Ranma 1/2 Fan Fiction ❯ Second Chances ❯ The Revenge of Happousai ( Chapter 24 )

[ P - Pre-Teen ]
Second Chances

Chapter 24 - The Revenge of Happousai

Ranma 1/2 and all characters are owned by Rumiko Takahashi-sensei,
Shounen Sunday, Viz Entertainment, and yet more companies. I have
borrowed them through an exorbi...

(Nabiki taps her foot)

...Ah... mutually beneficial contract with Nabiki-sama. Which she can
nullify at any time.

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Happousai glared at the Tendo home. This made no sense to him. How were they able to thwart his little plan so easily? Of all the food orders he had placed, only one was delivered. Instead of wasting Soun's money and making the man angry at Ranma as well, he only gave Kasumi the night off from cooking. How did they know that he would do such a thing to them? He had never done this to Soun and Genma before as they didn't have the money to hurt them in that means when he had trained them, so they shouldn't have expected it. Yet somehow his righteous vengeance had been prevented.

Happousai twiddled his pipe. He had to come up with some means of getting back at Ranma. It would not do for the brat to get away with making a fool of his master. He was the grandmaster of the school, and Ranma definitely needed to be taught respect.

"Damn that Saotome!"

Happousai blinked as he had not been the one who said that. He looked down at some kid with his face wrapped in bandages and gliding on some strange sort of shoes. A plan was beginning to form in his mind as he jumped down in front of the boy. "You have some problem with Saotome Ranma?"

Mikado skidded to a stop on his in-line skates. "What of it?"

Happousai grinned dementedly. "Then we have a foe in common. Ranma needs to be taught proper respect."

"I do not seek aid with my duel to pay him back," Mikado retorted. "I will make him pay for defiling Martial Arts Figure Skating and especially for what he did to my nose."

"You lost to Ranma fighting on your own turf and expect to do any better fighting on his?" Happousai laughed. "You're stupid if you think you can win like that!"

"I will defeat him and claim a kiss from the buxom red-haired girl!" Mikado announced.

Happousai began to roll on the ground, laughing so hard it hurt.

Mikado growled and moved to skate around the diminutive old man, only to find himself embedded into the wall across the street after being hit by a quick tap on the old man's pipe. Prying free of the brick and plaster, he fell to his knees. "How did you do that?"

"I am the Grand Master of Anything Goes Martial Arts, and I can teach you how to defeat Ranma," Happousai announced evilly.

Mikado wouldn't have bowed normally, but he was already on the ground. "I shall learn from you."

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"Akane."

The girl in question jumped and whirled around toward the speaker standing at her bedroom door.

"Calm down, oneechan," Nabiki advised, shutting the door behind her for more privacy. "We haven't seen Happousai for days. Maybe he decided Ranma wasn't worth it."

Akane shook her head. "Happousai doesn't usually give up so easily. He's planning something, I know it."

Nabiki waved her finger. "That's just it. This time we DON'T know it. Things have changed and there's little we can do about it."

"I know Happousai, he's not one to get distracted from vengeance unless there's a lot of girls involved." Akane sighed. "And what's worse is that if he's not taken care of soon, he'll be around when Shampoo and Cologne arrive."

"Maybe he already left to take care of his other business and won't be back for a few weeks," Nabiki suggested. "Even if he still wants to get 'revenge' on Ranma, we're obviously not the only people he annoys."

Akane shook her head. Everything in her being told her that Happousai wasn't done yet, and whatever sick and twisted plan he had involved her.

Nabiki moved toward the window and gazed out of it. "Akane, Happousai isn't the reason I wanted to talk to you."

Akane blinked. "Oh?"

Nabiki focused her gaze on her sister. "I'm not going to take your place in dealing with any more of Ranma's troubles."

"Why not? He might not admit it, but he needs help at times," Akane retorted.

"Yes, dear oneechan, he does need help, from his partner, and that's you," Nabiki pointed out.

"What do you mean?" Akane pressed.

Nabiki almost growled. "Akane, think for a minute. During the two fights Ranma has had with Happousai _I_ took _YOUR_ place. _I_ was the one to help him. _I_ was the one he saw nude. _I_ was the one he defended."

Akane's eyes widened. She didn't want to say what she thought her sister was trying to say. "But he doesn't like you."

"Wrong. Your old Ranma didn't like me. The other Nabiki was a royal bitch to him. She sold naked imagines of Ranma to Kuno, swindled cash from him, and played his fiancees against him. I haven't done ANY of that. This Ranma doesn't have any reason to dislike me, and by helping him where you should have, he's starting to LIKE me. I just want to end this now before it goes any farther. He still likes you more than me, and I intend to keep it that way," Nabiki spelled out.

Akane had seemed to grow angry at first but then caved in on herself. "What can I do? I can't face Happousai and Ranma is no where near ready to face him alone."

Nabiki folded her arms. "You can't run away from Happousai forever. Daddy's too much of a wimp to kick him out. The next time Happousai appears, you should face him." Without another word, she left the room.

Akane flopped onto her bed, trying to fight the urge to cry.

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"A letter of challenge? From Mikado?" Akane questioned in confusion.

Ranma let out a short laugh. "Guess he wants to pay me back for breaking his nose."

Akane frowned and nodded.

"Hey, don't go thinking about how that lousy perv stole a kiss from ya. He deserved more than a broken nose for that! I ain't about to go easy on his ass out of regret or somethin'. He wants his ass kicked, and I'll gladly do it." Ranma then showed her where the challenge was located. "Moron even wants to fight on the roof of Furikan. He won't even be fighting on his own turf, but mine."

Akane didn't know how to take any of this. Something seemed even more wrong with this than Mikado apparently becoming Ranma's new rival. It seemed to stink of soiled panties, but how could Happousai be involved in this?

Ranma hated it when Akane got depressed, especially as she seemed to get sad far too easily. He fidgeted for a second before giving her a quick kiss on her forehead. "That perv doesn't stand a chance!"

Akane stared after Ranma's retreating form. Despite herself, a small smile appeared on her face as she felt her slightly moist forehead with her hand.

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Considering how Ranma and Mikado fought, it was decided that this battle would not be announced to anyone with the small area to fight in and the risk of injury to those watching. In fact as the stated time arrived, only Mikado and Ranma were on the roof proper while Akane stood alone on the clock tower.

"It is time I make you pay for what you did to my nose!" Mikado announced, pulling off the bandages covering his face.

Ranma raised an eyebrow while Akane shuddered in revulsion. The broken nose was swollen and red, looking much like a clown's nose.

"Because of you, I have not been able to kiss a single girl, and I shall make you pay!" Mikado announced.

Ranma shook his head. "Girls should be thankin' me for keeping your perverted hands to yourself."

"It's time for you to die! Happou Daikarin!" Mikado reached back and threw a pair of bombs.

"WHAT?!" Akane screeched.

Ranma evaded the blasts from the bombs. "Learned some new tricks, huh?" He then had to rush a block as his opponent followed the bombs with a slashing kick that had been sped up with his skates.

Akane gripped the edge of the clock tower as she looked down at the fight before her. There was only one way that the young pervert learned to use those bombs, and that was from the ancient lech. The battle wasn't as one-sided as she hoped, either. With the weird roller-skates Mikado was using, he was moving even faster than Ranma. The Happou Daikarin wasn't even being used as a pure offensive technique but to move Ranma into position for the young pervert to launch his own special moves.

Akane jumped to the side before realizing why the urge struck her. She began to shiver as a diminutive form wrapped in brown clothes landed right where she had been.

"Aw, why won't you let me greet you, Akane-chan?" Happousai called out with false sweetness.

Akane stepped backwards, but froze when her foot met the edge of the tower. "Stay away from me!"

With the battle raging below, punctuated with explosive blasts, Ranma did not hear her shout.

"Now, Akane-chan, why do you avoid me?" Happousai faked an innocent smile. "I'm just a harmless old man."

Akane's eyes narrowed. "You are anything but harmless."

Happousai appraised the girl before him. "You're a strange one. I never met you, yet you flee from me. And how did you learn to use your chi so well?"

"That is none of your business, Happousai," Akane spat.

"And now you're angry at me, and for what? I haven't even touched you." Happousai leapt at the girl, but failed to reach her as her chi aura sprang around her.

"Where did you learn this trick?" Happousai pressed. "Who taught you?"

"You wouldn't believe me if I told you," Akane retorted sarcastically.

"Try me. I know more than you can imagine..." Happousai trailed off. "Or do you know?"

"What if I told you I'm from a future where I killed you?" Akane snarled.

Happousai laughed. "You could never defeat me."

Akane blinked and he was gone. Her eyes then bulged as she felt something on her chest while her shirt became unbearably tight. She moved to squash the lech hiding under her blouse, but only struck her own chest. She then glared evilly at the lech rubbing his face into her bra. She then blinked as a breeze fluttered up her dress and struck a certain area of skin that should've been covered.

Happousai grinned devilishly holding up a pair of panties. "I've had my fun. I need to check on a few things. See you in a couple weeks, Akane-chan!" He then leapt away, but not before flipping her school dress, making her moon Nerima.

Akane's face was red from embarrassment and anger. An explosion brought her attention back to the other battle. She peered over the edge and saw Ranma grab hold of one of the Happou Daikarin bombs and used it to block one of Mikado's kicks. The resulting blast ripped up and burnt Ranma's arm, while the wheels on Mikado's right foot were destroyed. The skater wobbled as he glided backwards on his left foot. It was obvious that Mikado had not expected that to happen and was trying to think of what to do next. With a single uppercut, Ranma put an end to the battle.

Rushing quickly for the ladder, Akane began to climb down before Ranma or Mikado could have a chance to look up at her.

"Hey, Akane, did ya see-" Ranma eyes became the size of dinner plates.

The Tendo girl cursed the wind and Ranma's timing. She tried to hold her dress down, but then lost her balance and fell a couple meters on to the roof.

Ranma's eyes were glued to the girl, unable to say a word to her.

"Happousai," was all Akane needed to say. It was all she could say as embarrassed as she was. At least Mikado was unconscious and there weren't any other spectators for this battle.

Ranma's fists clenched to the point his knuckles were popping. "That lech is dead!"

Akane sighed. "He said he'll be gone for a few weeks. Let's just forget about him."

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Author's Notes:

Chapter 25: Wrong Side of the Coin
Ryouga sees something that begins a battle royal against Ranma.

'Weird skates' comment comes from the time in which Ranma 1/2 occurs in-line skates had only just began to be sold in American markets. Only someone fairly wealthy and interested in such a thing, like Mikado, would have them in Japan at that point.