Hello!
I tried posting this yesterday, but evidently the list was down.  This is
the revised first chapter of the Shoki Saga.  Most revisions were in tense
and spelling, but there were some minor polishings also.

All forms of C&C are greatly appreciated.  Public, private or MST, I like
them all.

Insert Standard Disclaimer about how none of these characters belong to me,
but instead to Viz, Kitty, and of course R. Takahashi.






	The Shoki Saga
	Chapter One
	Enter the Searching Samauri

	"Well, if Ryouga thinks he's gonna trick Akane into going out on a
'date' with him, he's got another think coming!"  Ranma fumed as he busily
went through Akane's closet for some suitable clothing.  "Stupid tomboy
should know better than agree to an idea of Uchan's when Ryouga is
involved!"
	Finding a suitably long, feminine dress, Ranma returned to his own
room.  Lifting a glass of water, he grimaced and poured it over his head.
In place of the muscular, raven haired teen aged boy was a petite, yet
voluptuous red haired girl of about the same age.  "Stupid, stupid Akane
doesn't even appreciate what I go through for her!"  Stripping out of his,
or rather her,  now wet shirt and trousers, Ranma-chan put on the dark
colored dress.  Furtively looking around, making sure no one was watching,
Ranma reached into the dresser and pulled out a long brunette wig and a
make up case.
	Grimacing again, Ranma put on the wig and carried the make up case
to the door.  Sticking her head out the door, she snuck down the hallway to
Akane's room again.  Reaching in she grabbed Akane's spare purse "Should
have grabbed this the first time."  Again making sure no one was around to
see, Ranma hightailed it down to the bathroom to put on the make up.
"Don't see how girls can stand to put this stuff on everyday."
	It took twenty minutes of screwups and primping, but finally Ranma
managed to get the make up on right.  The results were spectacular.   In
the place of the red haired Chinese girl was a sexy looking brunette that
bore only a little resemblance.  Ranma admired the finished product.
"Perfect, Ryouga won't recognize me when I pounce on him and pretend to be
a long lost girlfriend!  If that doesn't send Akane home, I don't know what
will!"  Whistling happily, Ranma walked out of the dojo for his
'appointment' with Akane and Ryouga at Uchan's.

	Shoki McLaren was again marveling at how cramped the Nerima
district of Tokyo seemed to him.  Having been raised in both the United
States and Scotland, he was more used to open areas and wider streets.  It
had been four years since he had left the states, but he still thought in
American terms.  He was an average looking young man of about 18, with
black hair.  He was dressed in jeans and a long sleeve shirt, carrying a
hockey bag over his left shoulder.  Turning a street corner, he took
another step and heard the sound of a terrified girl.
	"AAAAIIIGGGHHHH!!!!   Ryouga, it was a joke, take it easy!"
	"No way Ranma!  Your not going to get away with it this time!"
	Suddenly, a women jumped from the top of a building ahead, without
even bothering to look down.  Several yellow and black objects went
whirling past her like shuirkens.  Her long dress billowed up around her
waist preventing a good look at the ground anyway.  McLaren, however, got a
good look at a pair of shapely legs and a pair of boxer shorts.    This
struck him as an odd combination.  He also realized that the  she was on a
collision course with him.  With out thinking he reached out and caught her
just before she hit the ground.
	"Huh?"  Ranma said intelligently as she found herself looking into
a pair of shockingly blue eyes, and held by a pair of strong arms.
	"Hello, may I be of service to you ma'am?"  He was surely gajiin,
but his japanese was excellent.  Trying to think fast, Ranma heard Ryouga's
battlecry as he too leapt off the building.
	"Oh, please mister, save me from that terrible man!"  Ranma used
her most girly voice and blinked her eyelashes fiercely.
	"'kay,"  was all the stranger said as he slung Ranma to the ground
and out of the way.  Without bothering to take the bag off of his shoulder,
he waited for Ryouga to fall to him.  Reaching out, he grasped Ryouga's
wrist with a thumb and forefinger and redirected his path.  Ryouga's face
met the ground at a high rate of speed and the pavement cracked under the
impact.
	Turing to the girl he had just 'saved', McLaren switched to his
most proper Japanese manner.  "Well now, what has such a pretty girl done
to deserve such unkind attention?  Pardon me, but where are my manners?
My name is Shoki McLaren, what's your name?"
	"Well, my name is Ra-"
	"His  name is Mud!"  Screamed another female voice.  The dark
haired boy looked up to see another young woman leap from the building.
This one however was holding a large, wooden mallet.  Shoki knew there was
no way he could deflect the blow without hurting the girl.  Shoving the
first girl roughly behind him, he closed his eyes and cursed himself for
getting involved in someone's domestic squabb-

	"Geez, Akane, you don't even know who he is and you clobber him!"
Ranma-chan taunted.
	"Well, It's your fault for hiding behind a complete stranger!"  She
looked down at the fallen man.  Biting her lip worriedly she said "do you
think I hurt him too bad?"
	"Naw, people always lay in the middle of the street unconscious!
Well, the only thing to do is get him and Ryouga home and woke up."  Ranma
looked at the two prone figures thoughtfully.  "It would sure be easier if
we turned Ryouga into P-chan," she mumbled to herself.
	"What was that Ranma?"  Akane demanded.
	"Nothing, we just better get moving."
	"Well,"  Akane fumed, "don't think your off the hook for this!"

	Shoki awoke with a splitting headache.  However, long practice
taught him to keep his eyes closed and use his other senses to tell him a
little about his surroundings.  Tactile:  he was laying on something that
felt like a cushion on the floor and something cold was on his forehead.
Smell:  the mouthwatering aroma of home cooking, and the faint hint of
perfume.  Auditory:  clinking of dishes, and a low voiced argument going on
over his head.
	"But Kasumi, it was Ranma's fault for hiding behind a stranger!"
	"Yes Akane, but you were the one who struck him.  Your dimensional
hammer is a very dangerous weapon, and you must be careful how you use it.
Especially since not everyone is as tough as Ranma."
	Sensing no danger to himself, McLaren slowly opened his eyes.
Kneeling to either side of him were two very beautiful girls.  The one on
the right was older, with long hair.  He guessed her age at about twenty,
but she had an undefinable air of someone who was wise beyond her years.
She had what looked to be a first aid kit in her hands.  The girl on his
left was a few years younger, with her hair cut shorter and was very cute.
He also remembered her from just before his losing consciousness.  She was
the one who had given him this headache.  Just then the older girl noticed
he was awake.
	"Oh, my.  Your awake.  I'm Kasumi.  How are you feeling?" She
smiled in a very real and reassuring way.
	"Uh, I'm feeling better.  At least so far."  Sneaking a glance at
Akane.  Just feeling like I've been hit by a freight train, he didn't add.
	A beeping sound from behind momentarily got Kasumi's attention.
"Oh, I need to get to the kitchen and finish dinner.  Lie down for a while
longer until the aspirin we gave you starts to work.  If you need anything,
please let me know."  With that, Kasumi got up and walked out of McLaren's
line of sight.  He then noticed that the other girl was about to burst.
	"I'm so sorry!"  She blurted.  "I didn't mean to hit you, I was
aiming for Ranma.  You just kind of got in the way."  She turned red and
stammered on "could you forgive me?  I'm really, really sorry..."
	"Yes, I can forgive you, under one condition."
	"Anything!"  She almost shouted with relief, causing Shoki's
headache to worsen slightly.
	"Promise you won't do that again!"  Sheepishly she nodded and
started to say something else when she was interrupted by a man's voice.
	"Akane, why don't you help Nabiki set the table while I speak with
our guest?"
	"Okay, Dad."  With that, Akane gave Shoki's hand a quick pat, got
up and left.
	Shoki decided that he felt well enough to sit up and did so.  The
man that entered the room was fairly tall, with long dark hair and a
mustache.  Striding over, he knelt next to McLaren and began to speak.
"Very sorry about all the trouble my daughter Akane and her fiancee Ranma
have caused you.  My name is Soun Tendo, and I would be greatly honored if
you would stay with us until you are recovered.  You are?"
	"I'm Shoki McLaren."  At Soun's puzzled look he elaborated:  "My
mother was a Japanese businesswoman, and my father was an Scottish-American
Cop."  Suddenly something the man had said sank into McLaren's brain.  "You
said your name was Tendo?"
	The man looked surprised at the sudden interest in the boy's voice.
"Why, yes it is."
	"You wouldn't happen to know about the Tendo School of Anything
Goes Martial Arts would you?"
	"You have heard of my dojo?"  Soun asked, with obvious pride.
	"Yes, I have been looking for this place.  I wanted to come here to
study.  Would you be willing to take on a new pupil?"

	Later around the dinner table Soun introduced Shoki to the rest of
the household.  "Everybody, I'd like you to meet Shoki McLaren.  He will be
staying with us for a week or so, and you may be seeing him here as a
student for some time to come."  Shoki's stomach dipped a little when he
realized he would have to prove something before he could become a student.
Mr. Tendo continued with the introductions.
	"This is my eldest daughter Kasumi. "  Kasumi nodded her head and
smiled reassuringly at Shoki.  "Next to her is my middle daughter Nabiki,"
Nabiki looked at him with a speculative glance, causing Shoki to feel that
she knew how much money was on him down to the loose change..."And this is
my youngest daughter Akane, but you two have already met!"  Soun chuckled
and Akane blushed.
	"And these two are my old friend Genma Saotome and his son Ranma.
Ranma is Akane's fiance."  Soun indicated a fat man in a gi and a black
haired young man a little younger than Shoki himself.  Soun leaned down and
whispered in Shoki's ear, "when Akane and Ranma fight, don't get between
them...it's not healthy!"
	"DAD!!!?"  Shouted Akane.
	"Well, anyway lets eat!"  Everybody, Shoki included dug into the
veritable banquet laid out if front of them.  Though appalled by the way
Ranma and his father shoveled food in like vacuum cleaners and seemed to
duel with their chopsticks, Shoki was thrilled by how good the meal was.
	"This is delicious!"  he exclaimed, "my compliments to the chef!"
	"Thank you, you are too kind," blushed Kasumi.
	"Well, son, why don't you tell us a bit about your previous
training and why you came to us to be schooled in Anything Goes Martial
Arts?"  Asked Mr. Tendo.
	"Well, I've studied soft form Akido for three years with Master
Yamata up in Yokahama."  Soun and Genma both nodded in recognition of the
name.  "After that I studied Kendo for a year with an individual that is
reputed to be the best Kendo fighter of our time."  Ranma quit looking
bored and perked up looking interested about then, as did Akane.  "Throw in
some sword fighting techniques learned from my Grandpa McLaren in Scotland,
and knife throwing learned from one my sister's hollywood boyfriends, and
you have the whole kit and caboodle."
	"And why do you want to learn Anything Goes?"
	Shoki grimaced, knowing that he would have to tell them, no matter
how much it embarrassed him.  "Well, after having trained for three years
in Akido, I was walking around Yokahama one day when I ran into three
street toughs.  One of them carried a bokken and the other two were skilled
in some form of martial arts I didn't recognize.  They demanded a payment
for walking down the street I was on.  Being young and cocky, I refused.  I
held my own fine for a while, but my training was all defensive, not
offensive.  I couldn't mount an effective attack unless they were close
enough to redirect their own kie.  The guy with the bokken landed the first
telling blow."  Shoki's hand went to his ribcage as he winced in memory.
"After that they beat me senseless.  I woke up in a hospital with Master
Yamata in the room.  Right there I asked him to teach me hard form Akido,
but he refused saying I would use it for revenge.  That's not true, I can't
change the past, but I can prevent such a thing from happening again.  I
took up Kendo after that, but I couldn't stand my instructor.  I decided I
needed a form without weapons anyway, so here I am."
	"Well son, that definitely shows why you want to learn Anything
Goes, now we just need to see if you have the capability to learn it.
Genma, Ranma, would you two join Shoki and I in the Dojo to evaluate his
skills?"

	Soun led Shoki, Genma and Ranma over to the training hall.   Akane
tagged along too because Ranma was going.  "Ranma,"  Soun instructed, "I
want you to attack Shoki.  Shoki, I want you to defend yourself from Ranma.
>From this I will judge if you can become a student of Anything Goes."
	"Okay, just a sec."  With that Shoki took off his long sleeved
shirt, revealing leather armbands on each arm.  Each band had three
throwing knives in it.  These too came off and were tossed onto the hockey
bag Shoki had carted out to the dojo.  "Ready!"
	Akane watched carefully, it wasn't often she could watch one of
Ranma's fights without worrying about the outcome.  Shoki was slightly
taller and more heavily muscled than Ranma.  He was obviously a westerner,
though he had black hair like Ranma and a slight Japanese air to his face
and bearing.  Most noticeable though were his vibrantly blue eyes and the
lightness with which he carried himself.  He seemed to balance like a...cat
"Hmm," Akane thought,"better not let Ranma hear me say that!"
	Ranma took a aggressive stance three steps from Shoki, who took a
classic Akido defensive stance.  Fast as a blur, Ranma took a leap forward
and did a roundhouse kick at Shoki's head.  Shoki ducked under and grabbed
Ranma's ankle almost lightly with his right hand and redirected his path.
Ranma was now flying feet first right at his father.  Genma looked
exceedingly surprised.  Ranma simply adjusted his path and used his
father's chest as a landing point.  His legs bunched and he propelled
himself back at his opponent.  Genma squawked and fell backwards.
	Shoki saw Ranma leaping back at him head first with his right arm
drawn back for a punch.  This time Shoki stepped to the side and grabbed
the outstretched arm and forced Ranma's path downward, intending to face
plant Ranma as he had the other guy earlier in the day.  However, Ranma
twisted in mid air and landed on his feet.  He came up with an uppercut,
but Shoki shifted out of the way.  Ranma followed this with a chop at the
neck, only to be completely spun around.  Deciding it was time to get
serious, Ranma upped the speed of his attack.  Immediately he was rewarded
with a solid blow to his opponent's ribs.
	Heartened to know that he could get past Shoki's defenses, Ranma
kept up the speed, but remembered to pull his punches so that he wouldn't
cause any serious damage.  The fight continued with Shoki getting thumped
repeatedly, though he put up a good showing of defending himself.  In fact,
his defense was excellent, but his opponent was simply unchained lightning.
Ranma remained untouched despite having his momentum turned against him on
several occasions.
	"Enough!"  Shouted Mr. Tendo.  The two combatants regarded each
other levelly with respect in both of their eyes.  Ranma had trounced Shoki
with relative ease, but he was impressed by the newcomer's ablilty to
retain his center even when knocked from his feet.  Both of the young men's
chests heaved with the exertion.  Soun watched Shoki for a minute.
	"You're slow boy!" Genma shouted at his son.  "You could barely
touch him!"
	"Okay, pop's why don't you try him?"  Ranma smiled evilly.  Soun
nodded.  At that Ranma and Genma traded places.  Genma took the exact same
stance Ranma had at the start, obviously intending to use the same attack
to show his son how to do it right.  This pleased Shoki.
	"Anytime you're ready Mr. Saotome," said Shoki.  He then did
something he hadn't done when he sparred with Ranma.  He grinned at Genma
and winked at Ranma.  Ranma winked back and he began to chuckle.
	Genma launched his attack with a battle cry.  As Shoki expected it
was the same exact attack Ranma had used first only slower.  Shoki also did
nearly the exact same thing.  However instead of just redirecting Genma
towards the wall, he threw in some spin for good measure.  As Genma flew
towards where his son stood, Ranma calmly stepped aside and watched his
father impact back first, head down against the wall of the dojo.
	Soun looked at his fallen friend and stepped forward to shake
Shoki's hand.  "Welcome to the Tendo School of Anything Goes Martial Arts!"


Well, what do you think?  Let me know, I like all forms of comments!

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