The Ryoga/Ukyo Chronicles
By Jeremy Sumerlin aka The Girthman
Disclaimer:
Ryoga, Hiroshi, Daisuke, and Ukyo are not my creations and are both
copyright of Rumiko Takahashi. I’d like to thank Takahashi-sensei for her
great series. I once again claim no credit for their creation, however, some
of the characters are my creations (aka Ryu Itzuyo) and I do claim them, so
there!
Chapter Two: Roaming
*****************************************************************************
"Spend this time with me
Together share this smile
Lover lay down
Spend this time with me
Walk with me, walk with you
Hold my hand in your hands
So much we have dreamed..."
-"Lover Lay Down" by the Dave Matthews Band
*****************************************************************************
Ryoga gazed up at the thick, black tapestry of the night sky as he
strolled through the grassy field beneath his feet. There was an infinity
about it that had always fascinated him. The tiny points of light, floating
in a sea that must span a distance farther than anyone could imagine. On his
least happy moments, he could always look to the stars and realize that
there was a boundlessness all about him. It was this offering of infinite
possiblities that would keep him alive. It kept him determined to try his
hardest to make Akane see how much he loved her. But, she was married to
Ranma now. The twilight shone down on the land from on high, and they
brought with them the promise of all things. Ryoga wondered distantly why
they didn’t shine down on him.
He turned his gaze from this celestial spectacle to the more earthly
(but still very pretty) girl named Ukyo Kuonji that was walking with him,
her hand still holding his. She was guiding him, although neither of them
knew where it was they were going. Nevertheless, it was necessary, because
chances were that he’d wander off if she didn’t keep him close at all times.
Behind them, he could still hear the nighttime bustling of the city of
Tokyo. Nerima was there somewhere, lost in the epic size and humming of that
distant electric spectacle. Ryoga noted, with some annoyance, he often felt
like that. Lost in a sea bigger than anything else. He glanced back up at
the stars and sighed slightly. Ukyo glanced up at him and smiled. He
returned the favor.
Her smile certainly was something, now that he noticed. It had an
innocence to it that he liked. Traveling for as long as he had, innocence
was a talent you learned to value. It meant that the person was trustworthy.
A good person. Yes, now that he examined it, her smile was...well,
beautiful.
"So," she said as they continued on, "Where is it you usually go when you’re
wandering around like this?"
Ryoga’s face went crimson with embarrassment.
"Well, usually I wander off and get lost, then spend all my time trying to
find my way back to Nerima." He admitted, with some reluctance. He chuckled
nervously and put his hand on the back of his neck. Gratefully, he noticed
she wasn’t laughing at him.
"Well." She said in a determined tone, "That’s not the case anymore. We need
a destination." Ryoga racked his brain for one, but came up empty. He looked
at her helplessly. She frowned, knowing it was up to her to find one.
"All right, all right." She said, drifting off into thought. After a few
moments, she snapped her fingers.
"Ah hah!" she said, smiling at him. She seemed almost giddy. "We can go
home!"
Ryoga frowned. He furrowed his brow in a vain attempt to understand
her. Did she mean back to Nerima? This was certainly a strange girl. And he
always thought Ukyo was more level-headed than that.
"Home?" he said. "You mean Nerima?"
"No, sugar," she said patiently, "Back to my childhood home. It’s in a
valley, but it’s pretty far away. You can meet my father."
Ryoga smiled. It was better than just wandering, he surmised, and she
seemed happy. He wanted her to be happy. He knew firsthand how bad being sad
was. After the wedding and the recent scene with Akari, he didn’t want to be
near any sadness anymore. He was sick of it. Besides, he liked to see her
smile.
"...and my sister." Ukyo added almost silently after a pause. Ryoga was taken
aback. He looked down at her, and she seemed to be gazing down at her feet,
as if embarrased or ashamed of something.
"You have a sister?" he said. "I...I never knew..." his voice seemed to trail
off, as it often did. He had never really known Ukyo that well, but he had
still always assumed she was an only child. After all, she never talked
about her family. He wondered distantly if her smile was as pretty as
Ukyo’s. Somehow, he doubted it.
"No one knows." She said with a slight air of sadness. "We...don’t get along
very well. At least, we didn’t while I was at home. But that was a long time
ago."
Ryoga nodded inflectively. So, she had a sister that didn’t like her.
Ryoga could only imagine how bad that was. He was an only child, after all.
He was alone by fate. She was alone because she was despised by those that
should have been closest to her. That could be the worst type of loneliness.
He decided he should try to tell her something to make her feel better.
"People change." He replied, squeezing her hand slightly. She looked up at
him and smiled. "I’m sure she’s forgotten about whatever it was by now." He
finished, smiling slightly with self satisfaction.
Ukyo opened her mouth as if trying to say something, but instead
turned and continued to walk, holding his hand tightly so he wouldn’t wander
away from her. She could feel the steady, slight tug he was unconciously
giving her as he tried to wander off. She definantly didn’t want him
strolling off and leaving her alone. His words bounded through her mind
freely. He was obviously making an effort to make her feel better. She spent
the next hour trying to figure out why.
They continued to walk for a while longer, both silent. Eventually,
sleep bade them enter his domain, and, pitching camp, they accepted
graciously.
*****************************************************************************
Ukyo winced as she allowed her eyes to creak open, and was
immediately sorry as the sunshine overhead poured into her pupils. She
squinted and sat up, stretching her lithe body much like a cat, before
looking about her for Ryoga. His sleeping bag, across from the burned out
fire pit they had made last night, lay open. He was nowhere to be seen. Ukyo
swallowed hard.
she heard her mind say bitterly,
She stood, stretching more, and noted that his backpack was still there.
She thought.
So thought, she began to search around, and after a few moments
noticed a familiar figure walking back towards Tokyo carrying a pile of
wood. Smiling slightly, she began to creep up behind the stumbling figure.
He strode on, unaware of her approach. She considered him as she snuck up.
He was a good man, from what little she could tell. He was obviously strong,
durable, and handsome, in a rougish type of way. Hs hair was thick and
unkepmt, and was hardly tussled by the wind. She tried to picture him with
shorter, neater hair, and found it to her liking. She would have to make
sure she talked to him about that sometime. She stood right behind him and
patted his back lightly.
"Tag." She said playfully. "You're it, sugar."
Ryoga, startled, dropped the wood and jumped up about four feet,
shouting. His overreaction took her by surprise, and she slipped, letting
out an undignified "Uf!" as she was dumped unceremoniously onto the forest
floor. Ryoga spun around, his face hard and ready for combat, but then it
turned into an annoyed anger when he saw the pretty okonomiyaki chef on the
ground in front of him.
"Uyko!" he growled. "What the hell did you do that for!?"
She giggled, and some of the anger drained from his deep blue eyes.
Her laugh was cute, he thought. It was one of the few things that had ever
calmed him down.
"Oh, come on, sugar." She said teasingly from her prone position, "I was just
playing around with you. Help me up, would you?"
She flashed him one of her best "sweet girl" smiles. Apparently it
worked, because his face flustered with embarrassment and he held his hand
out to her. She took it gratefully and he pulled her to her feet. Then,
still holding onto his hand, she began to lead him back to the campsite, the
wood cradled in his free arm.
*****************************************************************************
"That wasn’t funny, you know." He said later as he piled the wood into the
fire pit. Overhead, the morning birds sang their light symphonies.
"Oh, poor Ryoga." She said, mocking a very sympathetic voice. "I didn’t mean
to scare you."
Ryoga glared at her before turning his attention back to the fire pit.
"You could have gotten hurt." He said solemnly. "I almost kicked you."
Ukyo’s slight smirk faded away. She’d seen Ryoga and Ranma fight
before, and she definantly did not want to be on the receiving end of any of
his attacks.
"Sorry." She murmured, almost inaudibly. Nevertheless, he heard her.
"S’Okay." He replied, removing a black rock and a steel bar from his backpack
and striking them together over the kindling. In a few moments, Uyko had the
portable okonomiyaki grill set up over a nice fire, and Ryoga happily noted
the delicious scent that wafted through the morning air. Ukyo began to hum
to herself, idly flipping the Okonomiyaki as she had always done back at the
restaurant. She wondered distantly how her
business was going. She flipped the Japanese pizza again, and pushed the
thought from her mind. From now on that life was behind her. She was
starting over again. More importantly than that, she was going home. Back to
her father, and....
She frowned openly, but didn’t realize it. Ryoga did, however, but
said nothing. The other person she’d see when she got home was the one who
really troubled her. Her sister. Yuko. She sighed, and Ryoga glanced at her
again, but still remained silent.
Yuko. Her only sister. Hell, besides father, she was the only family
Ukyo really had. But Yuko hated her. What was worse, she hated her for a
ridiculous reason. It wasn’t Ukyo’s fault if Father had picked her for Ranma
instead of Yuko. After all, Ukyo wasn’t even with Ranma now. He was married
to someone else. Maybe Yuko could take enough pleasure in that to forget.
she thought.
Her thoughts were interrupted by the scent of the okonomiyaki
sizzling on the grill. Through her years of training, she knew that when
your food was ready, it released a certain scent. That scent now hung heavy
in the air. She flipped an okonomiyaki onto a plate and handed it to Ryoga,
who took it graciously and devoured it. She slid the second onto a plate for
herself, and began to eat it.
"Say, Ukyo," Ryoga said as he took a huge bite from the okonomiyaki, "Are you
okay?"
She smiled and nodded. "Just fine." She said. "Why do you ask?"
Ryoga shrugged and swallowed. "You just seemed...kinda down."
She eyed him over. He seemed genuinely concerned about her. It was
sweet, in a way. Like the way he ate his okonomiyaki. Kinda like a big cute
dog you want to cuddle and love and take care of. She wondered what his
mother must’ve been like.
"No, I’m fine." She said. "Tough as nails, that’s me."
He grinned, and his fangs poked out. "If you’re sure." He said. She nodded.
There was a small period of silence as they ate and began to pack
their campsite up. From what Ukyo could judge, they were about five weeks
travel from her home. She sighed, noting it was such a short time, yet such
an unbearably long one. She turned to Ryoga, who slung his backpack on and
grinned at her.
She thought absently before taking his hand.
She looked down at their clasped hands without the disdain she
usually had for such things. It was necessary, after all. Otherwise, he may
accidentally wander off and be unable to find his way back, she told herself
again. Besides, it’s not like it was a bad thing or anything. She actually
liked holding his hand, in a way. It was warm, and it gave her a certain
sense of security she appreciated. She idly wondered if he felt the same
way. Wordlessly, the two set off down the road and into the beautiful
morning.
*****************************************************************************
Ryoga stood atop the grassy hill, gazing out into the horizon.
Overhead, the sun had begun to sink, turning the blue sky into a crimson
hued canvas. A slight breeze tussled his hair as his eyes scanned ahead. To
Ukyo, he looked kind of majestic. It was a dramatic pose, like the kind in
movies. He turned back to face her, a slight smile on his lips.
"What is it?" she asked, putting her hands on her shapely hips. He said
nothing, instead gesturing for her to come up beside him. She did so, and he
pointed out to the multi-hued horizon.
"Look out there." He said. "What do you see?"
Ukyo looked at him quizzically. "Uh, a sunset?" she finally spouted.
"No, no," he said. "Look again. More closely."
She squinted, analyzing the horizon with her deep brown eyes. There
was something, now that she looked. A large black blot on the horizon, but
too uniform in shape to be a mountain or hill. It was more like...well,
like...
"A city!" she cried enthusiastically. "I see it! Over there!" She hopped up
and down, pointing towards the black blotch in the distance. Ryoga nodded.
"We should get there by tomorrow morning." He said, smiling. They had been
traveling for almost four days now, and while it was no matter to Ryoga, he
thought Uyko was missing civilization a little. He was glad she was happy,
and his face reflected it. Ukyo leapt all about, clapping her hands together
joyfully.
"Oh, a city at last!" she cheered. "Do you know what this means, Ryoga? We
can go out and eat, and buy clothes, and take baths in a real bath house
instead of a lake, and get you a haircut, and..."
Ryoga’s eyes shot open and his grin faltered.
Haircut?
"Haircut?" he said. "What do you mean, haircut?"
Ukyo smiled and tussled his thick black hair with her hand, rustling
the tangled mass with her delicate fingers.
"Of course, a haircut. You need one." She said cheerfully. He grasped her
wrist lightly and drew her hand from his hair, shaking his head resolutely.
"No way." He said sternly, his voice ringing with determination. "I’ve had my
hair just like this for all of my life, and I’m not gonna change it. Forget
it!" He folded his arms across his barreled chest to emphasize his point.
"I never did like your hair anyway. If we’re gonna be traveling together, you
need to look acceptable. The unwashed look doesn’t get it. You need a
shorter, thinner, more conservative look. " Ukyo continued. "We’ll get it
trimmed up neatly, washed, combed, styled, and heat treated..."
"Heat treated?" Ryoga said, confusion crisscrossing his face. He scowled at
her. "Hey, didn’t you hear what I just said! No way!"
But Ukyo looked up into his face, apparently oblivious to his words.
She smiled seductively at him and put her hands around his neck. She had
known enough about men in her life to know the right way to get one to do
something for you. She rarely resorted to 'Shampoo-esque' tactics like
these, but for some wierd reason she really wanted to see him with a nice
haircut. Ryoga felt the rush of blood through his body, and realized his
face was turning a shade of red similar to the sun. She moved her face close
to his. He could feel her breathing on his cheek.
"Please, Ryoga?" she said in a soft voice. He could feel his heart pounding.
Was she seriously coming on to him? He swallowed hard, and fought
desperately to regain his resolve.
"Nope. " he said, but it was obvious he was running low on determination. She
knew she just had to press a little more. She batted her pretty brown eyes
at him and flashed her best smile. He looked like he was about to explode
with either embarrassment, or just plain sensory overload.
"But you’d look so handsome..." she cooed.
That did it. His face brightened and he looked down at her with a
twinkle in his eyes.
"H-Handsome? Me? Really?" he stammered breathlessly. She nodded.
"Oh, very much so." She said in her best 'I’m-seducing-you-to-do-what-I-want’ voice. It worked phenomenally. He nodded eagerly.
"Well, If you really think I should..." he said, somewhat dazed. She thought
he was...handsome? No one had ever told him that. She slid her arms from
around his neck and clapped happily.
"Great!" she said, smiling with self satisfaction. "You won’t regret it,
sugar, I promise! We’ll get the whole nine yards!"
Ryoga opened his mouth to ask what ‘the whole nine yards’ meant, but
another phrase came out.
"Heat treated?" he whispered as she took him by the hand and led him in the
direction of town, humming in her lovely voice. Overhead, the sun slipped
silently behind the hills, and night crept in to fill the void.
*****************************************************************************
They strolled hand-in-hand into the moderately sized city of Urawa
with a new morning shining on their backs. Ryoga looked about, wondering if
he’d ever been here before. The place wasn’t familiar, but then again, not
much was to him. He ran the hand Ukyo wasn’t holding through his thick black
mane of hair with an almost melancholy feeling. For practically his entire
life his hair had always looked the same. It wasn’t like he planned it that
way; Honestly, he never really cared about his hair much. But, still, it was
the principle of the matter. However, in the less than a week he’d been
traveling with Ukyo, she’d managed to convince him to get it cut. He didn’t
understand how she could have such an effect on him. Nevertheless, she had.
Looking at her face yesterday, he found himself unable to say no. It was
almost like the effect that Akane’s older sister Kasumi had on people, but
Ukyo’s methods was less...motherly.
Ukyo led her friend through the streets, scanning right and left for
some kind of haircutting shop. She inquired, and a man on a bike with thick
glasses pointed down the street.
"Thanks, sugar." She said, bowing slightly.
The man chuckled. "The place is called Master Ryu’s. Good luck.
You’ll need it." With that, he pedaled down the street, laughing in a
disturbingly meglomanical way. Ryoga and Ukyo exchanged worried glances. She
thought she felt his hand tighten around hers, but she pressed on
cheerfully. Finally, they came to a stop in front of a building called
'Master Ryu’s Samurai Haircuts'. She dismissed the odd name and walked in,
leading the sweating Ryoga inside after her. Overhead, a bell jingled.
The interior was dimly lit, and didn’t look at all like a barber
shop. In fact, Ukyo surmised as she glanced about, it looked more like a
training dojo. Her eyes met Ryoga’s and she could read the same confusion in
his eyes that she assumed must be in hers.
"Um, Ukyo..." Ryoga said slowly, turning to look all around the dojo-esque
style room, "I thought we were going to a barber’s..."
Ukyo nodded, stroking her chin thoughtfully. "So did I." She said. "But I
don’t see any barber around..."
Suddenly, a stolid voice cried out from behind them, sending both
teens jumping in startled surprise.
"Ho ho!" the voice chuckled. "Did I hear someone say they in need of barber?"
Ryoga spun on his heels and nearly keeled over in hysterics at what he saw
before him.
The man was about twenty-three or twenty-four years old. He had hair
neatly done up in a traditional samurai style, and he wore a garish silver,
gold, and jade kimono. At his side he carried the traditional samurai
daisho. He smiled at the two of them. The was something about his smile that
frightened Ryoga. He feared for his hair greatly.
"Ah!" the strange man said, but it was more of a shout. "The young lovers
have come for the haircuts, okay?"
Ryoga looked at him quizzically, and then realized that he and Ukyo
were still holding hands. Embarrassed, he released his grip on her and
blushed fiercely. He glanced at Ukyo and took some comfort in the fact her
face was just as flustered.
"Um, no, we’re just friends." Ryoga stammered, abashed. The man in the gaudy
kimono nodded once. There was an infinite moment of silence in the store.
"So," Ukyo said, finally breaking the quiet, "you’re Master Ryu, I assume?"
The man in the kimono nodded.
"Hai." He said, bowing before them, hand on his katana. "I am Ryu Itzuyo,
master of ancient samurai art of hairstyling."
Ryoga stifled a laugh, but failed when Ukyo burst out in a loud
guffaw. Ryu frowned deeply, and Ryoga fought to regain his composure.
Reminding himself that this man may be cutting his hair shortly was sobering
enough.
"Samurai...hairstyling?" He said, hoping he had misheard. Unfortunately, Ryu
nodded again.
"Yes." The samurai said matter-of-factly. "Is ancient tradition taught only
to select few. Must have total mastery of the katana to properly execute
maneuvers. Trust me, I make your hair very good, okay?"
Ukyo exchanged a glance with Ryoga. His eyes pleaded to her to save
him from this strange man. She bit her lower lip and flashed one of her best
smiles.
"So, how much will it be to give him a neat, shorter haircut? Not too short,
but clean cut looking. You know what I mean, right?" she said, hoping he
did. He nodded, although somewhat uncertainly.
"Hai." He grunted. "I can do this. However, it will cost 10,000 yen."
A perceptive person could have heard two jaws hit the floor had one been
walking by at the time. Ukyo blinked in disbelief.
"Ten...thousand?" she said breathlessly. Ryu nodded.
"Forget it!" Ryoga shouted. "I wouldn’t pay you ten yen to butcher my hair!
Come on, Ukyo, we’re leaving!" He said as he took Ukyo by the hand and began
to walk towards the back of the store. Ukyo sighed and began to lead him the
opposite direction, towards the front door.
"No, wait!" Ryu called out. "I make deal for you, young man, okay? You can
fight?"
Ryoga looked over at Ukyo, who shrugged. He turned to Ryu.
"Yeah, so?" he said. "Wanna fight me for a haircut?" He eyed the katana
warily. Ryu chuckled, shaking his head.
"Oh, no. But, can your girlfriend fight as well?" he said, a twinge of hope
in his voice.
"Wait a minute!" Ryoga protested. "I thought I told you, we’re just fri-" he
was cut short by Ukyo’s free hand which hand suddenly clamped across his
mouth.
"Of course I can." She said plainly. "What’s it to you?"
Ryu reached into the sleeve of his kimono and pulled out a piece of
paper, handing it to Ukyo. She glanced it over, reading it aloud habitually.
"The Annual Martial Arts Couples Tournament is today?" she said to herself.
Ryoga, glancing over her shoulder, suddenly gasped.
"There, the first prize! Look!" he said. Ukyo followed his finger’s path down
to the bottom of the page.
"First Place- 10,000 yen?" she whispered.
"Is correct." Ryu spoke up suddenly. "Convenient how is the same price as
haircut that you want, yes?"
Ryoga suddenly noticed Ryu spoke with a very bad Chinese accent. It
was almost...Shampoo-like. He shrugged it off. Apparently the guy had been
expecting them. He’d raised the price of haircuts so he could force them to
enter this stupid tournament. Ryoga began to fume. He didn’t like being
someone else’s pawn. He didn’t even bother to wonder how Ryu had known they
were coming.
"Forget it!" he said. "I don’t even want a stupid haircut anyway!"
Ukyo looked up at him with her deep, brown eyes.
"Please, Ryoga...." she cooed, and he felt his knees go weak. "I really want
you to get this haircut. I want you to look very clean cut when we get to my
home. Your hair is a good place to start. Besides, it’ll be a good
opportunity to sharpen our fighting skills..."
He stared into her eyes. he heard himself think,
"Fine." He said reluctantly. "I don’t want you to look bad in front of your
family on my account."
Ryu clapped his hands together loudly, breaking the gaze the two were sharing with a start.
"Excellent." He said. "We go now. You two look strong. You can maybe beat
Migi and Hidari."
"Migi and Hidari?" Ryoga said, puzzled. "Who are they?"
"Ah, they are Martial Arts Couples Grand Champions. Are very tough fighters.
Have only one weakness." Ryu said, ushering them outside.
"Come, I tell you all about it on way to fighting place, okay?"
Overhead, the bell jingled slightly as Ryu closed the door.
*****************************************************************************
End of Chapter Two.
Comments and criticisms welcome!
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