Correct, the technique section is below, though even with this I didn't get completely through the flashback like I was hoping. Let me know if the two together are still confusing-- I haven't really re-read this section yet to do my own editing. (A lot of the flashback doesn't directly tie to the technique, so it's possible I need to reset expectations on the lead in assuming the section itself reads okay.)
It goes into two training sessions though or one training session and an indication there was another. Given how long this flashback is getting, I'm thinking about breaking it up a bit though and stopping here. Coming back to the flashback a bit later in the chapter after we get to Ranma dealing with his father for awhile.
Kasumi will actually end up going a little further on her own with the technique she's taught though. I've been trying to think of what to do with Soun's training and I'm actually leaning towards just making it something basic now. A new kick or punch or something. (I was considering something supposedly non-combat related like a slow brick break technique that does a kind of irresistible force thing, but I honestly don't want 6 year old Kasumi learning two special techniques in the space of a month or so.)
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Anything Goes Laundry Service
Chapter 4.3
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Soun was Kasumi's first stop after she was all clean again and had put on her cutest dress. She could change into her gi after she had convinced Daddy that he should teach her an amazing move that would stop the big kids in their tracks.
Or maybe energy beams. That would be fun and she had heard the boys talking about that at school. It would totally convince them not to do stupid things like rubbing gum in her hair. She was sure she could pull it off with the things Granpa Happi had been teaching her, even if she couldn't show them to Daddy.
Her father had apparently been tasked with keeping Akane and Nabiki busy while Kimiko helped her, so he was with her two younger sisters. He was "entertaining" them with mustache rubs that were making Akane shriek and beat him over the head with a rubber mallet she had received for her last birthday.
Nabiki was observing from the sidelines, laughing at both Akane and their father. Her face was red enough that it was clear she hadn't been exempt from the activity though and she was poised for flight if he turned his attention back to her. As Kasumi walked into the dojo, her little sister gave her a quick look, then turned her attention back to the father/daughter pair in the center of the room.
Kasumi clasped her hands in front of herself and waited politely for an opening in the play. She suspected this was going to result in her father losing his mustache again for awhile when her little sisters complained to Kimiko. When the shrieking finally died down as Akane tried to catch her breath, Kasumi piped up. "Daddy, did you know it is almost my birthday?"
"Kasumi. Done with your mother already?" He let go of Akane and the little girl immediately made a break for it, yelling for their mother as she ran out with her little legs pumping as hard as they could. Nabiki took the opportunity to do the same, but Kasumi saw her slip to the right after getting through the door and start eavesdropping. She always wanted to know everything that was happening in the house.
"Yes, she said to tell you dinner would be in an hour, too," Kasumi added belatedly, having nearly forgotten about that while she was changing.
Soun nodded complacently, his eyes followed Akane out of the dojo, but relaxed when she made it into the house. "I see. It should be yakitori tonight. Tasty."
Taking a deep breath for patience, something that was always needed when dealing with Daddy, Kasumi tried again. "My birthday?"
"Hmm...? Is it that time already?" Soun stroked his mustache with thumb and forefinger, smoothing it down as he appeared to think. "You're what... fourteen? Fifteen?"
"I'm six, Daddy," Kasumi said with some exasperation.
Her father put on an expression of astonishment. "Surely not, you're so much bigger and more serious than your little sisters. At least twelve. I know I've missed at least that much time on my training trips." There seemed to be a hint of wistfulness behind this, but Kasumi ignored that, determined to put her father back on track and get to what she really wanted to talk about.
"Really, really, and truly," she said firmly. "I will be six in less than a week now."
"Well, if you're absolutely sure..." Soun said, his voice still sounding doubtful. "Do you think we should check with your Mom to be sure you're not at least nine or ten?"
"Daddy!" Kasumi stomped her foot. This caused her father to laugh and stride forward, reaching her in a couple of steps and snatching her up into his arms. She put her own arms around his neck and hugged him. She stayed away from the mustache though.
"Six it is," he said fondly. "I suppose if you're young enough to be this cuddly that still makes sense. I imagine you have a reason for mentioning your birthday. Your mother wouldn't let me forget, I assure you, and even the Master isn't so cruel as to keep me away then."
"Grandpa Happi--" Soun winced for some reason when Kasumi said that, but she ignored that. Mommy and Daddy were always weird about Grandpa. "--wouldn't miss my birthday. He always brings me a present!"
She paused for a moment, realizing that she wasn't actually supposed to say anything about that. Then she recalled that Grandpa Happi had also given her fake presents each year after her real one that she could show to her family. He was sneaky like that. It made her wonder absently if Nabiki would get a real birthday present this year. Maybe they could trade then and talk about their silky friends. That would be great. Secrets were fun, but it would be nice to be able to share it with someone.
She shook her head and realized her father had just finished saying something about Grandpa Happi. It probably wasn't very important though.
"I do have a reason," she said as seriously as she could. "I wanted a special present."
"Not just a regular present, but a special present, eh?" Her father looked her in the eye. She made them as wide and innocent as she could and could practically see him melting. She fought to keep a happy smile off of of her face. This was serious business. "Is this likely to bankrupt me? Do I need to mortgage the house to pay for it?"
Kasumi wasn't exactly sure what that meant, but she thought it might have to do with money since he had mentioned paying. "It won't cost anything," she said with the cool assurance of all of her six years of age. "I want you to teach me a special move! Something that's super amazing and can work on big kids too!"
Her father rubbed his chin, eyes narrowed in concentration. After a short time, his narrow face cleared and he exclaimed. "Ah ha, I know just the thing! Perhaps you would like to learn the deadly arts of... Mustache-Fu?" His voice dropped at the end of the sentence and sounded rather ominous.
Kasumi didn't think her father was being very serious. "I can't learn that Daddy! Girls can't grow mustaches!" She made sure her hands were free to ward off a demonstration, just in case.
"Oh? Well, perhaps we could glue one on then."
"I don't want a mustache though, Daddy." Kasumi felt she had to make sure her father understood this so he didn't do something weird while she was asleep. Her best friend Aoi had woken up in the middle of the forest once for a camping trip after her Daddy had announced a surprise the next day. She thought that could have been a little fun, but waking up with a mustache was definitely not going to happen. She rephrased her earlier comment. "Girl's shouldn't grow mustaches, either! It's not right."
"Really? That is a shame. Just ask Nabiki how effective it is." They heard a small squeak outside the door and the abrupt sound of running footsteps. Kasumi giggled and her father grinned at her.
"If we're looking at special moves though... you have been training for two or three years now." Soun looked a little sad, but Kasumi was used to this whenever her parents spoke about time passing. It was usually followed with something like 'you are growing up so fast, sweetie' or some variant on that. She always found that a little weird, since she figured everyone pretty much grew up at the same rate.
"Perhaps not on a regular basis, but I'm still very proud of you. We'll see what we can come up with in the next week or so, Kasumi. I'm not sure how long I'll be here after that, but I'll give you something to practice, at least."
...
Kasumi began training with her father shortly after their discussion, but she didn't see Grandpa Happi until the day of her birthday to ask him about special techniques. Her party had been a lot of fun and she had liked all of her presents a bunch, but she was practically vibrating with impatience by the end of it. She wanted to see what he had brought her given how amazing his fake gift had been.
Finally, everything had wound down and Kasumi had dragged all of her presents back to her room. Dragged mainly because of Grandpa Happi's present to Kasumi, which had been a plush version of a fox girl that was bigger than her and dressed in a kimono. Akane, Nabiki, and all of her friends had been super jealous and her mother and father nearly speechless.
She was just setting up her new doll on a chair and trying to decide on a name when Happosai finally bounded into the room through her conveniently open window. The little old man grinned widely when he saw Kasumi and said, "How's my favorite pupil? Not getting lazy like your no-good Dad, are you?"
"I'm not!" she exclaimed, bouncing up and smiling widely in anticipation.
"Been keeping up with your training then? How's your collection coming along?" Grandpa Happi asked, his eyes twinkling brightly.
"It could be a little bigger..." Kasumi hinted slyly, her eyes looking over the old man in front of her wondering where her real present was hiding.
This provoked another grin from him and he nodded towards the hidden compartment. "Let's see then."
She jumped onto her bed, then glanced down towards her parents bedrooms abruptly and let herself drop onto her knees and then stomach more quietly. Pulling open her secret place, she pulled her collection out one piece at a time, spreading them across her bedspread to demonstrate to her friend.
After she was finished, she looked to Grandpa Happi expectantly and he made the appropriate appreciative noises then gave another cackling laugh. "I see you haven't unwrapped your birthday present yet."
Kasumi blinked and looked around, wondering if she had managed to miss a present. She couldn't see anything though and when she looked back at Happosai he was simply staring at her with an overly innocent smile on his face. Her eyes narrowed and she looked back over her shoulder. The only thing sitting there was her fake present, that...
She covered the distance to the plush doll in a moment, but paused as she was reaching for it, her eyes on the elaborately tied obi. She wasn't sure she could put that back to normal.
"Go ahead, girl." Happosai's voice from right behind her caused her to jump a little and the old man laughed again. "I'll set it back to rights."
Worries alleviated, Kasumi pulled the obi, allowing the bow to slip free and the tight kimono to loosen. Hands a little hesitant now, as they always were when she opened a present, she carefully pulled the heavy formal garment apart and revealed her real present.
As she had guessed, the cute kitsune doll had an elaborate set of matching bra and panties on under the kimono. Shimmering in the moonlight, Kasumi traced the fabric with her hands, feeling the distinctive slipperiness and softness that was a characteristic of only the nicest of her lovelies.
This set of lingerie also had some interesting features that she hadn't seen in anything that Happosai had presented to her, in the store, or that her mother owned prior to this. The center of the brassiere was a simple bow that stretched the material tight over the plushy and looked like it actually untied. Likewise, each side of the panties had another small matching bow that could also be untied and she noted a few snaps upon both items that held a lovely, white fluffy fur in a few key locations.
"It's lovely." Kasumi let out the breath she realized she'd been holding and leaned forward to rub her cheek against the fabric.
"Glad you like it, Kasumi dear, glad you like it. Now. I hear you're looking to learn some secret techniques." There was something sly about his voice, and perhaps some amusement as the comment tore Kasumi from her rapturous perusal of her new gift.
She gaped at him briefly, then said, "Wow, you know everything, Grandpa. How'd you find out about that?"
"Oh, I have my ways. I have my ways," Happosai said, satisfied. "So, special techniques?"
"Yes! I'm six, so that's like... super old, right? I should definitely start learning secret techniques now." This was perhaps slightly disingenous, but Kasumi thought it was okay. She was getting awfully old after all. She also didn't really want to tell Grandpa Happi about her problems with bullies. She thought he might understand, but she wanted to deal with it on her own.
"Well, let's see if you're ready then. You've been practicing?"
"I have!" Kasumi stood up straight, proud of herself. It had been really hard, but she was sure he was going to be super impressed.
"Well, let's see it. This pair--" Happosai gestured at the pair of panties and bra that were on her new doll. "--are a little special, though not quite up to your first gift, of course. They're from a lovely girl named Aya, quite healthy and an active martial artist. They were just rescued this morning and need a new home."
Kasumi took a deep breath. Her past presents had mostly been kept happy already by Grandpa Happi and she had just needed to ensure they knew they were appreciated after he made introductions. What he was telling her though was that she needed to show she could take care of her collection all by herself.
Resting her head against her doll and more so the bra it was dressed in, she let her cheek senses extend into the silky material. She almost jumped as she felt the cheek energy contained inside. It was very... active. She thought the person who had worn this must have really liked her own collection, though there wasn't any hint of the more stable patterns of cheek energy that were present in her own collection.
While she had almost never done this before, she had experimented on the one pair of panties she had managed to collect from her mother. Unfortunately, it hadn't worked completely and after a few weeks all that had been left was her own cheek energy, which wasn't quite the same since she hadn't even worn them. She was pretty sure she had gotten better since then though and this would be the test.
Her slow, patient work after that took nearly ten minutes, but at the end she held her breath and presented the results to Grandpa Happi. He took a good look, cocking his head to one side, then the other, before he nodded abruptly. "Great work!" He clapped her on the back and she beamed. "Now the other one, then I'll show you what you're going to learn. You're definitely ready."
The repeat of her work on the panties went quicker now that she was familiar with the cheek energy of their original owner and more sure of herself. Done, she turned to Happosai and said, "Ok, I'm ready! Now what?"
Jumping up, the bald man in the crimson jumpsuit leaped up onto Kasumi's dresser so she had to stare up at him. His aura flared and the rest of the room seemed to dim leaving the little girl wide eyed in wonder. This was exactly what she had wanted to learn! "What I am about to pass on is one of the foundational techniques of the Anything Goes School of Martial Arts. For two hundred years, I have searched for a worthy disciple. Your father and Genma Saotome came the closest to success, but are proving to be disappointing, good for nothing bums.
"You on the other hand have taken my teachings to heart and embraced the true spirit of Anything Goes. You have far to go and many are the techniques that you are not ready for, but this step will be your first on the path to greatness.
"Are you ready, Kasumi Tendo?"
"I am!" Kasumi piped, so excited her heart felt like it was going to burst.
Hopping down, his aura flickered out and the old man gave another of his cackling laughs. "Alright, enough of that. Let's go. This technique is called the Heavenly Grasp of the Righteous, but I usually just call it the Happo Happy Touch nowadays."
Walking over to her plush toy, Happosai's hands blurred and the kimono was abruptly as perfect as it had started, leaving the doll looking like an elegant fox girl again. Kasumi gaped. She had never seen anyone move that fast, not even her Daddy. "The first step is just to find the 'cheek power' within the silky darling that you're targeting. With the robust and healthy personality of Aya, that'll be easier during training, but you'll want to move on to others in your collection eventually."
The old man held a hand over the chest of the doll and Kasumi saw his fingers pinch slightly, though they didn't actually gather up any of the kimono's cloth. He moved his hand down though, then moved up to run his hand along the top of the plushies chest, his fingers flicking slightly several times.
Grinning, he once again untied the obi and pulled the kimono to each side, revealing the bra now untied and decorative fur along its top detached. Kasumi blinked. "How'd you do that?"
"I reached out to the 'cheek power' within the bra and it reached out to me. As a result, I was able to touch it even through the heavy cloth of the kimono. Cloth, canvas, even armor is no bar to the Happo Happy Touch. Bwahahaha." Kasumed laughed too. Grandpa Happi was always fun to be around, particularly when he was showing her something knew.
"If it weren't for all the techniques I invented that use this as a base, this'd be my crowning achievement! I'll show it to you a couple more times, then we'll let you feel it out and I'll show you how to tie an obi. By the time you've mastered this technique, you'll be able to tie or untie this bra through the kimono without giving it a single wrinkle."
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not sure this next part will end up in the story or at least this part of the story.
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...
Kasumi stalked her prey through the dim corridors of the Tendo dojo like a lion in the grass. The twilight gloom helped to hide her as she found her prey, trapped in the broom closet like a... She paused, her knowledge of animals failing her. Oh well, anyway, Kasumi had decided it was finally time to try out her newly mastered technique in the 'wild' so to speak, or at least on something slightly more mobile than her Aya plushy.
Dashing forward, she flung open the door and "tagged" her sister. Akane seized her butt and glared at Kasumi, turning to face her. "You're s'posed ta just say you found me!"
"Tag's more fun." The answer was glib, but Kasumi smiled to herself. She had definitely pulled off the technique. She had felt cotton panties rather than the jean shorts her little sister was wearing today.
Akane stuck her tongue out at her, blowing a raspberry. "Not when you're bein' weird. That hurt! I'm going to tell Mommy!"
Kasumi paused, her first reaction to protest and stop Akane. She hadn't done anything wrong though. "Fine, be a baby. I don't care." She sniffed, then turned around and stalked off.
