"Wah! So cute!"
In the Tendo family's living room, Akane scooped Ray Chu, who had just returned from bathing, into her arms and gently rubbed his soft, yellow fur.
"Where did you come from? I've never seen an animal like this before!"
Ranma spat out a mouthful of water. "Ray Chu!"
"Ray Chu? Where is he?" Akane asked, looking around while hugging the Pikachu tightly.
Ray Chu held up a small sign: [I'm Ray Chu!]
With a scream, Akane threw the yellow mouse away. Ray Chu flipped gracefully, tapping lightly off the wall a few times before landing elegantly on the tatami mat. He casually prepared a cup of tea for himself and took a sip.
"It really is Ray Chu—exactly the same movements," Kasumi remarked, tapping Ray Chu's cheek curiously. "What are these two red circles? They feel a bit tingly."
[Please don't poke my face,] Ray Chu indicated. Keep poking and I'll shock you. Kasumi smiled softly and withdrew her hand, sitting upright gracefully.
"Ahem, it's like this…"
Under Genma Saotome's explanation, everyone finally understood that Ray Chu's strange transformation was due to falling into a spring because of the Saotome father-and-son duo.
Though it remained unclear why Ray Chu turned into a yellow mouse upon contact with hot water and back into a man with cold water—the opposite of Ranma and Genma's conditions (a total misunderstanding on their part)—there must surely be a deeper reason behind it. Perhaps this was their chance to return to normal.
"I see!" The three Tendo sisters nodded simultaneously, exchanged glances, then sighed together. Only Nabiki's eyes flickered sharply.
...
The next day, all the girls at Furinkan High fell into a collective frenzy.
"Aww, so adorable!"
"I want one!"
"What kind of animal is this? It even drinks tea! So funny!"
Almost overnight, every girl in the school had purchased photos of "Pikachu" and formed an official Cute Creature Fan Club.
Ray Chu's mouth twitched upon seeing the pictures of Pikachu. Someone truly deserved the title of top-tier stealth master, managing to evade his senses to snap this many candid shots.
"It must've been Sis." Akane slammed her desk angrily, but before she could step out of the classroom, a figure had already burst through the door.
It was Tatewaki Kuno, freshly awakened after yesterday's day-long unconsciousness.
"Saotome Ranma, I refuse to accept your engagement to Akane!" Kuno dramatically declared to Ranma.
"He didn't challenge Ray Chu-kun this time."
"Probably because he was unconscious all day yesterday…"
"Also… why does Kuno-senpai have 'Third Place' written on his forehead?"
"I don't think he's noticed yet…"
The gossiping crowd murmured excitedly as Kuno rushed at Ranma, swinging his wooden sword. Ranma easily dodged, leaping straight out the window.
"Too cramped here—let's take this outside."
"This is the third floor!"
"Thankfully, there's a pool below…"
Moments later, the pool below churned wildly, and Kuno shot out from the water alone, with no sign of Ranma.
"That idiot," Ray Chu sighed, shaking his head. He walked toward the school's rear garden, quickly finding Girl Ranma hidden behind a cluster of leaves. "Did he discover your identity?"
Girl Ranma's eyes appeared vacant. "Probably, yeah."
Ray Chu patted her shoulder lightly, clearly indicating there was nothing he could do to help.
"You idiot, jumping into the pool on your own!" Akane scolded, worriedly following along.
"It's none of your business," Ranma retorted. As always, the bickering pair quickly began arguing.
"Pigtailed girl!" At that moment, the revived Kuno appeared again, glancing between Girl Ranma and Akane beneath the tree, clearly conflicted.
"Ah! One pure and adorable, invoking tenderness; the other lively and passionate, with a fiery figure! How is one to choose?"
Caught in his delusion, Kuno unconsciously voiced his thoughts aloud.
"No! Only children must choose—an adult takes both!" In an instant, Kuno persuaded himself.
"In your dreams!" Girl Ranma and Akane simultaneously attacked, stomping Kuno beneath their feet. They glanced at each other, huffed simultaneously, and turned away.
"I won't be defeated here! This is the power of love!" Kuno flipped back up suddenly, producing a bouquet from nowhere and thrusting it into Girl Ranma's hands.
"I like you, pigtailed girl."
Thunder cracked ominously. Girl Ranma involuntarily glanced toward Akane, who said expressionlessly, "Congratulations. I hope you and Kuno-senpai will be very happy together."
"So that's how you feel! As expected of the girl I admire—Akane truly is considerate!" Kuno sighed, becoming even more determined to have both girls at once.
"But…" came a delicate, sweet voice. Girl Ranma suddenly wrapped her arms tightly around Ray Chu's arm, speaking tenderly, "I already have someone I like! Isn't that right, darling?"
She even added a coquettish wink.
A frigid winter descended instantly, freezing Ray Chu, Akane, and Kuno together—though their hearts froze for entirely different reasons.
Kuno's wooden sword fell from his hand with a hollow clatter. He turned and staggered away, utterly heartbroken.
Feeling a soft sensation against his arm, Ray Chu leaped backward dramatically, pointing at Ranma in horror. "Y-you… m-me…"
"What the heck are you doing?!" Akane poured a kettle of hot water directly onto Girl Ranma's head, returning him to male form.
Ranma scratched his cheek awkwardly, clearly uncomfortable, and coughed softly. "Don't overthink it—that was just a spur-of-the-moment plan."
...
"…And so, Kuno-senpai has a new target now: Girl Ranma," Nabiki received the latest news from her little sister that night.
"Hehe, Girl Ranma really has charm!" Kasumi giggled softly, covering her mouth as she washed Akane's hair with warm water.
"I'm more interested in whether Ray-kun's heart fluttered a bit when Girl Ranma confessed." Nabiki wore a fox-like smirk.
Both Ray Chu and Ranma simultaneously spat out their tea. At that moment, with a loud splash, a giant panda burst in, thoroughly soaking Ranma, holding up a sign with exaggerated laughter: [Am I going to be a grandpa soon?]
"You damned old man!" Ranma immediately sent Genma flying with a fierce kick.
"I wouldn't mind having a new girlfriend," Akane added calmly, twisting a towel through her hair, delivering the killing blow.
Girl Ranma's eye twitched sharply. Puffing out her chest arrogantly, she retorted, "I'd rather stay a girl forever than ever like a violent, unattractive girl like you!"
"Who asked you to like me anyway?!"
Ranma and Akane continued their usual shouting match before storming off in opposite directions. Everyone in the living room was entirely accustomed to their antics. Ray Chu's gaze shifted to Nabiki as he casually remarked, "Those pictures—you spread them, didn't you?"
Nabiki turned slowly, staring quietly at Ray Chu for a moment before suddenly clasping her hands together innocently. "Oh my, it was purely unintentional!"
"One hundred yen per photo," Ray Chu said blankly.
"Half the profits are yours."
"Deal!"
Although he'd brought plenty of precious metals from his previous world, when it came to money—the more, the better.
---
T/N: YESSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS
bonus chaps
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