Ranma 1/2

Anything Goes Battle Arena

The Setting:

On the floating island Togenkyo, Prince Toma was alone in his throne room, thinking to himself. Ever since he and his minions had encountered Ranma and co., they had given up their practice of kidnapping beutiful women from islands and beaches to find Toma a suitable bride. At the same time, however, the island's spring that turned anything it touched into a man was gone for a century or so, and that meant any women who came to the island would stay women. "If only I could find that special someone..." Toma thought to himself.

On a nearby beach on the coast of China, Kirin and Lychee were walking hand in hand. Kirin said, <It's been exactly one year since we were wed. It's so good to get away from the Seven Lucky Gods Dojo once in a while, isn't it darling?>

Lychee smiled and looked at Kirin, <Yes, it's also good to get a break from eating pickles and rice all of the time.>

Kirin laughed, and nodded to Lychee. Suddenly, in the corner of his eye he saw a black shadow move across the beach. A second later, the shadow was right under Lychee. Kirin saw his wife start to sink into the sands and quickly reacted. He struck into the shadow with his chopsticks and pulled out a man who had distinct monkey characteristics by his arm.

Just before Kirin could give the monkey-man the beating of his life, a colorful sphere of light floated through the air and landed a few feet away from him. The sphere dissappeared, leaving a young man with a sword strapped behind his back in its place.

<You there,> Kirin addressed the young man, <Are you responsible for this attempted abduction of my wife?>

The young man didn't understand Chinese, apparently, and said, "I'm not sure what you just said, but I intend to make this vision of lovliness my bride. I, Prince Toma of Togenkyo Island, Master of Illusion, will not be denied!"

Kirin switched to Japanese for Toma's benifit, "Lychee is already taken, I'm afraid you'll have to search elsewhere. If you're intent on taking Lychee, you'll have to go through me first!" Kirin spun his chopsticks around in his hand for effect and pulled his bowl of rice out of nowhere to hold in his other hand.

"Very well," Toma answered, "I challenge you for this lady's hand!" The Prince pulled his sword from its scabbard.

<Be careful, Kirin...> Lychee said as she moved off to the side, watching the opponents size each other up nervously.

(This fight suggested by Eric D. and Wade Tritschler)

Commentary:

Spanner:

The very nature of Toma's attacks ensure that they will be absolutely devastating to any opponent who isn't expecting them. Toma's illusions allow him to appear where he isn't, strike unseen, and unleash incredible (if unreal) attacks that are very likely to fool the opponent, at least in the first battle. Kirin's main strength lies in his nearly unbreakable defense--but if his whirling chopsticks weren't able to stop hot water, they'll be even less likely to stop illusionary flames. Assuming that Toma strikes fast and hard, Kirin won't be able to figure out in time that he has been tricked. Of course, in a rematch, Kirin could probably kick the snot out of the guy, presuming that he figures out Toma's illusions, as Ranma did. But Toma's sure to win their first battle. Hope Lychee likes her new hubby! :)

Owain Lawson:

This one was *very* tough to decide. What we see of both of them is that they are both very adept at blocking in particular, Toma with his arms and Kirin with his chopsticks. Toma's main attack is a fire illusion, and as we know it can be ignored if the opponent is mentally strong enough. I don't know if Kirin would be, but he very well may be. Beyond that one attack, Toma's fighting skill is good, but not necessarily good enough to beat Kirin. Kirin has a very strong attack, the 1000 pinching chopsticks sting, which is *very* difficult to avoid, if it is possible to avoid at all. He is also a very strong fighter beyond that, and definately Toma's equal. Overall, I would say that Kirin would win, because of his main attack, and because of his better fighting skill...he *has* been training to be the leader of the Seven Lucky Gods all his life, after all.

Justicar:

Hmmm... battle of the movie brats. I am going with Kirin on this one because Toma is nothing without his illusions. Kirin seems disciplined enough to eventually figure them out. When he does its lights out for Toma. Kirin is plainly the better fighter. He is older, better skilled and stronger. Toma is rather young and didn't really seem all that great of a fighter. If you take a look at the fighters that each controlled. Kirin's were based on gods and took out the entire Ranma crew in the first battle. Toma's really didn't have any decisive victory. Lastly, the movies themselves, Movie 1 was an actual enjoyable movie with only a few holes. Movie 2 was just an excuse to show some T & A .

Wade Tritschler:

Okay why? Kirin's good, but really, he can't compete with Toma's versitility. Toma can teleport, fly, turn your own punches against you, create force winds, and has a masterate use of illusion. He's also fast enough to keep up with Kirin, and I think has comparitable power. The only thing Kirin has is motivation at this point.

Kitiara:

While Kirin is exceptionally strong, his sure-kill attack depends on his chopsticks... ..so if Toma figured that out and used an illusion to make Kirin think he didn't have his chopstix... Toma could easily use some attack with his sword to defeat Kirin.

The Fight:

After Lychee moved off of the battlefield, the two opponents stood facing each other, weapons at the ready.

Kirin stood still, his chopsticks in one hand and a bowl of rice in the other. He thought to himself, "Any attack he tries to make with his sword I can block with my chopsticks. My inpenetrable defense will tire him out, then I will finish him off."

Toma stood still, just like Kirin, and held his sword one-handed while staring at his opponent. He thought, "Any attack he tries to execute against me I can turn back on him. I won't even need to strike him to triumph."

Both fighters with their mainly defensive styles stood there for minutes. Lychee watched them, still worrying about the possible outcome. Toma, the younger and less disciplined of the two, grew very impatient. Without warning, he charged at Kirin, unleashing a loud yell. Kirin, of course, needed no warning. As Toma closed in and swung his sword over-hand at his head, Kirin closed his eyes, grinned, and quickly raised his chopsticks to block.

Kirin's eyes immediately shot open as the blow never hit. The image of Toma dissapeared and was replaced by another, which was thrusting the hilt of his sword at Kirin's abdomen. As fast as he was, Kirin was unable to move his chopsticks to intercept the blow in time. The hilt slammed into Kirin's, causing him to skid back in the sand a few feet. Still standing, Kirin growled, "What manner of trickery is this?!"

Toma smiled, "Why do you think I am called the Master of Illusion?" Wasting no time, Toma again moved toward Kirin. The Seven Lucky Gods master sidestepped, and struck several times at Toma very quickly, only to see the form dissapear. Expecting this, Kirin struck quickly at the form of Toma which appeared a moment later. Again, it was another illusion, and it vanished. Another Toma appeared and thrusted with his sword. Kirin took a step back and formed a defensive barrier with his chopsticks. With great speed he sent his chopsticks to block any space in front of him that Toma could attack him from. He felt his defense connect with something solid in a completely different place than the illusionary sword which was being thrust at him. Charging his chopsticks with ki, he focused his defense on the solid object.

Suddenly, Toma's form vanished once again. A safe distance away in front of Kirin, Toma grasped one of his arms with the other. The one arm was covered with a large number of very small burn marks. Kirin smiled arrogantly, "Your trickery is no match for the great Kirin. Surrender before it's too late."

"That's not the only one of my 'tricks.' Prepare yourself for my ultimate technique..." Toma raised his sword high, but Kirin had no intention of letting the young prince do whatever he had planned. He charged in quickly, poised to strike. Toma was suprised, and barely positioned himself to defend in time. Kirin jabbed the form of Toma in front of him many times with ki charged chopsticks.

Instead of the blows connecting with Toma, or passing through air, Kirin felt as though they were being absorbed. He quickly pulled back, and saw Toma smile at him just a moment before he was struck by a barrage of small, burning blows in his chest. He was thrown back by the force of the attack and landed in the sand on his back. Surprisingly, he managed to keep his bowl of rice upright with the pickle still on top. As Kirin stood up, he looked at his shirt. Numerous small, circular shapes were burned in the fabric, which lead him to one conclusion, "You turned my blows against me? How dare you!"

Toma smiled again and already had his sword raised above him, "Feel the power of my ultimate technique! Yogan Ran Digi-Dan!" The sword glowed and a bright light filled Kirin's vision. All of a sudden, he felt as though he were in an inferno. Flames surrounded him, and he felt himself begin to burn immediately. As his body blackened, his mind was filled with panic, "How could he summon a technique this powerful?! It's impossible!" He closed his eyes and let out a scream, unable to control himself. At the verge of unconsciousness, he thought, "It's impossible... unless..." His eyes shot open with realization, and he found himself back on the beach, no more damaged than he was before the attack, "... it was another illustion." He finished out loud.

Toma stared wide-eyed at Kirin. The only other person who had ever withstood his ultimate technique was Ranma Saotome, and even then, it had worked the first time he used it. Kirin, obviously very angry, charged Toma. The young prince was too drained at the moment to attempt an illusionary defense, so he readied his sword. Kirin struck several times, much quicker than Toma could defend against with his sword alone. The number of small ki burns on Toma's chest steadily while Toma struck repeatedly at Kirin, only to find his strikes blocked while his opponent could both block and attack very quickly. Suddenly, Kirin's chopsticks passed through air and the image of Toma faded. Kirin was caught off guard as Toma mustered up enough energy to create another illusion. Before he could defend, Toma hit him with a strong kick in the side of his head.

Kirin was thrown to the ground and slid a few feet before coming to a stop, his rice bowl still in perfect condition. His head was a different matter entirely, still hurting from the force of the kick. Toma moved in to strike the prone Kirin without hesitation. His sword thrust met sand, however, as Kirin rolled to avoid the attack, and quickly stood up. Both opponents looked at each other. Both of them had been struck in the chest numerous times, Toma more so, but Kirin was still unable to completely shake off the kick to his head. Toma, figuring that the two of them were evenly matched at this point, charged, sword at the ready.

Kirin, however, had been conserving his energy through the fight, and still had enough to pull off one more move. He held his bowl of rice in front of him and charged up as Toma drew closer and closer. Suddenly, he yelled, "Ultimate technique! Kyakusho Yogekki Kyo!" The bowl of rice emitted a bright yellow glow, and Toma's vision was filled with a spiral of yellow, chopstick shaped bolts of ki. His advance was quickly halted, and as the thousand pinching chopsticks passed by, he was pushed back. All he could do with the last of his energy was scream as he was carried off his feet and thrown back. Kirin's attack halted, and the young prince landed on the ground, skidding for a few seconds across the sand before coming to a stop.

Kirin stood still, most of his energy depleted. He watched the prince for several moments, then relaxed his guard when it was clear that Toma was unconscious. Lychee ran to his side and gave him a hug, <I was so worried...>

Kirin looked at his wife, then back to Toma, <As was I. He was a worthy opponent, but ultimately no match for the Seven Lucky Gods School of Martial Arts.>

Lychee smiled, <Well, even if he had defeated you, I certainly would have taught him a lesson for pursuing a married woman.> The couple walked down the beach, hand in hand, talking and laughing with each other as the sun set.

The Results:

Kirin: 14

Toma: 10

Wow, I actually got a few more voters. Thanks for suggesting this fight for those who did, and thanks for those who contributed good commentary. Keep those votes and suggestions coming!