I have decided to make this fic my new years resolution, since it is one of the few Ranma stories I have where readers don't mind I cured Ranma. However, updates might be even slower now since my internet has decided to get all wonky on me. Start the fic.

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Ranma, Kuriko, and Kazuki were searching the school room by room and so far they didn't find anything.

"Ranma." chirped Kuriko. "Something's been bothering me about you. Why do you support Yuna in the quest for Kazuki's genes but not me?"

Kazuki blushed in embarrassment but the other two students ignored him.

"Because Yuna cares more about him than just his genes. She doesn't want to jus mother his children, she wants to be his wife too. You on the other hand, his genes are the only thing you're interested in! You'd just take what you want and then just leave him alone in a ditch! I don't support you because you are a horrible person who's only looking out for number one!"

She might not have shown it but Ranma's words had hit home to her.

"Hey now, I don't think that's entirely true!" preached Kazuki.

"Kazuki?! You're defending her?! From ME?!"

"Ranma, I know why Kuriko might be after my genes but she's not all bad. She can't be."

"How?! How is she not all bad?! Explain it to me!" Ranma challenged.

"Well..." As Kazuki searched for an answer he failed to notice the awed look Kuriko was giving him. "I know she's cold and conniving...and mean...and..."

"You had a point here somewhere?"

"Right! I think that deep down inside she's actually a very nice person."

Ranma almost laughed out loud but managed to choke it down. Kazuki was staring at him more seriously than he had ever seen him. Ranma sighed in defeat. "Kazuki, sometimes you're too nice for your own good."

"Ranma!" came Yuna's cry from outside the room.

"Sounds like Yuna found something."

As Ranma walked to the door he pointed a finger at Kazuki. "We aren't done with this conversation!"

Opening the door revealed Yuna on the other side with a concerned look on her face. "Ranma, I saw Nakamaru on the second floor, he seemed to be up to something...shifty."

"And you didn't investigate?"

"I would have but...you've seen how Nakamaru is around me and I..."

"Didn't want him to harass you? I understand now, I'll handle it. You go search the third floor with Rin."


Nakamaru looked to his left and right, while hugging the wall, he inched his way over to the double doored storeroom.

Pity he never saw Ranma sitting on the hallway window. "Nakamaru, what do you think you're doing?"

Nakamaru's fat friend opened the door behind him causing Nakamaru to fall to the ground. "What are you doing Nakamaru? Come on in and share the love."

Ranma looked between Nakamaru and his friend...connections were made.

Ranma frowned... immensely. "I didn't need to know this. I thought you were into girls, like Yuna, but if you're meeting 'him' here...in a room...alone...after school...in secret..."

"NOOOO! Ranma it's not what you think!" Nakamaru cried.

"Listen man, whatever your guys' thing is...it's cool. I'm just going to pretend this whole thing never happened and..."

KLANG!

Ranma's attention shot to the room. He leaned in to see a bucket in the corner of the room had toppled over where a small cat fell out. Well at first glance it looked like a cat anyways. It being a cat was bad enough, but the small little mane on its neck suggested it was something much more. Ranma immediately started to sweat bullets.

Ranma swallowed a lump in his throat which he refused to acknowledge was there. "Nakamaru...is that what I think it is?"

"Uh..."

"Meow."

"KEEP IT AWAY! KEEP! IT! AWAY!"


Kuriko failed to suppress an evil chuckle, 'The dumbass was so upset with his brother he completely forgot that he left him alone with me.'

Her eyes darted to the boy, he must have been well aware of the situation because he was sweating bullets.

'Hmm...I probably can't try anything with him without him making a ruckus. Guess I'm going to have to do what I actually came here for.' "Kazuki, let's go check the nurse's office."

"Huh? I thought you said you already checked the nurse's office?"

Kuriko leaned in on him, smiling coyly. "I just want to check it with you...alone."

"Uh..."

"And WITHOUT Ranma!" Kuriko grabbed him by the hand and started to drag him down the hall.

"Honestly, I have never met a bigger pain in my fanny."


Speaking of Ranma, he was on his fanny doing his best to crawl away from the furry menace of Hell.

He was currently at the end of the hallway with his back up against the wall on his own fanny, and said 'cat'...was still in the room Ranma had left him in.

Nakamaru looked back at the cat and then at Ranma. Then a devilish grin started to form as an idea came to his mind. He picked up his 'pet project' by the scruff and walked down the hall towards Ranma.

Every step he took Ranma seemed to get paler and paler which Nakamaru seemed to drink up.

"I never thought the day would come when I would get a leg up on the famous Ranma Shikamuri. Oh this is just too good! Time for some well deserved payback!"

If Ranma wasn't busy being terrified to death of the thing Nakamaru held in his arms he would most likely deck him for this very situation.

"Sh-Sh-Sh-Shut up Nakamaru! Just keep that thing away from me!"

"Oh no! My time is now! At long last it's payback time!"

Ranma's eyes darted around to try and find a way out but none were available.

"What's the matter Ranma? Afraid of a wittle putty tat?"

Nakamaru was right in front of Ranma now, there was no escape. Just when Ranma felt like he was about to become overcome with fear his body started to glow yellow.

Before either Nakamaru or Ranma could react to it, Ranma disappeared with a loud pop.

"Heh. Teleported away huh? Oh well, them's the breaks."

The feline Nakamaru was holding deciding it had had enough with the rough handling of the scruff of the back of his neck, started to struggle.

"Huh? Uh-Oh..."


Ranma landed on the ground in a heap in a yellow glowing heap which soon faded.

"Ouch! Sigh...I guess my magic still has a couple of mysteries...outside the school. Better get in there if I want Kazuki to see tomorrow. Just hope there aren't anymore surprises."

Flashback

Young Ranma was still in class but he had taken a break from his usual glaring contest with Sayumi because they were supposed to have some special guest from some kind of academy.

"Hello children, my name is Dr. Akai and your teacher asked me to come here to speak to you about magic."

Ranma cleaned his ear with his pinky not really paying attention.

"This is so dumb...what do I need magic for when I have ki?" Ranma thought.

"Now then..." Dr. Akai continued. "I want all of you to think of your magic as ash inside of your body, now I want you to try to flow that ash as if it were in a current to your finger and form a small ball of light. It's okay if you don't get it right the first time."

While the others attempted the feat, Ranma merely crossed his arms in defiance. Dr. Akai seemed to notice.

"You there, young man, what is your name?"

"I'm Ranma, and for a change I'm not sorry about this!"

"Why aren't you trying the exercise with the other students?"

"No offense Doc, but I don't need magic."

Dr. Akai adjusted his glasses. "I beg your pardon? Why not?"

"I don't really think there is a point so long as I know how to manipulate my ki."

"Ki you say?"

This caught Sayumi's attention. Manipulating ki was supposed to be only achievable by high level martial artists.

"Mr. Perfect..." she thought bitterly.

Because Ranma had basically had a reset traveling to this world, his pool of ki was now a lot smaller now. He couldn't pull off things like the Moko Takabisha but he could do small things like a ball of light like he was doing now.

Dr. Akai rubbed his chin in thought. "Interesting, Ranma I want you to humor me for a moment, just try to summon your magic like the others. If it works I then want you to try and connect your magic and ki and see what happens."

Again Ranma rolled his eyes. He had become acquainted enough with his luck to know where this was probably going to lead him. If it was all the same he would rather not bother with it all but the idea of getting it over with and out of the way sounded much more appealing...even if it was predictable.

"They're probably going to struggle for dominance and then..." Ranma has his blue ball of ki touch his yellow ball of magic and they became a ball of green magic just the sized of his fist. "WHAT THE HELL?!"

"Mmmhmm. Just as I thought."

"What?" was the only thing Ranma could think to say.

"Ranma, if it is alright I would like to perform a physical examination on you to discover the means and causes of this..." he adjusted his glasses. "With your parents' permission of course."

Flash

Ranma sat on an examination table in a patient's gown while Dr. Akai went over the test results.

"So tell me what the deal is Doc."

"Well, if what your parents told me is true then you are from another dimension correct?"

"Yeah, but things are so magical and crazy in this world I bet that isn't unheard of."

"Well yes and no. There have been other occurrences with interdimensional travel but they were rarities, and even then I am pretty sure it wasn't to or from your world. However, I digress... You had magic in this world too?"

"Well yeah...I had a Jusenkyo curse. A water based curse which would change my gender."

"Ranma, did you know that in our world there is no Jusenkyo?"

"No Jusenkyo? You're joking me right?"

"No Mr. Shikamuri, I'm afraid I don't joke. Since there is no Jusenkyo in this world, the magic you were afflicted with has no choice but to find an alternate means to manifest itself. I. E. your spell count."

Ranma raised an amused eyebrow. "Okay Doc, so tell me...what is the spell count of a Jusenkyo curse?"

"Haven't the foggiest?"

"What?"

"Ranma, you said your curse was water based yes?"

"Yeah...that's how it would activate."

"While your gender transformation doesn't seem to have a place here it would seem as though there is still a connection to water. Because it can't change your form it would seem as though it compensates by adding to your spell count. Really quite unique to be honest. You might never die from a used up spell count."

The idea stuck in his mind a small smile started to form. However, before it could grow any larger a question from the back of Ranma's mind resurfaced.

"Wait Doc, what about my ki? Explain how my magic interacted with my ki."

"Tell me...did you ever use your ki back in your home dimension when stuck in your cursed form?"

"Yeah, lots of times."

"There's your answer. Your magic and ki work well with each other because they recognize each other and were already familiar with each other. They can now work with one another in new ways never previously possible."

As Ranma digested this in his head he stared down at his hands and flexed them. This could open whole new doors for him.

"You say ki is a part of you, part of every living being, inside of you. And being the martial artist you were you knew how to manipulate this to your body to boost your attacks and speeds. Or at least that's what you told me. However, here your magic, your spell count is basically interwoven with who you are, your very being. So..."

"It's only natural they go together." Ranma concluded.

Ranma smiled in a way unlike he had ever done before, like he was given some magnificent gift through the luck of a draw.

"It's a whole new world for me."

End Flashback


"Coming in without knocking is rude." snipped Dr. Akai as he glared at the blonde student in his doorway.

"Oh my, I'm sorry."

"Hello." piped Kazuki, poking his head in to the doorway.

"Well we just so happen to be investigating that strange howl that everybody has been hearing."

"Ooooh. Well good luck with that." Dr. Akai's tone made it clear that he wanted them to leave.

"And regarding that, would you let us investigate..." Kuriko pointed her hand at Dr. Akai then at a closet door.(A/N: it always seemed like more of a closet to me.) It seemed to be covered in sealing wards. "that room?"

"You know the rules, it's forbidden to outsiders."sighed Dr. Akai.

"Kazuki and I are both students here at this school. Are students considered outsiders?"

"Perhaps I should say 'students and outsiders' then."

Kuriko smirked. "You're teasing me. Why don't you just come out and say it Doctor? You can't open that door because there's a summoned creature in there! A behemoth!"

Kazuki looked at the door with shock. "A...A..." he swallowed a lump in his throat. "A behemoth?!"

"I've received information that you've summoned a creature Doctor. Furthermore I heard you were having problems handling the creature."

"So in order to confirm your information you've searched the school have you?"

Whatever conversation the two were having, Kazuki couldn't focus on it. His eyes kept drifting back to the door with the seals on it. The thought that all that was keeping him from being ripped to shreds by a behemoth was a wooden door and some seal tags.

"I've not only searched the school but I've also gained the trust of Yuna and the others and lured Kazu..."

"But not Ranma..." Dr. Akai fixed his glasses. "Am I right?"

Kuriko shrugged. "I'm afraid Ranma can see through me like a window. But it's of no matter...among the S ranked summoned creatures the behemoth is the most brutal. Summoning them is against the law isn't it?"

"Yes. If a behemoth becomes violent it will create such a disturbance that the defense force will have to mobilize its counter magic team, the magic brigade."

"But that doesn't have you in a panic at all. Why is that?" Kuriko smirked for a second time. "Because Kazuki is here, right?"

Kazuki twitched as the spotlight was suddenly placed on him.

"With magic as powerful as Kazuki's, eliminating a behemoth is no problem at all. Kazuki's pathetic dreams were your work weren't they?"

Dr. Akai smiled. "That is true." He got up out of his chair and walked over to the sealed door. "If there is a behemoth behind this door then what you're saying Ms. Kazetsubaki must be true." he gave the door a couple knocks as a knock on wood gesture. "And if what you're saying is true, my question is this...Why did you come here Kazetsubaki? I find it impossible to believe you came here to take me to task because I violated your sense of justice."

"You are absolutely correct, I could not care less about that. I want you to work for my company."

There was a silent pause.

"It's not like I'm insisting you obey my every whim. I just want you to work at our research facility. Of course I guarantee you'd be compensated handsomely. So what do you say?"

Kuriko crossed her arms under her breasts. 'I got him. No doubt.'

"I'm not fond of being told what to do." Dr. Akai answered honestly.

"Then I won't allow Kazuki to use his magical power." Kuriko's smirk turned into a full fledged smug grin. "But I will allow for you to take criminal liability for summoning the behemoth, how about that? Did I mention one of my relatives is a Public Prosecutor?"

Kuriko's threats were very serious now but Dr. Akai didn't seem to waver.

"You are a villain."

Kazuki's shoulder started to slump, could he have been wrong about Kuriko?

"Oh, I'm villain now? Well if you're so innocent then Doctor then why don't you just open up that door and prove it!"

Dr. Akai's hand moved to the doorknob. The two stared each other down for a moment before Dr. Akai smiled.

"Very well..." He opened the door and out came the behemoth. "I would like it on record however that I merely was containing the beast, I did not summon it."

Dr. Akai's words fell on Kuriko's deaf ears, she was stunned, frozen in place by the sheer terror of the monster before her. Kazuki on the other hand had heard every word.

"Well why did you let it out then?!"

"The barrier charms I've placed on the door were bound to break at some point anyways. I let him out now and I have a chance of salvaging what's left. I would run though, Ms. Kazetsubaki, from the look in his eyes it would appear as though it would like nothing better than to tear you to shreds."

Kuriko snapped out of her stupor at this news. However, before she could react Kazuki was standing between her and the behemoth.

"Not if I use my magic to...Hey!"

The behemoth ran out of the room.

"What the...?" Kazuki's jaw dropped. Seeing a behemoth was rare enough, but being ignored by it was just plain unheard of. "Where's it going?!"

Dr. Akai merely shrugged. "I guess it noticed something it wanted even more."


Ranma had his back pressed against the wall, the behemoth in front of him had its eyes glued on him, growling up a storm. Ranma tip toed to the left but the behemoth followed him with its gaze, so Ranma tried to tip toe to the right only to be met with the same results.

"Oh come on! This isn't fair!"

People always complain about two things to me, 1 not updating sooner, and 2 how short my chapters are. So I'm setting a new standard for my work at fanfiction 3,000 words instead of 1,000. Let's see if that makes a difference. I'm enjoying writing this story. It's like I'm getting back to my roots or something