Cat Fist Fury

Disclaimer: Huh? What do you mean that I'm stealing stuff? This stuff was
already stolen!

* *: Thoughts

[* *]: Cat communication

<< >>: Son of Man

                                 Chapter 20

                              Trials and Errors

"Beforrrre you give me your answerrrrr, let me explain to you the true
meaning of the Cat Fist and the Felinarrrr." Bast said as she and Ranma
stood in the shadow of the Sphinx.

Ranma was still a bit unnerved after fighting his own tiger and hybrid
forms. Seeing that he had no other option at the moment, he nodded his
head. "All right, I'm listening."

"Excellent!" Bast smiled as she began her explanations. "Ages ago, the Cat
Fist was created for certain species of were-cats and was neverrr meant for
humans. Howeverrrr, the Felinarrr had inadvertently developed a fighting
style verrrry similar to what Sekhmet and I created. Howeverrrr, like their
Kyrn ancestors, they were not truly lycanthropes but were really human,
although greatly enhanced. Their metal states had become unbalanced between
their cat and human sides, especially when they tried to master the Neko
Ken."

"Red Fang told me about that." Ranma said. "He said that one of the Felinar
warriors had sought you out."

"Corrrrect. When I created the RRRRRite of Passage, the Felinarrrr had
gained the mental stability they needed to control their powers and the
Neko Ken. By modifying the original techniques to suit their needs, the
Felinarrr had created a separate branch of the Cat Fist, basically what you
call as the Ultimate Neko Ken."

"Okay, that much I know." Ranma remarked.

"Yes, howeverrrr, over the centuries, few humans had glimpsed the Felinarrr
and were envious of the Neko Ken's powerrrr. They tried to duplicate it,
but without having some kind of spiritual and mental connection to cats,
their attempts were verrrry pitiful. A few marrrrtial artists in
parrrrrticular were very impatient and tied to create their own RRRRRRite
of Passage. You do remember what you had gone though?"

Ranma nodded as he remembered that mob of cats and the battle he waged with
his tiger and hybrid forms.

"There was a reason for those cats and your duel with yourrr other selves."
Bast replied to Ranma's unspoken question. "It was to make you accept
yourrrr cat side. However, since the humans did not have a cat side to
begin with, the stupid marrrrtial artists thought they could force a cat
personality onto the trainees. As you can certainly recall, their training
method was incorrect and the results were less than satisfactory."

Ranma shivered a little at the memory of what his father put him through
when he was six.

"The Neko Ken was never meant for mankind, yet in his bid for powerrrr, it
had been twisted and perverted into the technique that you werrre put
through. I could not believe anyone would be stupid enough to do this to a
innocent child, but your fatherrrrr proved me wrong."

"Well, everything's okay with me now, right?" Ranma said.

"Forrrr now, yes. You no longer need to fear of losing control when
enraged. Howeverrrr..."

"What is it?"

"Since you now rrrrepresent a danger to White Claw, he will eventually seek
you out and kill you."

"What? What do you mean? I'm a Felinar, right? I'm part of the clan and not
considered an outsider. He can't touch me for knowing the Neko Ken."

"Trrrue, but White Claw is not to be taken lightly. It is because of his
family that the Felinarrr had strayed far from its original path of
enlightenment. They have caused much innocent deaths overrrr the centuries
and have grown evil."

"What are you talking about?"

"The Felinarrr Clan is actually made of several hundred different families.
The branch that White Claw is from is the current head of the entire clan.
He is the fifth to be named White Claw and during the last few hundred
years, his family had involved the Felinarrr in several affairs on Earth.
They have overthrown governments and toppled kingdoms. They have started
revolts and wars, though no one has been able to prove it. Ever since they
broke relations with the other Kyrn, they began engaging in criminal
activities. Currently, they have ties to the Yakusa, Triad and even the
criminal elements in America. They have ruthlessly killed innocents, and
those who were foolhardy enough to try and learn the Neko Ken, they
eliminated, rather than try to help those unfortunate souls. I am most...
displeased."

"Well, why didn't you try to stop them?"

"Unfortunately, due to some rules of the Kami, I am not authorized to
directly interfere with human affairs, and the Felinarrr are still
considered as human. Furthermore, due to a promise I had made to that first
Felinarrr, I can only oversee the RRRRrite of Passage and not meddle in the
clan's affairs."

"So what does any of this have to do with me?"

"Although I myself cannot directly deal with the Felinarrr, I can however
select a rrrepresentative. An avatar if you will. As I had done so with
that first member of that clan, I now choose you as my champion."

"W-Why me?"

"Forrr several reasons. First of all, you were not born nor raised in the
clan, therefore you are not influenced by their corrupted ways. Secondly,
you have a good heart as I have watched you for some time. Thirdly, you
have one of the greatest potentials I have seen and only you have a chance
to defeat White Claw. As of now, he is stirring up much trouble back in
Japan and soon, those you have come to consider as your friends will be in
dangerrrr, because of their association with you."

Ranma was silent as he considered his options. The thought of Shang, Kai,
Sodan and all the others being menaced by White Claw was very disturbing.
His thoughts inevitably came to Ukyo, and he shuddered to think what would
happen if she were to come under attack by his rival.

Nerima, a week afterwards...

In the Nekohanten, Shampoo and the other Amazons were busy with closing the
restaurant as the elders conversed amongst themselves.

"It has been over two weeks since we last saw Kojiro." Cologne remarked.

"Indeed. He has not been seen anywhere in Tokyo. It seems that the rumors
that he has fled are true." Mascara concurred. "A pity that he was overcome
by cowardice."

"Is not true!" Shampoo said from a nearby table as she cleaned it. "Airen
is not scared!" The other girls also looked up from their chores and
nodded.

Both matriarches gave the girls a cold look that told them to mind their
business and not talk back to their elders. Shampoo and the others quickly
became occupied with cleaning.

"In any case, since he is no longer here, we have no reason to remain in
Tokyo." Mascara said after a moment. "I shall be taking my group elsewhere
in Japan for husbands. We shall be leaving in a few days."

Cologne was a bit relieved at this news. She and Mascara had never been on
good terms and the departure of her rival did make things less complicated.
However, with the prize gone, there wasn't really any reason why she, her
great-granddaughter and Mousse should be staying either, other than the
fact that the teens were attending Furinkan High.

The Amazon hunting party stopped for a moment when they heard this. They
had been searching high and low for the Cat Fist fighter, with no success
and had thought to seek out information about his whereabouts from his
friends and acquaintances. Unfortunately, with Ukyo gone and his high
school buddies also in the dark, the search had turned up with zilch. They
had wondered just why the okonomiyaki chef would suddenly close up shop so
abruptly, but there was scant information. They didn't want to ask Nabiki
as she tended to charge too much and they suspected that she didn't know
anything either. Fortunately, they had not yet asked Ranma's friend Shang.
And even if they did, they would get nothing as Ukyo had made the Chinese
boy promise not to tell anyone about her where she was going or where she
suspected Ranma might be. So for now, they had no idea that Ranma had
traveled to Asia and was now in Egypt.

Of course, they were also aware of the trouble the Tendos were in with the
one called White Claw. The Amazon girls were more than willing to take on
the one who defeated their intended husband, but the Elders forbade them to
fight him. They had seen what that person was capable of, after his easy
victories against their greatest enemy, Happosai. They could also sense a
foreboding evil around him and knew that having him, as a member of the
tribe would not be a good thing. At least with Ranma, they had a chance of
controlling him, but White Claw made their ancient bones quiver. He could
not be controlled and he had too much power. It was very unlikely that he
would bend to their will. If he were to decide to destroy the Joketsuzoku,
the village would probably lose more than three-quarters of its population
before finally taking him down, and that was only a conservative estimate.
Furthermore, there have been whispered rumors of more like him and even the
mighty Amazons could not stand up to such a force. No, it would be best to
leave him alone. There best and only hope to gain the power of the True
Neko Ken was with Ranma.

At the hotel that White Claw was staying at, the Kohlinjar of the Felinar
Clan was getting bored. He had not gotten a good challenge in the last
couple of days and even the grandmaster of the Anything Goes had proven to
be nothing more than a minor distraction. He had to admit that the ancient
pervert was nothing if not persistent and during the last two battles,
Happosai tried to cheat his way to victory. 

The Neko Ken warrior chuckled as he remembered Happosai's futile attempts
to win. It was during the seventh try. The old man actually thought that
those little fuse bombs of his would work against him. The expression on
Happosai's face was priceless when White Claw showed him the fatal flaw in
his so-called ultimate technique: The Happo-Fire Burst.

Flashback...

"Eat this! HAPPO-FIRE BURST!"

The old lecher threw one of his patented fuse bombs at his opponent,
smirking when White Claw caught it in his hand. A moment later his eyes
widened and he turned pale as the fuse was sliced to a tiny nub with the
claw on the Neko Ken fighter's index finger, rendering the bomb harmless.

"Er...?"

White Claw chuckled as he casually tossed the bomb back to its owner. "Here
you go."

Dumbly, Happosai caught it in his hands and stared at it for a second.
Nothing like that had ever happened before.

"Oh by the way." White Claw's eyes glowed for a moment and then released
twin beams of hot chi at the remainder of the fuse, igniting it again.

KABOOOOOOOOM!!!

Happosai became a very distant dot in the sky.

End of flashback...

*That little trick didn't work with Kojiro, so what him think that it would
work with me? * After Happosai had landed from his little trip into the
stratosphere, White Claw had added more insult AND injuries before leaving
the battered and bloody mess on the Tendos' doorstep. 

He then smiled as he remembered the other time. According to what his spies
had told him, Happosai had finally wised up, though not by much and had
enlisted another to aid him. When he was told of who Happosai's new ally
was, he smirked. He had to admit, that Ryoga person was a bit more amusing.
He decided to wait a few days and see just what that old lecher was going
to teach to Ryoga, though the Felinar had hunch as to what it might be.

 

A few days after the seventh attempt...

Happosai groaned as he rubbed some ointment on his sore, aching joints. He
was also walking a bit funny. White Claw certainly had a cruel sense of
humor. After he had returned to the Earth from being blown up by his own
bomb, the Neko Ken fighter wasted no time in pounding him flat. Then as he
lay there on the ground in pain, White Claw took out several of his bombs,
lit their fuses, and then stuffed them down Happosai's pants. 

Happosai was launched even higher into the skies and when he reached his
zenith, one of the bombs that had a delayed fuse went off.

Though all of his body remained relatively intact, though really tender at
the moment, that was all the insult that the old pervert was going to
stand. He wanted to get even with that cocky upstart in the worst way. Not
to mention get his hands on those fabulous Felinar females. However, he
knew that he was no match against White Claw, either in a direct
confrontation or a sneak attack with him. No, he had to find another way to
at least even the odds. He needed... a patsy.

Yes, someone who could at least wear down White Claw enough so that the
ancient lecher could claim victory. But who? Who could be that powerful yet
stupid enough to go up against a master of the Neko Ken? Pantyhose? No, he
was still far too injured from his bout with Ranma to be of any use. He
wasn't available as he had disappeared somewhere to lick his wounds.
Besides, he was likely to attack the old pervert instead of White Claw.
Kuno? Yeah right. Using the insane kendoist would be like assaulting the
Felinar with a blunt toothpick. That Mousse fellow? No, with his eyesight
and reliance on weapons, he wouldn't last a second against the kohlinjar.
He never lasted very long against Ranma after all.

"WHERE ON EARTH AM I NOW?!"

Happosai smiled when he heard the voice outside of the dojo. *Bingo. * The
ancient pervert temporarily forgot his pains as he went outside toward the
sound of Ryoga's voice. A plan began to form in his head.

Near the west side of the Tendo compound, Ryoga was depressed, which was
normal for him. Several days ago, he had heard rumors of his hated enemy
Ranma leaving Japan and of the plight of the Tendo Dojo. Seeing this as the
perfect opportunity to get close to Akane, Ryoga hightailed it to Nerima.
Of course, this ended up in being yet another unwanted tour of Japan's
major cities. He had only just gotten to Nerima this morning.

As he lamented over his inability to find the dojo, even though he was only
a block away from his destination, the eternally lost boy caught sight of a
small figure standing beside of him. His lip curled back in a snarl as he
recognized Happosai.

"YOU!!!" Ryoga took out his umbrella and stabbed at Happosai, who deftly
avoided the attack and was now perched on the end of Ryoga's weapon.

"Now, now, is that any way to treat your master?"

"You're no master of mine!" Ryoga gritted. He did not care for the little
gnome as he had a habit of groping Akane's breasts and stealing her
underwear. As her little pet P-Chan, Ryoga had tried, without much success
to protect Akane's honor. It was when Ryoga was about to take another swing
at the pervert, he noticed the numerous cuts and bruises on Happosai. "Huh?
What the hell happened to you?"

Happosai's look became a bit more serious as he replied, "Say Ryoga, how
would you like to get in good with Akane?"

"Huh? What do you mean?"

It was then that Happosai began explaining the events of the past two
weeks. After he had told him of Akane's attempts to win back the dojo,
Ryoga went into a fit of rage.

"WHAT?! HE BEAT UP AKANE?!"

"Twice." Happosai affirmed.

"I'LL KILL HIM!!! LET ME AT HIM!!! I'LL MAKE HIM PAY FOR HURTING AKANE!!!"

Happosai smiled. The boy had taken the bait, hook ,line and sinker. "Now,
now Ryoga. I admire your spirit but it'll take more than that to beat White
Claw. He knows how to use the Neko Ken, just like Ranma, but better. Even I
couldn't beat him." The ancient pervert winced at the memories.

Those last statements got Ryoga's attention as he remembered back to his
last encounter with Ranma. His rival had easily overpowered him and
fractured a rib. Ranma's words had stuck to him since then. Though he hated
to admit it, his skills were absolutely useless against the Neko Ken. That
was the reason why he had tried to get Shampoo's great-grandmother to teach
it to him. When she refused, he had set out to try and learn it on his own,
but with no success. He had managed to get a copy of the Neko Ken training
manual from a street vendor in Okinawa, but due to his inability to find
places, he was unable to carry out the simple training procedure.
Collecting cats were easy, but remembering where he had dug a deep pit was
not. Finally, after a week of frustrating failures, he reread the manual
and to his dismay, found out that even if he did manage to get those cats
into the pit, he was far too old to learn the technique. The manual stated
that the trainee must be under ten years of age to learn it.

Unfortunately for him, he was so depressed over reading that second page,
he had failed to read the third page, which stated the instability one
would gain if they survived the training. He had burned his copy in a fit
of anger before reading it.

"How would you like to learn the Neko Ken?" Happosai said.

This got Ryoga's attention as he considered the perverted master with
suspicion. "What did you say?"

"I can teach you the Neko Ken."

"Yeah, right Gramps." Ryoga scoffed. "Don't think that I don't know about
the Cat Fist training. I got a hold of a copy of the manual a few days ago.
I know you're supposed to jump into a pit of cats with fish sausage, but I
also know that you've got to be under ten-years old to learn it. I
destroyed the book after I read that."

"That's not a problem." Happosai shrugged. "I can make it possible for
someone like you to learn that powerful technique. Just think of it. You'll
be as powerful as Ranma once you learn it and nobody would be able to stop
you. And think of how grateful Akane would be once you get back the sign.
Since I am the one who trained you in it, technically that would make you a
member of the Anything Goes, now would it?"

Ryoga began getting fantasies about how Akane would react as he came to her
house in triumph with the dojo's sign in hand. He could just see her
hugging and kissing him as the conquering hero. He suddenly pushed those
thoughts aside as he realized something. "Wait a minute. What's the catch?"

"What do you mean?" Happosai asked.

"If it was possible for me to learn such a powerful technique, then how
come you didn't try to learn it?"

The old pervert was bit surprised at the sudden intelligence the normally
dense martial artist displayed. He hurriedly covered his expression. "Uh,
well it's far too late for me to learn it. After all, I'm over three
hundred you know." *And the fact that the technique would drive anyone
insane at the sight of a cat. * Happosai silently added, realizing that
Ryoga had not read the entire manual. "But a young boy like you still has a
chance to gain the Neko Ken, even though you're six years past the maximum
age requirement. In any case, I'm far too injured from my last battles to
be able to undergo the training. You're young and strong. You'll do fine!"

Ryoga looked at Happosai with a very long and suspicious glare. "You're
sure that I'll be able to master the Cat Fist? I'll be able to beat this
White Claw?"

"Absolutely!" Happosai replied with his most honest-looking smile. "I'd say
that you'll be able to learn it within a few days at most." The ancient
pervert was of course, certain that even with the flawed Neko Ken, Ryoga
wouldn't stand a chance against White Claw, but he may gain sufficient
power to wear down the Felinar enough for Happosai to deliver the coup de
grace. And then, Tigara and all the rest of those lovelies would be his for
the taking. Furthermore, he would get the dojo's sign and have yet another
thing to hold over the heads of his sniveling students. They wouldn't dare
defy him again. Yes, he would let this gullible fool do all the work for
him and he'd reap all the rewards. 

Ryoga began weighing his options and the one thought that tipped the scales
in Happosai's favor was the one about Akane and how happy she would be to
have the sign back. If there was one thing in his dismal and pathetic life
that made him happy, it was seeing his beloved Akane happy.

"I'll do it."

Happosai smiled as he reached into his gi and removed a small object. "Well
now, to start your training, you'll have to eat this special mushroom."
Before Ryoga could ask what it was for, Happosai moved with lightning speed
and shoved it into Ryoga's open mouth. He then hit a pressure point, which
caused the lost boy to swallow by reflex. As soon as the lost boy had
ingested it, he suddenly shrunk down and was soon buried beneath the pile
of his own clothes.

Happosai stepped back and grinned as he saw a tiny head pop out from
beneath the clothes. 

"Hey! What was that for?!" Ryoga sputtered angrily, then realized that his
voice was much higher than before and that Happosai seemed to be much
larger. He looked down at himself and saw in horror that he had been shrunk
down to what he was when he was six-years old. "What did you do to me?!
CHANGE ME BACK! I'LL... ERK!"

Happosai smiled evilly after knocking out the little boy with a sleeper
point. He looked over the boy and nodded. The special mushrooms that he had
found in China worked like a charm. Ryoga had eaten a special variety that
would cause the person to become a certain age in proportion to the length
of the stalks. Since he had eaten a six-centimeter mushroom, he was now
six-years old. His body no longer had the vast strength or endurance that
he had gained from the Bakusai Tenketsu training. However, the fact that he
still had the mind of a teenager was a concern. The mental state of Ryoga
had to match that of his age in order for the psychological effect of the
Neko Ken training to work. 

The perverted master shrugged as he had the solution to that. He also
withdrew from his gi, a small bottle with the number 110 on it. He smirked
as he remembered back to the old days when he stole this bottle and various
other items from the Chinese Amazons. He had secretly learned the
techniques of the Xi Fang Gao Shiatsu and was confident that he could
duplicate it. With that he started pouring the shampoo on the boy's head.
Unfortunately, Happosai's attempt to manipulate Ryoga's memories was less
than stellar and he would not know until later how much mental damage he
would cause.

About three days later, Happosai was ready to begin training his pupil in
the most dangerous of all techniques: the Flawed Cat Fist! After getting
about fifty or so starving cats and dumping them into a deep pit, he then
wrapped Ryoga up in fish sausage and tossed him into the pit.

"NOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!" The little boy screamed as he was thrown into the
hole. This time, Ryoga would truly know Hell.

Back in Egypt, a day before all this had happened

Ranma had considered all that Bast had told him of the Felinar and the Cat
Fist. The cat goddess was now patiently waiting for Ranma's answer of
whether or not he would become her avatar.

"Are you sure that White Claw will still want to kill me?"

Bast nodded. "Of that, I am cerrrrtain. White Claw and his clan are among
the strongest and most deadliest of all the Felinarrrr. They are also the
most malicious. They will see you as a threat to their position at the head
of the Felinarrr. White Claw and his ancestors were the ones responsible
for destroying many innocent lives, especially those that had fallen under
the flawed Neko Ken. Instead of curing them and helping them adapt, perhaps
being inducted into the Felinarrr, they instead took their lives and showed
them no mercy. Many of those poor souls could have been saved and given new
blood into the race, but White Claw's clan wants none to surpass them.
Right now, the only reason why you are still alive is that the kohlinjar is
just toying with you. Sooner or later, he WILL kill you. It is imperative
that you master the true Cat Fist. Only then, will you have the strength to
face off against White Claw. Also, as my avatarrr, you also will be able to
exert great influence in the Felinarrr and help it back along its true
path. You can save many innocents and protect your friends. Now I ask you
again. Will you become my avatarrrr?"

Ranma considered the beautiful cat goddess in front of him and looked
deeply into the green depths of her eyes. Finally, after a long moment, he
nodded.

Bastet smiled as she commanded him to kneel before her. She then placed a
hand on his head and said, "Kojiro Shinkara, Ranma Saotome of the
Felinarrr, I do hereby acknowledge you as one of my avatarrrs and grant you
a portion of my powerrrrr. Rise my representative."

A faint glow was emitted from her hand, which then flowed into Ranma's body
and caused him to tingle all over. Ranma then got back to his feet, feeling
a surge of energy in his form as Bastet's gift flowed through him. He gazed
at the Cat Goddess in awe.

Bast smiled as she said, "My power and my thoughts are now within you. You
will learn in time of the gifts that I have bestowed upon you. Use them
wisely. And now the training shall commence. Follow me."

With these words, the two vanished from Egypt.

In China, Ukyo breathed out a sigh of relief as she approached the Shaolin
temple where Ranma's friend and mentor, Tung Kwai resided. The aged priest
smiled as he caught sight of the young chef and heir to the Kuonji
Okonomiyaki School of Martial Arts. The trip had been a long and difficult
one as Ukyo had to travel up and down the countryside to find this remote
area.

"Greetings to you, young one. I am Tung Kwai, the head priest of this
temple. May I help you?"
Ukyo bowed to the priest as she returned the greeting. "Hello, my name is
Ukyo Kuonji and"
"Ah yes! Kojiro had told me about you. I suspected who you were from his
descriptions. That spatula on your back tipped me off."
Ukyo was a bit surprised when she heard this. "You know Kojiro? He's here?"
"He was. I'm afraid that you missed him. He had departed from this temple a
week ago and I haven't heard from him since. However, I do believe that he
will return here, once that business with his Neko Ken is completed. When
he'll be back, I cannot say, but I suspect that it will be a few days."

The young girl became disappointed at the news. "Do you know where he
went?"
The priest sighed as he said, "I'm afraid that I cannot reveal that
information to you, due to an oath I had made previously."
"Please, it's really important that I find him! When I left Japan, it was
getting in big trouble with someone and we really need him. I need him! I'm
his fiance after all."

"Fiance, eh?" Tung smiled.

"That's right!" Ukyo said with pride.

"Well, you certainly have the quite a spirit. In any case, As I said
before, Kojiro will eventually return here. Why not stay here for a while?
In the meantime, I would like to know more about you and your relationship
with him. I'm sure that you are very tired from your long journey and would
like to have some food and rest."

Ukoy smiled as having a hot meal and a chance to clean up sounded like
heaven to her at the moment.

Somewhere, somewhen

Ranma blinked and held up a hand when he started seeing bright flashes of
light before him. When his eyes finally focused on his surroundings, he saw
that he was in a place that seemed to be a large white void with countless
pinrpicks of light that twinkled like stars.

"Where am I?"

Ranbma looked around for Bastet and saw her standing near a large dot of
light. He walked up to her and was about to say something, when the goddess
held up a hand.

"Do not worrry my avatarrr. I have simply transported you to a dimensional
warp interface area."
"Dimensional what?"

"Simply put, this is a place between places. The gods of various pantheons
use this all the time to traverse distances. You can think of it as a kind
of subway of the kami. In fact, you have already traveled through it from
China to Egypt."

"You mean that cave was?"

"Yes, that was one of the access points to enter this place. And now, you
shall use it to begin your training."
"What do you mean?"
"You shall have several teachers in the true Neko Ken, and many of them are
just too far for you to reach and learn from in the short time that we
have."
"I thought you were going to teach me."
"I shall be instructing you, but there are some things that you must learn
on your own first. That is the reason why I have brought you here. You
shall be having first-hand experience as to what being a cat is all about."

"Huh?"

"You shall understand. Now, step through this entry point. Bengalor is
waiting for you."

Ranma stood in silence for a moment, then nodded as he walked toward the
nimbus of light. He then vanished from sight and reappeared a moment later
in what appeared to be a steamy jungle.

He found himself confronting a large Bengal tiger, that sat on his hanches
and stared at him with a piercing gaze. Ranma instantly went into a battle
stance and tensed up.

The tiger simply shrugged and made a sound. "Rowr."

Ranma then heard a voice in his head.

[*So, you are Lady Bastet's avatar.*]

"Huh?" Ranma shook his head when he heard the voice. It seemed to be coming
from

The big cat then spoke in that strange language. [*Yes, that was me. If
you're wondering why you can understand me, it is because of the gift that
our great goddess had bestowed upon you. You'll be able to understand any
cat that you come across. *]

"Really?" Ranma was bit put off that he was conversing with a predator that
could shred an ordinary man into sushi.

[*Yes. Bast has informed me that I shall be your first instructor.*] It was
then that the tiger's stomach let off a low rumble. [* I believe that we
shall begin with a good hunt, don't you? Follow me and I would prefer that
you join me in your tiger form. *]

Ranma regarded the big cat with suspicion, then decided that if the tiger
was planning to meake a meal out of him, his own saber-toothed cat shape
would be more than a match for him. With that he decided to play along and
triggered his transformation. When he became a huge feline, he began
following his counterpart deeper into the jungle.

Back in the dimensional interface area, Bastet smiled as she watched
through the viewing portal at her new avatar. She knew that Ranma would be
up to the challenge as he had already spent more than two months as a tiger
before. However, since returning to Japan, Ranma had refrained from using
his hybrid and feline shapes unless it was necessary, and therefore added
to the problem of his instability and less power to the Neko Ken. For Ranma
to truly understand the nature of the Cat Fist, he would have to rediscover
the experiences he had as a cat. And who better to help him fully develop
his cat powers than actual felines themselves?

Bastet nodded as she watched her protg and Bengalor tear into a deer.

For the next few days, Ranma traveled all over the world by using the
dimensional interface to cross vast distances. Each time he arrived at a
place, a feline that was native to that part of the world would begin
instructing him on various exercises and their secrets. Ranma would learn
to utilize his senses to the utmost while hunting. His animal instincts,
especially his sixth sense, became finely tuned as his physical prowess was
pushed to the limits.

(In the next few paragraphs, we shall be having a bit of a training montage
with a song from Disney's Tarzan, which inspired me to write this)

Ranma was chasing after a mischievous lynx on all fours as they leapt
through the branches of trees. He landed on a branch that was too thin to
support his human form and he fell to the ground and landed hard on his
rear.

"OW!" Ranma winced as he rubbed his sore butt.

[*Heh! You're going to have to do better than that. *] The lynx sneered as
he bounded away.

<<Oh the power to be strong, and the wisdom to be wise.>>

<<All these things will come to you in time!>>

Ranma was now racing after a Cheetah across the plains of Africa as they
charged a herd of zebras.

<<On this journey that you're making, there'll be answers that you seek.>>

<<And it's you who'll climb the mountain, it's you who'll reach the peak!>>

Ranma tumbled down a rocky incline in Nevada and landed painfully on his
left. Above him, a Puma shook his head and sighed.

[*Let's try that again. *]

<<Son of Man, look to the sky.>>

<<Lift your spirits, set it free.>>

This time, Ranma managed to navigate the unstable sides of the incline
without falling as he followed the mountain lion across a zig-zagging path.

<<Someday you'll walk tall with pride.>>

<<Son of Man, a man in time you'll see!>>

Ranma swam across a river as he chased after a cougar. Unfortunately, the
big cat led him into some dense foliage filled with very nasty thorns.

"Yow!"

[*I told you to use your instincts better. *]

<<Though there's no one there to guide you, no one to take your hand.>>

<<But with faith and understanding, you'll journey from boy to man!>>

Ranma was now trying to track an ocelot through some thick underbrush, but
the smaller, more agile cat was easily evading him.

<<Son of Man, look to the sky, lift your spirit, set it free!>>

<<Someday you'll walk tall with pride.>>

<<Son of Man, a man in time you'll be!>>

Ranma was stalking quietly with his new panther friend through the tall
grass as they approached their prey.

[*The idea is to not make a sound. Keep low and use your senses to warn you
if your prey suspects your presence, then strike! *]

The two cats pounced on their prey.

<<In learning you will teach, and in teaching you will learn.>>

<<You'll find these things beside the ones you love.>>

As Ranma wrestled with a leopard, he began having thoughts about the
friends he left behind and of Ukyo. At another time, he simply played with
some housecats in all three of his forms.

<<And all the things you've dreamed of, the visions that you saw.>>

<<Well the time is drawing near now, it's yours to claim it all!>>

Ranma became overjoyed as his agility, balance, senses and strength became
even more enhanced and transforming from one form to another became second
nature and no longer required him to concentrate. He began leaping through
the treetops of the Amazon rainforest, shifting from human, to hybrid to
tiger and back without a care as he performed acrobatic maneuvers that
would have been the envy of all olympic atheletes. He soon left his feline
instructor far behind.


<<Son of Man, look to the sky.>>

Ranma did a triple reverse flip, followed by shifting to hybrid in midair
before landing another branch.

<<Lift your spirits, set it free!>>

Ranma raced along a length of branch, then springboarded to the ground,
shifting to tiger form. His senses went wild as he took in every smell,
every sound and movement.

<<Someday you'll walk tall with pride.>>

<<Son of Man, a man in time you'll be!>>

The saber-tooth raced along the ground, making tight turns and reversals
before leaping up and shifting back to hybrid form to catch an overhanging
branch. Ranma made several more acrobatic maneuvers, slid along the length
of a tree before vaulting down toward a ledge that overlooked a valley.

<<Son of Man Son of Man a man for all to see!>>

"Yeah!" Ranma let off a roar of delight. These past few days were just what
he needed to get in touch with his cat side. He now fully understood the
feline aspects that all users of the Cat Fist must experience. It was then
that Bastet appeared behind him and clapped her hands.

"Well done, my avatarrrr. You are now ready to receive your lessons in the
true Cat Fist."

Meanwhile, in Nerima, Happosai grinned as he looked at the tied up and
scratched form of Ryoga before him. It had taken the perverted master ten
days to get Ryoga into that feral state, but now he was ready. When the
six-year old had emerged from the pit in a maddened state, Happosai had
just barely managed to paralyze him with a pressure point. He then took out
a sixteen-centimeter mushroom, which would return Ryoga back to his own age
and power. Then he would unleash him on White Claw. 

All Happosai had to do was let Ryoga do the all the work. The Felinar was
sure to shift to his tiger or hybrid form during the match, and even if he
didn't, the old lecher had a backup plan to trigger the Cat Fist in Ryoga.
It was perfect! Nothing could go wrong!

After forcing the mushroom down the boy's mouth and making him swallow it
by manipulating a pressure point, Happosai watched Ryoga return to his
original age. The beastlike look in his eyes faded away as he sat up.
Thanks to the memory wipe that Happosai had used on him earlier, Ryoga
would not remember his Cat Fist training, save for the subconscious trigger
that would activate the technique. That would occur when his new fear of
cats would peak.

"W-W-What happened?" Ryoga moaned.

"Congratulations Ryoga. You are now in possession of the Cat Fist."

"I am?" Ryoga didn't feel any different.

"That's right. With this technique, Whit Claw won't stand a chance against
you." Happosai lied as he undid his bonds.

"I don't remember the training or anything else for the last few days. Are
you sure?"

"Yes I am." Happosai had already witnessed Ryoga's catlike behavior when he
emerged from the pit. The lost boy had shredded a telephone pole with his
bare fingers like a scatching post. Oh yes, Ryoga knew the Cat Fist all
right. He was far faster and more agile in his feral state. With the return
of his teenage body, and some special agression points he had secretly
added, the lost boy was now ready to face off against White Claw. Nothing
could stop Happosai now.

Unknown to both of them, the mental trauma that Ryoga had suffered had left
more subconscious damage to his mind than the scheming pervert had figured
on. In addition to Ryoga's constant state of depression, the flawed Neko
Ken had now made the martial artist into a walking timebomb with far more
greater consequences than Genma's master would ever realize.

Things were going to get ugly.

To be continued

Next chapter, Ryoga Vs White Claw! Happosai thinks that he had found a way
to beat the kohlinjar but he will soon realize a grave error in judgement.
Ranma continues in his training.


