Number: 12

Title: A Long Hard Fall

Type: Fan fiction

Ranma 1/2
Chronicles of War

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Synopsis:
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Sometimes honor is everything, and even life will be forefit to uphold
it. Sometimes only winning matters, and honor, family, and anything else
of value will be cast aside in persuit of victory.

Do the two meet?

Interesting question, and one that is brushed up against many times over
in this story. Basically it's a post-Chronicles of War James, rather
shell-shocked thanks to an alternate ending which is explained via
flashback, training a current cannon Ranma.

A new way to teach the Nothing Rahn style, if you will.

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"I want to learn your style."

"My style is not for teaching."

"Then show me some of it?"

"No."

"C'mon... I just wanna learn it."

"Did I just say no?"

"Well..."

"Did I? Did I say yes?!"

"Um... Ah..."

"I said NO! And that's the only answer you're going to get!"

The man went back to his kata, something involving a lot of jujutsu
moves. Nothing new here. He turned and walked out of the dojo. Upon
reaching the entrance, just as he stuck one foot out of the door, the
man spoke from behind him. "Watch that first step."

Ranma picked himself up off the ground. That step had seemed shorter on
his way in. Much shorter. He looked at the spot in question, unable to
tell for sure if it was unreasonably high.

Ranma glanced into the dojo, thinking to himself, 'What Would James Do?'
It fit, somehow.

He knelt on the grass and looked under the building. What were all those
metal cylinders for? Shoot, that's what was holding the building up.

Which meant... hydraulic lifts? Ranma didn't know much about mechanics,
but you couldn't walk through Tokyo without knowing about heavy
construction equipment.

You could use hydraulics like this to lift a building.

Lift a building... make the step from the door to the yard higher...

It was simple, so simple it was stupid. It was so blatent it was insane.

It was PERFECT. It was the work of a true master. So understated in it's
effect, flying in the face of common sense, laughing at the rest of the
boring, insignificant, short-sighted world.

Ranma smirked to himself, supressing a laugh.

It was crazy, but it worked.

He whistled to himself all the way home.

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