Ha ha! I gotcha that time!” Ranma said confidently,
turning and going for the pounce on the downed Kusuguri. Only by the
time he
had reached the spot, Kusuguri had stood up and was a foot away.
“Tsk, tsk,” Kusuguri chided, putting away her feather.
“You’re never going to learn at that rate.”
“Learn WHAT?!?!” Ranma shouted.
“Heeheehee,” Kusuguri giggled.
Then Ranma thought of something. Is it because I’m all
uptight about this… and she’s being so carefree? Is that what the
problem is
here? He turned to Akane, still shouting “Don’t let her get to you!”
“Oh!” And then Ranma got it. Because he hated this tickling
so much, its effects on him were far greater. If he loosened up and
didn’t make
such a scene about it… “I got it, Akane! Thanks!” And with that, Ranma
turned
back to Kusuguri, a grin on his face.
“Ah! You’re starting to understand… yay!” Kusuguri giggled,
clapping her hands softly. “Come on now.” Kusuguri raised her arms
above her
head. “If you can get me, I’ll concede the match to you. Come on, give
it a
try!”
Ranma dropped his hands from the fighting stance he’d been
using. “I get it now… martial arts aren’t the key to winning here.”
Ranma took
a gulp and said, “Here goes!” With what seemed to him to be dainty,
silly steps
he made his way towards Kusuguri. To everyone else, however… it seemed
as if
Ranma had suddenly warped the distance between the pair of them.
“Heeeheheeheheh!! haahahahAHAHAHahahaheheheh!!!” Kusuguri
laughed sweetly, bringing her arms down with a whoop as Ranma ran his
nails
under her arms. “Ok ok hehheheheehahhaahahhaha stop! I surrender!”
“And the match is done!” the announcer cried as a great
cheer went up from the audience. “Ranma Saotome is the winner of the
Martial
Arts Tickling Tournament!”
“Yeah!!!” Ranma exhorted. Then he contemplated what had
happened. “How did acting carefree and silly make me move so fast…?”
“Because,” Kusuguri said with a giggle. “When there’s a
place with so much tickling, it emits a great deal of energy. Those
people who
are in a good mood and carefree can harness that energy.”
“Oh…” Ranma said, not sure if this woman was being a quack
or not. It sounded silly to him… but it had won him 200,000 yen! And he
was
free from those girls! Life was good.
“I got 200,000 yen,” Ranma sang as he skipped into the
Tendo dojo. (Author’s Note: think to the tune of “Never gonna be a girl
again…”) “I got 200,000 yen…”
“We know, Ranma, and we’re so proud of you!” Genma
exclaimed. “You did such a wonderful job! I’m so happy!”
“Yeah, now he can pay us back for all the damage he’s
done,” Akane said as they sat around the table while Kasumi went to
prepare
dinner. “At least something good will come of it.”
“Actually… I had something to say on that topic. First, I
have something for you here, Ranma.” Soun Tendo handed Ranma a small,
folded
piece of paper.
“Hmm? What’s this?” Ranma asked, unfolding the piece of
paper. “It’s… it’s… “ Ranma went pale in the face. “How could you do
this to
me??!” he yelled, throwing the paper aside.
“What’s wrong, boy, what is it?” Genma asked, snagging the
piece of paper. “Lodging… Food… Damages… Baths… Tendo!!! This is a…
BILL!!!”
“Why, yes, I figured it would be appropriate, since neither
you nor Ranma have contributed to the upkeep of this household since
you
arrived… if I’m not mistaken, the bill comes out to 194,495 yen.”
“Then that means… all I’ve got left is… is… is…”
“5,005 yen,” Akane said with a hidden smirk on her face.
“There’s your spending cash, Ranma. Use it wisely.” She giggled.
“It’ll go towards my hospital bill,” Ranma groaned.
“Because right now, I don’t feel so good…” Ranma toppled over,
swirly-eyed, as
everyone around him laughed heartily.
Yes, it was just another normal day at the Tendo dojo.
Go to Ranma 1/2: The Martial Arts Tickling
Tournament part 3a