Fist of the Pikachu

Disclaimer: If you can't beat 'em, deny everything.

< >: Thoughts
^^ ^^: Pokemon language translation
* *: Pokedex Responses

                                 Chapter 14
                               The Soul Badge

"Hello Ranma. It's been some time since you last called." Professor Oak
said as he spoke into the vidphone.

"Hey Professor Oak. How are you dong?" Ranma asked as he and Raiden were at
a booth in a Pokemon Center on the road to the Fuscha Gym. Nearby, Sam and
Jeanette were waiting on a bench as their Pokemon were having their
checkups by Nurse Joy.

"I'm doing fine Ranma. Oh by the way, I'd like you to meet someone. Say
hello to my new lab assistant, Tracey." The Pokemon researcher gestured to
the side and spoke to someone else. "Tracey, I'd like you to meet the
trainer I told you about, Ranma Saotome."

Another person came to the vidphone with an excited look on his face. "Wow!
So you're the trainer that defeated Prima! It's a pleasure to meet you!"

"Uh, yeah, it's nice to meet with you too." Ranma was still not used to the
publicity that he had gained since that time in Stone Town. "So you're
Professor Oak's new assistant?"

"Yes." The boy with the headband answered. "My name is Tracey Sketchit and
I'm also a Pokemon Watcher. I've heard a lot about you and my friend Ash
would love to meet with you!"

"Really? Well maybe." Jeanette had told Ranma about her battle in the
Indigo League and how her Bellsprout had been defeated by Ash's Muk. 

Professor Oak then took the phone from Tracey. "Well Ranma, how are you
doing with your Pokemon journey?"

"Fine. Though I've been kinda drawing a lot of attention lately." Ranma
replied with a bit of a sheepish voice. Ever since he arrived at the
Pokemon Center, he had been approached by no more than fifty people who
either wanted his autograph, asking about his techniques, or wanted to
battle his Pokemon.

"Yes, I know." Professor Oak said with a smile. "Your exploits have been
making the news lately. The media had started to call you the Gym
Destroyer."

"Gym Destroyer?"

"Well, you and your Pokemon are quite powerful from what I've heard, and
you've already gained a Boulder Badge, Thunder Badge, a Rising Sun Badge,
Rainbow Badge, an Earth Badge and a Marsh Badge. Am I correct?"

"How did you know I had those particular badges?"

"Oh, I just looked up the Pokemon Gyms that were not taking any more
challengers until they were repaired. I found out that a certain trainer
that traveled with a Pikachu with a headband had defeated each of those Gym
Leaders. Their description of that trainer fit yours perfectly and when
they described some of the Pokemon attacks that were used, I knew it had to
be you."

"I see." Ranma bent down and retrieved something from his backpack. It was
a case that he had made to store his badges. He opened it up and displayed
the contents to both Oak and Tracey.

"Very impressive!" The professor remarked as he and his assistant looked at
the proof to Ranma's achievements. "I see that you're only one badge away
from qualifying for the Indigo League."

"Wow!" Tracey exclaimed as he saw the star-shaped badge on one end. "A
Diamond Staryu Badge! Misty would love to have one of those!"

"Pikachu!" Raiden said with pride.

"Thanks. By the way Professor, what did you mean when you said that I'm
only one badge away from competing in the Indigo League?" Ranma asked. "I
thought I needed eight. I only count six Indigo Badges and one Orange
League Badge."

"Actually Ranma, that Diamond Staryu Badge also counts as one of the badges
accepted by the Indigo League." Oak explained. "Prima was part of the
Indigo League some ten years ago before she moved to the Orange Islands.
She's one of the top-ranking Pokemon trainers in the world and her Diamond
Staryu Badge is good for both divisions."

"Cool!" Ranma said as he put away his case.

"So where are you headed now?" Oak asked.

"Well, I guess I'll try my luck at the Fuscha Gym." Ranma replied.

"Pika!" 

"Ah, so you are going for a Soul Badge? Well, I wish you the best of luck
and I certainly hope that the Fuscha Gym will still be standing after the
match."

"Heh, heh, we'll try not to go overboard." Ranma laughed a bit nervously.
<Though I hope the Gym Leader's insurance is paid up on his gym. >

"Oh yes, before you leave, I have something for you." Professor Oak held up
a device in front of the viewscreen. It resembled a cell phone but Ranma
recognized it as something else.

"Hey! Isn't that a Pokedex?"

The scientist nodded. "Yes, it's the latest model and it has been updated
with the all the most recent discoveries and newest species of Pokemon. Do
you still have your Pokedex?"

"Sure, it's right here." Ranma held up his own Pokedex.

"Place it into the transporter beside you and I'll swap it for this new
model. Don't worry though. All the data that you've gathered on your old
Pokedex will be transferred to this new one as well as stored into my
computer back here."

"All right Professor. Here it comes." Ranma placed his old Pokedex into the
transporter device. A moment later, the device disappeared and was
instantly replaced by the new model. Ranma smiled as he picked it up and
opened it.

*HELLO. I AM DEXTER MARK 2. I HAVE BEEN ASSIGNED TO POKEMON TRAINER RANMA
SAOTOME OF PALLET TOWN. IF I AM LOST OR STOLEN I CANNOT BE REPLACED. *

The martial artist Pokemon Trainer nodded as he put the Pokedex into his
pocket. "Thanks a lot Professor Oak."

"No problem Ranma. Good luck and call back soon."

"Thanks. Nice meeting with you too, Tracey." Ranma then hung up as motioned
to his traveling companions. A few minutes later, they were on their way to
the Fuscha Gym.

Some time later...

"Are you sure this is the way to the Fuscha Gym?" Ranma asked Jeanette as
they both rode their Rapidashes at an easy trot. Sam was riding behind
Ranma on Wildfire as she had decided to give her Fearow a rest. Ranma was
very uncomfortable having a very pretty girl with her arms wrapped around
him. Sam was enjoying every minute of it, while Jeanette tried to fight
down the jealousy she felt at seeing them so close to each other. They were
currently traveling down a forest pathway.

"Yes, this is way to go if you want to get a Soul Badge." Jeanette replied.

"Who's the Gym leader and what's he or she like?" Ranma inquired.

Sam answered his question before Jeanette could reply. "His name is Koga
and I think he specializes in Poison-type Pokemon, especially Bug types."

"Yes, but I bet you didn't know that he's also a martial artist." Jeanette
said smugly.

"Really?" Ranma became very interested.

"Pika." Raiden was also wondering if this Koga was any match for his
master, though he seriously doubted it.

Jeanette nodded. "Yes, his gym is also a training complex for ninjas. He's
a good friend of my mother's and helped her set up the Crimson City Pokemon
Gym and Dojo."

"Well, that's interesting." Ranma remarked. "Hey, do you think that maybe I
can get a match with him after I get the Soul Badge?"

Jeanette thought for a moment, then shrugged. "Maybe. But don't think he'll
be a pushover. It took me a while to get a Soul Badge from him."

"My Pokemon and I can handle it." Ranma said with confidence.

"Pikachu!" Raiden affirmed. Wildfire snorted in agreement.

"My, my, aren't we confident?" Sam teased.

"Hey, it's not like I don't have a reason to be." Ranma said with a little
more humble tone. "We've trained hard and we've done pretty well for
ourselves so far. Since I train my Pokemon in the Anything Goes style, I
kind of have an advantage over the other trainers."

"Speaking of which, I've never heard of a martial art called the Anything
Goes." Jeanette said.

Sam nodded. "Come to think of it, you really haven't told us much about it
or yourself since that time in Saffron City. You've only told us about that
crazy Cat Fist training that your father put you through. I still can't
believe it. Your father must be a complete moron!"

Ranma nodded. "No arguments here. Stupid old man didn't even read that
second page."

Jeanette nodded. "Whoever heard of a training a six-year-old boy by
throwing him into a pit of starving cats with fish sausage? That's just
plain nuts! I'm not surprised that you went berserk whenever you see a
cat." She then decided to move to another topic. "So what other stupid
training sessions did he put you through?"

Ranma began to get nervous again. Ever since he told them about that
experience, the girls had been pestering him to tell more about his life.
"Well, I really don't want to talk about them. Some of the stuff was kind
of... extreme. That was one of the reasons why I was so hesitant to start
training you girls."

"Aw come on Ranma. I thought we were good friends now?" Sam purposely
leaned a little closer to Ranma's back.

Jeanette frowned at Sam's bold move, and silently wished she thought of
that. She then settled on exploiting on one of Ranma's few weaknesses.
Motioning her Rapidash closer to Ranma's, she gave him her cutest pout and
her eyes shined as if they were to shed tears. "Please Ranma? GOOD friends
don't keep things from each other, right?"

Ranma became more uncomfortable. The girls were playing dirty and it was
working, as he felt his resolve begin to waver. "Well..."

"Pleeeeeeeeeeeeaaaaaassssse?" Both girls said in their most kawaii voices.

Raiden sighed and breathed out a small mushroom puff. He knew that when it
came to pretty girls and their feminine wiles, his master just couldn't say
no, especially since he didn't like to see them cry. The Pikachu wondered
if anyone else was as pathetic.

"Pika... pika, pi... chu." ^^Wildfire, our master is a wuss when it comes
to girls. Can anyone be as pathetic? ^^ 

Wildfire snorted in agreement. 

Somewhere out west...

"ACHOO!"

"Gesundheit Brock!"

"Thanks Misty. Someone must be talking about me."

Back to our story...

After a minute of the cute assault, Ranma finally caved in and said, "Okay,
okay... so what exactly do want to know about me?"

"Everything!" Jeanette replied. "For starters, when did you start training
in the martial arts and what exactly is the Anything Goes?"

Ranma took a deep breath and began telling his life's story. "Well, it all
started when I was about five..."

After an hour of riding, Ranma had given the girls the highlights of his
travels during the ten-year training journey. Of course, he intended not to
mention that he was from another Earth, or about his Jusenkyo curse. He
wasn't sure how the girls would react to seeing his curse, and he had come
to enjoy their company. It had been a long and lonely life with only a
greedy and stupid father as a companion. The fact that he changed into a
girl with cold water might cause the girls to be repulsed by him; despite
the effect the Water Stone had on Jusenkyo magic. However, even the
abbreviated version of his life story was unbelievable in itself.

"What? You SWAM to China?" Jeanette said in shock.

"You putting us on!" Sam added.

Ranma shook his head. "Nope. Pop and I actually swam the entire distance
between Japan and China. He said that is was part of the training." Ranma
then took on Genma's solemn look and imitated his voice. "Son, do not think
of this as a hardship, but rather a blessing in disguise. A true martial
artist must overcome all obstacles in his training to achieve higher
enlightenment." Ranma then snorted in disgust. "If you ask me, we swam to
China because he was too cheap to buy plane tickets!"

Back on Ranma's world of origin...

"ACHOO!"

Genma shook his head and wondered where that sudden sneeze came from. Then
more important thoughts came to mind. Such as how was he going to explain
to Nodoka that he had lost their only child months ago? Also was the fact
that he was currently being hunted by a band of very irate Chinese Amazons
that was going to make a panda skin rug out of him if they ever caught him.
It was just a little feast after all. Nothing to get excited about, right?

However, those Amazons were nothing if not persistent. Genma thought that
now would be a good time to leave China. But where would he go? Without his
son, he dared not return home, especially due to a little contract he
signed with his wife, with his head as collateral. So that left only...

<Soun! That's it! I'll go to Soun's! After I explain everything to him, I'm
sure he'll help! Ungrateful boy had to go and run off like that! Just when
we were about to go and fulfill the pledge to unite the schools! OH, what
did I do to deserve a worthless son such as Ranma? >

The Pokemon World...

"ACHOO!"

"Bless you, Ranma." Sam said.

"Thanks." <Where did that come from? > "In any case, Pops had gotten me
involved in a lot of stupid things and stuff over the last ten years, and
most of it I'm not really proud of. He got me involved in... acts that I
was too young to realize that were wrong." Ranma became quiet as he
remembered all the acts of theft that Genma had made him do when he was
six. He had thought of it as a game at the time, but when he grew older, he
realized that he was breaking the law and resolved not to do them any more.

"What kind of things?" Jeanette asked.

Ranma took a deep breath and sighed before going into detail. When he
finished, both girls had horrified looks on their faces.

"What kind of father is he? He made you steal? That's terrible! " Sam said
aghast.

"Well, yeah it was, but I was too young to know any better at the time."

"Well, at least you realized it later and stopped." Jeanette remarked.

"Yeah, well that doesn't really make things any better. Now you can
understand why I don't like talking about my life." Ranma stated, to which
the girls nodded. "In any case, the last straw came when we got to China.
My old man didn't even bother to learn how to read or speak Chinese, when
he came across a brochure about some training ground called Jusenkyo."

"Jusenkyo?" Sam asked.

Jeanette nodded in thought. "I know a little Chinese. I think it means...
Pools of Sorrow?"

Ranma nodded. "Yep. That's what it meant. Of course, Pops, being the idiot
that he was, didn't even bother to find out why the place was called that.
He dragged me all over China looking for it, before we finally came across
a guide who knew where it was."

Sam then thought about it. "Let me get this straight. Your father took you
to a foreign country without even knowing how to speak or read the
language, nor learn anything about the place where you were going to train?
All because he saw the name in a brochure?"

"That's about it in a nutshell." Ranma replied.

"That is just plain stupid!" Jeanette declared.

Ranma nodded in agreement then bowed his head a bit in shame. "Yeah, well I
guess you could call me stupid for going along with him, now that I think
about it. I mean, why didn't I try to learn to speak Chinese while we were
there? I could have asked the guide about Jusenkyo before we got there. But
nooo, I just dumbly followed my father's lead and..." Ranma sighed again.

Sam and Jeanette looked at Ranma with a bit of surprise. This was a rare
sight. Ranma was admitting to his mistakes and was acting with more
humility. 

The martial artist and Pokemon trainer continued on. "Well, Jusenkyo turned
out to be more dangerous than we realized and... afterwards, I abandoned my
father and went out on my own. A little while later, I met with Raiden and
few months after that, I became a Pokemon trainer. The rest is as they say,
is history."

"So what happened at Jusenkyo?" Sam asked.

"I don't want to talk about it." Ranma replied.

"But..."

"I SAID, I DON'T want to TALK about it!" Ranma replied more forcefully as
he held his Water Stone pendant and fingered it for a moment.

The two girls looked into Ranma's eyes and their hearts melted when they
saw the sadness in them. They decided not to press for any more questions
until later.

"Well, the good thing is, that you did get away from your father." Sam
said.

Ranma became a bit more relaxed and smiled. "Yeah. Going on my own was the
best decision I ever made. Who knows what other bad things would have
happened if I hadn't left him." <Though knowing Pop, he probably would have
gotten me involved in some kind of deal to feed his stomach and say it was
my duty or obligation. >

Ranma's Earth...

"ACHOO!"

"ACHOO!"

"ACHOO!"

Kasumi, Nabiki and Akane all wondered why they suddenly sneezed when their
father had gotten a call from an old friend and wanted discuss something
about a matter of family honor.

Pokemon world... 

As the sun began to set, the three decided to camp out for the night. As
Ranma drew his Pokemon aside for some training, Jeanette and Sam were
preparing dinner. An hour later, they went off to tell Ranma that it was
time to eat. They stopped in their tracks as they came to another clearing
to where Raiden, Bruiser, Razor and Sea Storm were sparring against each
other. Wildfire was off to another side. It was then that they saw the
Rapidash suddenly rear up and then bring both front hooves down to the
ground. The ground trembled as flames leapt out and burned their way toward
a large, dead tree. The flames blazed twin trenches into the soil, then
slammed into the tree, causing it to explode into embers. The two stared in
amazement as Wildfire neighed joyfully at his accomplishment. Raiden and
the other Pokemon stopped in their sparring and applauded. Raiden then
caught sight of the girls and waved to them.

"Pikachu!" 

Both girls glanced to the Pikachu and were brought out of their momentary
shock. Jeanette nodded to the electric rodent and asked. "Raiden, it's time
to eat. Where's Ranma?"

"Pika!" The Pokemon pointed to another clearing some fifty meters away. Sam
and Jeanette nodded and headed over there. The Pokemon all went back to the
campsite.

When they got to the other clearing, they saw Wind Rider perched in a tree
nearby, and Ranma standing in the middle of a large, crudely drawn spiral
that he had made with a stick.

"Hey Ranma, it's time to eat!" Sam called out as she and Jeanette
approached him.

"Be right there!" Ranma called back as he continued to stare at the spiral
he had drawn.

"What are you doing?" Jeanette asked.

Ranma continued to stare at the spiral. "I'm trying to figure out how to do
Wind Rider's Whirlwind Attack."

"I thought you already knew how to do that." Sam asked.

"Not really. My Wind Cannon and Hurricane Gust is based more on his Gust
attack. They can only shoot off one direction. Think of how cool it would
be to take out multiple targets if I was surrounded or something, right?" 

"I get it. Well, can't it wait until after dinner? We're all starving!"
Jeanette asked.

"I suppose. I'm not in any hurry." Ranma said, as he motioned for his
Pidgeotto to follow them back to camp.

"By the way. We saw your Rapidash blow up a tree from twenty meters away.
It looked like a Fissure attack, but it had flames." Sam said.

"Oh. Well that was Wildfire's new Fire Wave Fissure Attack."

"Fire Wave Fissure?" Both girls repeated.

"Yeah, I figured that Wildfire needed a ranged attack, so I combined a
Ground Attack with his flames. Since he already knew how to Stomp, it was
just a matter of revising it."

"Cool! Do you think my Rapidash can learn that?" Jeanette asked.

"We'll see." Ranma said as he looked over his shoulder at the spiral he had
drawn. He then shrugged and thought. <I do want to know how to duplicate
the process in which Wind Rider can make those tornadoes. Bet I'm the only
one who ever thought about creating this kind of technique! >

Not quite, for in the Amazon village on Ranma's world of origin...

"ACHOO!"

Cologne had wondered why she had suddenly sneezed when she contemplated
teaching her great-granddaughter how to do the Hiryu Shoten Ha.

(And I believe I have run that sneeze gag into the ground now)

A few days later...

"Well, this is it." Jeanette said as they came across a huge, Japanese
style complex, with the dojo located in back.

"So where do we go?" Ranma asked.

Jeanette pointed to the open gate and gestured for her friends to follow.
She then stopped as she saw something standing at the end of the entrance
hall.

Ranma moved forward and saw that it was a Pokemon. It looked like an
oversized ball of purple fuzz with feet, antennae, and large red eyes like
an insect's.

*VENONAT, A PSYCHIC BUG POKEMON. IT USES ITS LARGE EYES LIKE RADAR TO SEE
IN THE DARK. ITS ATTACKS INCLUDE PSI-BEAM, AND VARIOUS SPORES. *

"Veno... nat."

"Cool!" Ranma commented as he put away his Pokedex.

Jeanette nodded as she said. "As we said before, Koga's gym specializes in
Poison-type Pokemon. From here on in, you'll have to follow Venonat there."

Ranma glanced at the Pokemon, then looked back at Jeanette in confusion.

The girl smiled as she crossed her arms and shrugged. "That's the way I had
to do it. Good luck."

Ranma gave his companion a suspicious look, then decided that to follow her
instructions, since she was here before. He and Raiden stepped forward
toward Venonat, which in turn, turned around and bolted behind a corner.

"Hey! Wait up!"

"Pikachu!"

As Ranma disappeared around the corner, Jeanette held up a hand to her
mouth and giggled a bit. Sam frowned at her companion.

"Okay Jeanette, what's going on?"

"Why, whatever do you mean?" Jeanette replied with mock innocence.

"Come on, spill it!" Sam demanded.

Jeanette shrugged as she leaned forward and cupped a hand to her ear and
listened. A moment later, she smiled as she heard a loud noise.

THUNK!

"OW!"

Jeanette stifled a small laugh. "Sounds like Ranma had just run into one of
the transparent walls."

"What?"

Jeanette's smile became even more mischievous as they heard another sound.

THUMP!

"YOW!"

"That must have been the collapsible wall that leads to the edge of the
cliff."

"WHAT?!"

FFFFT! THOK! THOK! THOK! THOK!

"Well, I guess he just met up with Ia."

"Who?"

It was then that they heard Ranma shout out.

"WHO THE HECK ARE YOU?!"

Jeanette motioned to Sam to follow as she pushed at a sidewall, revealing a
hidden passageway. "Come on. We better get in there and stop them before
Ranma beats Ia senseless."

At the Pokemon Gym...

"Born in darkness, living in darkness. Such is the fate of the ninja. I am
Ia, ninja warrior."

Ranma was already in a defensive stance with Raiden also prepared at his
feet. Behind him were eight shurikens that were imbedded into the wall.
When the Pokemon trainer and martial artist had followed Venonat into the
mansion, he had a sneaky suspicion that he was walking into some kind of
setup. His suspicions were confirmed after running into a transparent wall,
then almost falling over the cliffside when a part of the outer wall fell
away. No sooner had he had gotten back on his feet and started chasing
after Venonat again, he had found himself inside a large training area and
a barrage of throwing stars were hurled at him. Unlike Ash Ketchum, Ranma's
skills easily allowed him to dodge them. He made a neat flip forward before
ending up in his battle stance. He found himself facing off against a
green-haired girl of sixteen or so who was crouched before him. Her hair
was done up in a kind of topknot ponytail, and she was wearing an electric
pink outfit that Ranma recognized as belonging to that of the female ninja,
or kunoichi. Although, he thought that the color was a bit loud and that
her skirt a bit short, too short as he found himself staring at her long
legs. He shook his head and focused on her face. A very attractive face at
that with lively eyes and that cute nose and... looking downward, he noted
that she had ample...

<What am I thinking?! > Ranma shook his head again. Being with two
attractive girls all the time and without his father made him become more
aware of female attributes.

Ia smiled as she stood up and said, "You dodged my little 'star' treatment.
I'm impressed. You're as good a fighter as I've heard... Ranma Saotome."

This caught Ranma's attention. "Hey, how do you know my name?"

It was then that another panel opened up and Sam and Jeanette emerged from
it. Jeanette smiled at Ranma, then bowed respectfully to Ia. "It's good to
see you Ia."

Ia smiled as she too bowed to her then went over to give her a hug.

Ranma then got a bit steamed as he realized what had happened. "Wait a
minute. You guys know each other? This was a setup?"

Both girls gently laughed before Jeanette addressed him. "I'm sorry Ranma.
But when I called my mother last week, she had informed me that she had
spoken with Ia and Koga and told them all about you. This was all just a
bit of a test. You remember back when you challenged my mother and that you
had to defeat not only Bruiser, but also me? Well, the Fuscha Gym is also
like that. They test both the Pokemon and their trainers."

Ia nodded as her Venonat came up to stand beside her. She bent down to pet
it. "This is a training camp after all, and unlike the last challenger, you
didn't let your guard down. I'd be honored to have a Pokemon battle with
you."

Ranma was still a bit miffed at being manipulated, but then smiled as a
Pokemon battle would be a perfect way to get back at her. "Okay, why not? I
accept your challenge."

As the two faced off in the dojo, Ia smirked. She knew about Ranma's
Pokemon and how he battled from all the news media about him and what
Jeanette's mother had told her. However, she had her own strategy as she
said to Ranma, "One Pokemon for each of us. Choose yours now!"

Ranma nodded. He realized that she was making him make the first choice. In
the past, he had always let his opponent make the first choice of Pokemon,
so he would choose a Pokemon that could defeat it. Now he would have to go
first. He looked down at Raiden with a questioning expression. The electric
rodent nodded his assent to let another Pokemon go. Ranma had gotten
predictable by using Raiden all the time. Since the Fuscha gym specializes
in Bug types and that Venonat was standing beside Ia.

"All right, let's go... SEA STORM!" 

"Golduck!" The evolved form of Psyduck appeared in front of them.

Ia nodded as she saw Sea Storm. "Ah, a water-type. Excellent against Bug
Types, but... I select Electrode!"

Ranma winced as he saw the Pokemon appear. He then looked at Jeanette, who
was standing on the sidelines with Sam.

"Sorry. I forgot to mention. Koga's gym may specialize in Bug and Poison
types, but they also have a lot of Voltorbs and Electrodes."

Ranma took out his Pokedex.

*ELECTRODE, THE BOMB BALL POKEMON. THIS POKEMON IS THE EVOLVED FORM OF
VOLTORB AND LIKE VOLTORB, IS OFTEN MISTAKEN FOR POKEBALLS. THEY ARE OF THE
ELECTRIC TYPE AND THEIR STRONGEST ATTACK IS EXPLOSION. *

"Uh oh." Ranma said as the Electrode began powering up.

"Electrode! THUNDERBOLT!" Ia commanded.

"Electrode!"

Sea Storm however, wasn't going to just stand there and get hit. The
Golduck swerved to the left to dodge the attack then did a neat flip to
launch himself toward his opponent in a flying kick. The kick connected and
Electrode was sent back several feet. However, impacting against its
charged surface, caused Sea Storm to yelp as several hundred volts were
conducted into him. The Golduck went sprawling.

Ia smirked. "I see that you have taught your Golduck well in the martial
arts. However, it is still at a disadvantage against an Electric type."

Ranma smiled a bit. "Just makes it more challenging, doesn't it? And don't
count Sea Storm out, just because he's a water type." It was at this point
that Sea Storm got back to his feet and took another stance. "SEA STORM! KI
BLAST!"

"Golduck!"

To Ia's amazement, the Golduck cupped its hands and then launched a blue
bolt of energy at her Electrode, blasting it back a few more feet. The
Pokemon became stunned at the unexpected attack and was reeling. It wobbled
unsteadily and that was all Sea Storm needed. He engaged his Disable
attack, which caused Electrode to be frozen on the spot. Then using his
Confusion attack, he sent the ball Pokemon bouncing like a... well, like a
ball. After ten successive slams, Sea Storm charged forward and delivered
several punches and kicks. Since Electrode was dazed from the Confusion
attack, it didn't have time to power up its electrical field. After kicking
it back like a soccer ball, Sea Storm took a stance and looked back at his
master. 

Ranma nodded as he decided to finish Electrode off. "SEA STORM! PSYCHIC
TSUMNAMI!"

The Golduck began powering up his ki and psychic energies as his battle
aura flared. Jeanette and Sam knew where this was going. Ranma's Pokemon
was about to trash the gym before facing the Gym Leader. As always, Ranma
and his Pokemon tended to go overboard when in battle.

Ia was amazed at the power that radiated from Ranma's Golduck. Despite the
advantage that Electric Types had over Water Pokemon, it was clear that
Ranma's Pokemon at a far higher level and that there was no way Electrode
could withstand an attack as intense as this one. Apparently, Ranma's
Pokemon weren't very concerned with the normal rules of Pokemon combat.

"STOP!"

Golduck stopped powering up as Ranma looked around at the sound of the
voice. When a Voltorb dropped from out of nowhere and exploded, the entire
room was filled with thick clouds of smoke. It was that moment that a
shadowy figured appeared and stood beside Ia. When the dust cleared, Ranma
saw the owner of the voice, Koga, of the Fuscha Gym.

Ranma motioned for Sea Storm to join him and Raiden as he addressed the
newcomer. "Koga, I presume?" 

Koga nodded as he turned to Ia. "Once again, you had underestimated your
opponent, Ia. Recall your Electrode. This battle is over and I declare your
opponent to be the victor."

"But honored brother, I had not yet lost!"

"And do you think your Electrode could have beaten that Golduck's attack,
especially in its condition?" He gestured to the Electrode, who was still
seeing stars.

Ia became silent as she thought about it. She then nodded and reluctantly
recalled her Pokemon. She then bowed to Ranma. "Thank you for the match." 

Ranma nodded in return and focused his attention on her brother. He could
tell that Koga was a martial artist by the way he stood. Koga had dark hair
in a spiky style and wore a red sash around his waist. He was dressed in a
full body, ninja outfit.

"I was very impressed by your Golduck's mental and ki control." Koga
stated. "You have trained it well."

Ranma smiled at the compliment as he held up a hand. "Yeah, well I'd like
to think so." He then made a small ball of blue energy appear above the
palm. Raiden nodded to Sea Storm as they both powered up their battle auras
in demonstration. "In any case, I think you know why I'm here."

"Indeed." Koga held out a scroll and let it roll down; revealing a
heart-shaped badge attached to it. "You wish for this Soul Badge. However,
I will not be so easy to defeat."

"I wouldn't have it any other way." Ranma responded as he motioned for
Raiden to step forward. "Let's battle!"

Koga nodded as he held up a hand. "Would you mind if we battled outside? I
would prefer to keep my training area intact."

Ranma winced again and then gave a nervous laugh. "Oh, I guess you heard
about those other gyms that I..."

"Destroyed? Oh yes. I've heard a lot about the Gym Destroyer."

Ranma could only scratch the back of his head as a huge sweatdrop appeared.
He laughed nervously some more as he realized how close he and Sea Storm
had come to destroying the gym.

Meanwhile, on the outside of the gym, several shadowy figures were speaking
to a portable communicator as Giovanni gave his instructions.

"Now listen up. Thirteen Team Rocket members are now in jail because of
that trainer, Ranma Saotome. I am getting very annoyed at all these
bunglers and failures!"

"Do not worry. We shall not fail!" One of them said.

"Unlike those fools, we know only of success." The second one said.

"Besides, we have a score to settle with the Gym Leader."

Giovanni nodded. "Remember, I want either the trainer, his Pokemon or both
brought back to headquarters, as well as any other Pokemon you can get from
the Fuscha Gym."

"Hai!" The group acknowledged.

On the outside of the training area, Ranma faced off against his opponent
Koga. Raiden stood beside his master, waiting for the order to step in if
needed.

"We shall have a three-on-three battle young man." Koga announced as he
took out his first Pokeball. "A different Pokemon for each round and you
will go first each time!" As the Gym Leader, Koga had the right to set up
the parameters of the Pokemon challenge.

"Sounds good to me." Ranma said. On the sidelines, Jeanette, Sam, Venonat
and Ia stood by to watch.

"This is going to be messy." Sam commented. "Ranma's Pokemon is going to
cream Koga's."

"Don't be too sure." Ia remarked. "My brother has been studying Ranma's
exploits and he's been preparing for him. Ranma may have beaten my
Electrode, but he's going to have his hands full."

"Choose your first Pokemon!" Koga said.

"All right. Let's go Wind Rider!" Ranma tossed out the Pokeball and his
Pidgeotto emerged.

"Pidgooooo!"

Koga nodded as he took out his Pokeball. "I shall begin with... Venomoth!"

Sam gasped. "Venomoth doesn't stand a chance against Ranma's Pidgeotto!"

Ia looked over to Sam and asked. "Why do you say that? Venomoth's spore
attacks have beaten normal bird types before." She remembered back to when
Ash Ketchum had tried to use his Pidgeotto.

"Yeah, but Wind Rider is anything BUT normal!"

It was then that Ranma gave the order to attack.

"WIND CANNON!"

With a single flap of his wings, Ranma's Pidgeotto launched a blast of
compressed air at the moth Pokemon. Now usually, Venomoth would have been
slammed into the wall of the gym, but since they were outside, the Bug
Pokemon simply rode out the attack and then gained altitude. It was soon
flying above its opponent.

Koga laughed a bit. "Now you can see another reason why I wanted us to
fight outside, Saotome. Venomoth has far more room to fight and I have been
training it to be maneuverable!" He then looked up at his Venomoth.
"VENOMOTH! STUN SPORE!"

"Venomoth!" The winged Bug Pokemon let loose with a huge cloud of spores
that blanketed the area above where Wind Rider was flying.

<Not bad! > Ranma thought. He was going up against an opponent that used
strategy. "WIND RIDER, CYCLONE SPIN BLAST OFF!"

Wind Rider closed in his wings and focused his ki. The bird then shot
forward, spinning like a drill and pulling the descending cloud behind in
his jet wash. The bird then suddenly shot straight up like a rocket then
made a tight loop in the air above where Venomoth was hovering. The spores
blanketed the Bug Pokemon and caused it to become shaky in flight, making
it difficult to stay aloft.

"NOW, QUICK ATTACK... ANYTHING GOES STYLE!"

"Pidgooo!"

Koga watched in astonishment as Wind Rider began darting back and forth at
Venomoth, delivering dozens of fast, high-impact strikes with the head,
wings, talons and body. Ranma had modified the basic midair combat
techniques of the Anything Goes to suit Wind Rider's Quick Attack. Now
instead of a simple fast charge, the Pidgeotto could let loose with a
series of rapid-fire strikes with each pass. When Wind Rider made the last
pass, Venomoth was out cold and plummeted to the ground. Ranma gestured to
his bird, which dived down after the Bug Pokemon and caught it before it
could hit the ground. Ranma smiled as he watched his Pokemon set Koga's
gently down in front of him, before flying back to land at his master's
side.

Sam gave a smug look to Ia. "See? I told you."

Koga was impressed. No, he was absolutely awestruck as he recalled his
Pokemon. He looked up to Ranma and nodded. "Magnificent! That was a very
impressive display!" The Gym Leader had thought that Ranma's Pokemon would
use its wind attacks, not physically overpower his Venomoth.

"Thanks." Ranma replied. "Shall we get on with it?" He took out another
Pokeball and tossed it. "Razor... go!"

Ranma's Sandslash appeared.

Koga nodded. "You have trained your Pokemon exceptionally well! But, you
will find this one to be much more of a challenge! I select... Golbat!"

"Golbat!"

*GOLBAT, THE EVOLVED FORM OF ZUBAT. ATTACKING WITH ITS SHARP FANGS, THIS
POKEMON CAN DRAIN 300 CUBIC CENTIMETERS OF BLOOD PER BITE. ITS STRONGEST
ATTACK IS MEGA DRAIN. *

Ia nodded. "Now my brother has the advantage. The Sandslash is very weak
against air opponents."

"Don't be too sure." Jeanette remarked. "Ranma usually finds a way to
overcome the weaknesses of his Pokemon."

"GOLBAT! SCREECH ATTACK!"

The bat Pokemon let loose with a horrid screech. Razor was quite put off by
the sound. Everyone held his or her ears as the sound made their ears ring.
Everyone except Koga, who stood by calmly, unaffected by the sound.

"DIG DOWN RAZOR!" Ranma called out.

"Slash!" The Sandslash dived underground to escape the noise. As soon as
the Golbat saw that its opponent was gone, it stopped screeching and
searched for any sign of the mouse. The ground trembled as the Sandslash
burrowed deep. Then, just below where Golbat was hovering, Razor suddenly
burst out from the ground and knocked the bat upward with a Skull Bash.

"ANYTHING GOES RAZOR!"

While still in midair, Razor began the Saotome specialty of the Anything
Goes. However, being slower than Raiden, plus the fact that Koga's Pokemon
was a Flying Type, the Sandslash found out that midair combat was not as
effective. Golbat dodged the first strike, then hit back with its feet,
connecting with Razor's head. A double swipe with its wings sent Razor
flying back to the ground.

"Razor!" Ranma cried out as he saw his Pokemon land hard on his back.

Koga then called out. "NOW! WING ATTACK!"

The bat made several darting passes at the Sandslash and scored a few hits.
Though they weren't much against Razor's tough hide, they did keep him from
launching any attacks. Then as the Golbat made another pass, Koga called
for its strongest attack.

"MEGA DRAIN!"

The Golbat opened up its mouth and latched onto Razor's unprotected neck.
The Two began to glow as Golbat began sucking away Razor's energy like a
Leech Seed. However, Razor wasn't going to go down without a fight and used
one of his paws to slap away the Golbat. Golbat flapped away but was
feistier than ever from the energy it had taken from Razor. Razor woozily
got to his feet and took a shaky stance, more than ready to continue.

Ranma however, knew that Razor was in no shape to fight. "No Razor, that's
enough. You did your best, so come on back!"

"Slash!" Razor shook his head. He wanted to get back at that flying
vampire!

Ranma sighed as he held up Razor's Pokeball and pleaded with him. "Please
Razor... I don't want to see you hurt any more. Please... return."

Razor looked at his master's sad expression and then reluctantly nodded.
Ranma activated the recall mechanism and the Sandslash was recalled.

Koga nodded as he said, "Your Pokemon has a great fighting spirit. It is a
true warrior, but you were wise to recall your Sandslash. This round goes
to me!"

Ranma nodded, respecting his opponent. "I have to admit, that Golbat was
good and it has shown me that Razor needs a bit more practice with dealing
with air opponents."

Koga agreed. "Yes, I had seen on the news of how your Pokemon were
proficient in aerial attacks and decided that the best way to defeat that
Anything Goes attack was to train my flying Pokemon in midair attacks as
well."

"Yeah, I noticed your Golbat's kicking and wing strikes. This is getting to
be some match."

"And now, it is time for our final round!" Koga held up his third Pokeball.

Ranma nodded. Koga had planned for this Badge challenge in advance. By
using different Pokemon per round, Ranma would always be facing off against
a fresh Pokemon each time and wouldn't be able to decided which to battle
Koga's, since he had to go first. 

On the sidelines, Sam and Jeanette were on edge. Ranma and Koga were tied
at one round each and this fight would decide the winner. After witnessing
Ranma lose the second round, they began to worry. Koga was certainly using
good strategy. This last fight could go either way.

<Which is it going to be Ranma? Raiden, or someone else? > Ranma pondered
for a moment, then he looked down at Raiden. 

The electric mouse nodded up to him with an expression that told Ranma that
he would respect any decision he made.

Ranma thought for a few moments more, then realized that he had been using
Raiden a lot and that would have made him predictable. Koga would have
probably prepared for a fight against Raiden so... 

"Go... Bruiser!"

"Machop!"

Koga nodded. "An excellent choice! But let us see if you can stand up to
mine! I choose... Hitmonlee!"

Ranma blanched as he saw Koga's choice. Then again, it made sense that Koga
would have a fighting type Pokemon as well.

*HITMONLEE, ALSO KNOWN AS THE KICKING FIEND. ITS POWERFUL LEGS CAN REDUCE
BOULDERS TO GRAVEL AND CAN DELIVER EXTREMELY FAST KICKS. *

Ranma's eyes narrowed. This one was a lot faster than the Hitmonchan
Bruiser had faced off a while ago and he could tell that this Pokemon had
also done some serious training. He took a deep breath. He was committed
and hoped that Bruiser's training had raised his level high enough.

"BRUISER, MEGA PUNCH!"

"Hitmonlee!"

Hitmonlee suddenly let loose with a barrage of kicks that were almost too
fast for the eyes to track. The Machop's Mega Punch was faster than normal,
but not fast enough.

Ranma winced as Bruiser took several hits to the side, but the Machop hung
in until he spotted an opening. Grabbing the leg as it was extended,
Bruiser began swinging around his opponent into a Seismic Toss. Slamming
Hitmonlee to the ground, the Machop then charged up for another Mega Punch.
When Hitmonlee sprang back up, Bruiser swung forward.

Hitmonlee raised a leg to counter the punch, then crouched down and applied
a leg sweep. Ranma's Machop went down, but rolled out of the way as
Hitmonlee tried a Stomp attack. This was followed by another barrage of
near-supersonic kicks. Bruiser was knocked back, but remained on his feet.

"MOKO TAKABISHA!"

Bruiser began focusing his ki and then launched a blast at Hitmonlee.
However, the kicking Pokemon was faster and used its powerful legs to
launch itself high into the air to avoid the attack. Bruiser leapt up after
it.

Hitmonlee reared back a foot and waited for the last possible moment before
releasing a devastating reverse spin kick at Bruiser's head. The kick
connected, but the Machop grasped the foot as it touched his face and
smiled evilly.

"Machop!"

"All right!" Ranma exclaimed. Bruiser had tricked Hitmonlee into extending
itself and now the Machop had one of the Kicking Fiend's legs in a bind.
"ANYTHING GOES!"

Machop pulled Hitmonlee forward and began landing punches and kicks on his
stunned opponent, then finished it off by putting it into a Seismic Toss.
The kicking Pokemon was slammed back down into the ground and Bruiser added
the final touch.

"MA... CHOP!"

A blue ki blast fired down and impacted heavily onto Hitmonlee. There was a
huge cloud of dust that formed around the downed Pokemon. When the dust
settled down as Machop landed, Hitmonlee was in no condition to battle.

"Hit... mon... lee."

"MACHOP!" Bruiser raised an arm in triumph as Ranma and his group cheered.
It had been a spectacular match.

Koga nodded as he recalled Hitmonlee then approached Ranma. "You have
defeated me. Your reputation as a skilled trainer has been acknowledged and
I am pleased to give you this." Koga held out the scroll and unrolled it,
revealing the Soul Badge.

Ranma smiled as he took it and said, "You were a good opponent and that was
a great match."

"Yes, but it seems all my preparations wasn't enough." He then gestured to
his Pokemon. "Young man, would consider trading any of your Pokemon?"

Ia also walked up to them with Sam and Jeanette behind her. "I would gladly
trade for some of them as well." She also gave Ranma an appraising look,
much to the dismay of Sam and Jeanette.

Ranma smiled as he shook his head. "Sorry but I wouldn't trade my best
friends for anything, right guys?" Ranma looked at Raiden, Wind Rider and
Bruiser.

"Pikachu!"

"Pidgooo!"

"MA... chop?"

"Is anything wrong Bruiser?"

That was when Bruiser began to glow.

"Uh oh! Looks like that last battle was intense enough! Bruiser's
evolving!" Jeanette exclaimed.

The small humanoid Pokemon began to grow in size and gained a lot more
muscle mass. The arms and legs became longer as the body became robust and
well defined. When the light faded, Bruiser was now taller and looked like
a body builder, but was a bit leaner, due to its martial arts training.

"Bruiser's a Machoke!" Sam said.

"MACHOKE!"

Ranma took out his Pokedex.

*MACHOKE, THE EVOLVED FORM OF MACHOP. IT POSSESS GREATER STRENGTH AND CAN
LIFT OVER TEN TONS. BECAUSE OF ITS INCREASED POWER, IT USUALLY REQUIRES A
POWER BELT TO KEEP ITS STRENGTH UNDER CONTROL. IT IS ALSO KNOW TO BE MORE
VAIN THAN MACHOP. *

This was apparent as Ranma's Machoke struck a pose and flexed his biceps.

Ranma smiled as he put away his Pokedex. "Don't let it go to your head
Bruiser, just because you've evolved." He then held up a hand, which glowed
with ki.

The Machoke then stared at his trainer for a minute, as if comparing his
new power to Ranma's. He then nodded as he still respected Ranma as his
sensei and relaxed.

Ranma nodded as he held up a Pokeball. "We'll see about getting you a Power
Belt or train to have you control that new strength later. Good job anyway.
Return..."

It was then that that everyone heard laughter and a smokebomb was thrown. A
huge net with weights on the edges came down on top of them. Ranma felt
himself sticking to the net and realized that it was coated with some kind
of adhesive. He then saw four shadowy figures appear from the clouds,
dressed in ninja outfits, with letter R's printed on one side of their
chests.

<Oh no! Who the hell are THESE guys?! >

(You knew this was coming!)

"To blanket the world in darkness and devastation!"

"To subject the people to ninja occupation!"

"To make the world tremble of the shadow four!"

"To take revenge on Koga and even the score!"

"Leonardo!"

"Donatello!"

"Raphael!"

"Michelangelo!"

"Team Rocket Ninja! Tremble and fear us on sight!"

"Surrender now, for you cannot win the fight!"

"And if you resist, we shall extinguish your light."

"For you cannot withstand the shadow four's might!"

(Okay, I admit it. This has got to be one of THE lamest Team Rockets that I
could come up with)

Ranma moaned as he saw these people. Koga became very displeased when he
saw them. He stood up and addressed the leader.

"I had not expected to see the four of you again. Why have you returned?"

Ranma turned to speak to Koga. "You know THESE morons?"

"Indeed. They were all former disciples of mine, until I caught them
stealing and selling the gym's Pokemon and family treasures. I had cast
them out of this gym and had them arrested! You four are not welcome here!"

"Hah!" Leonardo sneered as he held up a twin pair of katanas. "We have
joined Team Rocket now and you are in no position to stop us from taking
what we want!"

Michelangelo nodded as he swung around a pair of nunchakus. "Our new master
wishes for us to bring in your opponent, Ranma Saotome and his Pokemon, as
well as all of yours, Koga."

"I'm sure that he will be pleased when we bring in a new Machoke!" Raphael
stated as he produced a pair of sais.

"And there is nothing that you can do about it!" Donatello said as he swung
a Bo staff.

"Oh really?" Ranma said as he tapped the side of his belt of Pokeballs. "Oh
Sea Storm." He then tossed the Pokeball through the gaps of the net.

"Golduck!"

Sea Storm formed outside of the net and launched a Disable attack,
paralyzing the four ninjas. He then turned around and assessed the
situation.

"Use your Ice Beam to freeze the net." Ranma commanded.

"Golduck!"

A light blast of cold energy was applied and caused the net to become
brittle. Ranma and the others easily broke out as it shattered apart. The
waterfowl then turned to finish off the ninjas, but Ranma placed a hand on
his shoulder.

"Turn off your Disable Attack." Ranma said as he cracked his knuckles. "I
feel like kicking some Team Rocket butts!"

The Golduck did as he was told and no sooner could the ninjas move...

WHAM! CRUNCH! WHAP! OW! SLAM! POW! OOH! KAPOW! KICK! YOW! OWIE! WE GIVE!
WHAT? KABOOM! WHACK! POW! WHAM! CRASH! BOOM! SLAP! CRACK! YOWZA! MANGLE!
WHOA!

Ia, Koga, Sam and Jeanette all had huge sweat drops on their heads as they
watched the carnage.

"Brother?"

"Yes Ia?"

"I'm not so certain which is more dangerous. Ranma's Pokemon or their
trainer."

Some time later...

Ranma shook Koga's hand as he and his companions were preparing to leave
for their next destination.

"It was an honor meeting with you, Ranma Saotome." Koga said.

"Thanks. And Team Rocket?" Ranma asked.

"Do not worry. I have already called Officer Jenny to pick them up. What's
left of them, that is."

"Okay. Well it was great going up against your Pokemon and maybe we'll have
that match between us, eh?"

"I shall be looking forward to it. In any case, I believe that it is time
that you were on your way. So where will you be going?"

"I don't know." Ranma replied as he absently stroked his Pikachu's ears.
Raiden was perched on his shoulder. "I've got the required eight badges for
the Indigo League, but since it won't start until next year, I don't have
any idea of where to go from here."

It was then that Ia appeared with a carrying bag and said, "Why not head
out west."

"West?"

"Yes. That is where all the newest Pokemon discoveries have been made and
that is also where they are holding the Johto League."

"Really? Hmmm, why not? Sounds like a good place as any to go to." It was
then that Ranma noticed the bag she was carrying. "Er, what's with the
luggage?"

"Oh this? I've decided to go to the Johto League as well, and since you're
going, I guess that makes us traveling companions, right?" She gave him a
playful wink. "I'm sure that I can learn a lot from you."

"A marvelous idea!" Koga affirmed. "I'm certain that you'll be good company
for my sister."

"WHAT?!" Sam and Jeanette gasped. They then gave the ninja girl angry,
jealous glares.

"You can't just invite yourself along with us!" Sam said angrily.

"That's right!" Jeanette agreed. Sure Ia was a friend, but Ranma was hers!

"Well, I don't it's your decision to make, is it?" Ia said. "I don't think
Ranma would mind, would you?" She gave him a very cute look and sided up to
him.

Raiden gave another sigh as he saw Ranma beginning to falter to his
weakness. "Pikachu." ^^Here we go again. ^^

Later...

Ranma walked up the pathway of a hill that overlooked a meadow and stopped
when he reached the top. A few meters behind him, Sam, Jeanette and Ia were
ignoring each other as walked toward where Ranma was.

The martial artist took in a deep breath as he watched sun dip toward the
horizon. 

"Johto League... Here we come!"

"Pikachu!"

To be continued...

Author's notes

Wow! That was a long one! In any case, the long-awaited encounter between
Ranma and Ash draws near as Ranma heads out to compete in the Johto League.
The following are scenes for the next chapter.

Scene I

"Oh no! My Water Stone is broken!"

Scene II

"Ranma, is that... you?"

Scene III

"Hi there! My name's is Brock and I just wondering if..."

WHAM!

Scene IV

Pikachu Vs Raiden!


