School is a Battlefield! Ranma vs. Ryoga

School is a Battlefield! Ranma vs. Ryoga (学校は戦場だ!対決 乱馬VS良牙) is the 8th episode in the first season, Digital Dojo, of Ranma ½.

While his first attempt to face Ranma was a failure, Ryoga refuses to give up, and finally manages to get himself to Nerima and face off against Ranma in a one-on-one battle. Now if only Ranma could make him understand that he sincerely has no idea why Ryoga is so mad at him...

Relation to the Previous Episode
This episode continues the story arc begun in the previous episode. It makes multiple references to the events of the previous episode.

Making Preparations
Late in the evening, the Furinkan chemistry room is empty save for the Chemistry Club members, who are working on building a new kind of homemade mine. When their leader impulsively activates it, it proves successful... and promptly blows the whole room apart.

Somewhere in the wilderness, Ryoga is still brooding over Ranma, vowing that he will take his revenge and even that he will crush Ranma's windpipe. Standing on a cliff edge, he dramatically bellows Ranma's name to the sky above... and takes a rather painful plunge to the bottom of the cliff, having failed to notice the sign just behind him noting that this is a landslide area.

At the Tendo's, Ranma is currently sitting on the porch, female and naked from the waist up (presumably due to an evening sparring session with her father), even as Akane once again interrogates Ranma about the grudge Ryoga bears. Ranma insists that she has no idea what it's about if the cause isn't the missed "bread match", and can only reiterate her ignorance as Akane points out that Ryoga must have a reason to be acting this fanatical about it. Kasumi chooses that moment to appear, bringing a kettle of hot water and a letter for Ranma from Ryoga, which turns out to be a formal letter of challenge.

The fathers, meanwhile, ignore the conversation between the teens; they are playing, and Soun has just managed to get Genma into a bind. When the man-turned-panda holds up a sign with the kanji for "wait" on it, Soun chuckles and refuses.

Kasumi helpfully pours the hot water on Ranma, who fans himself to cool off the heat even as Akane reads the letter and worriedly points out that the arranged date was yesterday. Ranma nonchalantly waves it off as okay, as Ryoga's problems with directions means it could be days before he finally shows up.

At that very moment, in fact, Ryoga is standing at the fork of a trident-shaped crossroads (two roads going horizontally, two roads going diagonally) with a farmer, pointing at the lower diagonal road and asking if this is the road that the farmer just indicated leads to Tokyo. The farmer angrily tells Ryoga he has the wrong road, pointing yet again to the upper diagonal road. Ryoga sheepishly apologizes and then, to the farmer's disbelief, takes the forward horizontal road into deep forest.

Ryoga Returns
Some time later, Ranma and Akane are at Furinkan during Study Hall, Akane enjoying the compliments of some of her friends as to the length and beauty of her hair. She happily thinks to herself that it's finally longer than Kasumi's, then drifts off into a somewhat melancholic recollection of Dr. Tofu. During this, she has no idea that her friends have wandered over to the window until she overhears them talking about a stranger who has just wandered onto the soccer field -- it looks like Ryoga has finally made it back.

In fact, that is exactly what has happened. Filthy, tired and using his umbrella like a cane, Ryoga nevertheless smirks triumphantly as he declares that today is the day that he will send Ranma to a deep, lonely hell. In fact, he is so caught up in his anticipatory gloating that he fails to realise that there is a soccer game going on until a ball beans him in the face hard enough to knock him out, the concerned players gathering around his fallen form. Watching this from the window, Ranma remarks disdainfully on Ryoga's weirdness.

Still, Ryoga refuses to allow something like this to stop him, and soon he and Ranma are squaring off in the now-vacant soccer field, many students seated on the sidelines to watch in delight. Nabiki and two nameless female flunkies are even offering bets on the winner of the fight. Both teens ignoring this, Ryoga sarcastically complimenting Ranma on the skill he showed in running away the previous time they met. Ranma indignantly points out that Ryoga was the one who wandered off and got lost, though Ryoga promptly changes the subject and declares he's been through hell, having travelled the deep blue sea and been lost in the jungle for weeks in his search for Ranma. Ranma puts his hand to his face and exasperatedly says that he has no idea what to say to Ryoga, which prompts Ryoga to angrily declare that Ranma has that right (ignoring Ranma's comment that he didn't mean it that way). Sick of talking, Ryoga lets out a war cry and attacks Ranma, who calmly dodges each blow and refuses to strike beg, instead making one final plea for Ryoga to explain what all of this is about.

As they fight, they ignore what's happening in the background. Nabiki's flunkies report that they've brought in 11470 yen from the bets, most of which were placed on Ranma -- Nabiki reassures the girls that she's a professional when one of them nervously points out that if Ranma wins, they'll be bankrupted. The Chemistry Club arrives on the scene and notes that if Ranma gets killed by Ryoga, then they'll have Akane for themselves. One of Kuno's underlings in the Kendo Club goes to try and tell his upperclassman about the struggle, but Kuno is immersed in deep "meditation", staring at posters of Akane and Ranma's female form, trying to decide which one to choose, only to passionately declare that he loves them both and knock himself out by charging into the wall.

The Fight Begins
On the field, Ryoga at last tries a gambit he's been preparing, using his projectile umbrella to distract Ranma and allowing it to come spinning to a halt over on the sidelines, then snaring Ranma in a set of handcuffs bound by a long steel wire. Declaring that this will prevent Ranma from escaping again, he then lashes out at Ranma when the heir to the Saotome School protests yet again that he wasn't the one who ran off in their last matches.

On the sidelines, Akane is disturbed by the skill Ryoga has displayed... and when she discovers that the umbrella Ryoga has been swinging around one-handed is so heavy she can barely lift it with both hands, she grows genuinely frightened for Ranma, calling out to him to avoid letting Ryoga get too close to him.

When Ryoga's strike actually slices Ranma's cheek, Ranma coldly declares that he's had enough and isn't going to play around any more. Ryoga is skeptical about Ranma's declaration, but finds his enemy isn't joking when, in one blinding motion, Ranma ducks beneath a punch and all but hurls himself between Ryoga's legs, coming up behind him and latching onto Ryoga's back with his legs in a way that sends Ryoga face-first into the ground, his left arm pinned and Ranma seated quite comfortably on the small of Ryoga's back. All Ryoga can do is curse as Ranma mockingly asks what he should do to Ryoga.

On the sidelines, Nabiki is infuriated and her flunkies anxious, while the Chem Club begin a group prayer inciting Ranma to lose.

Leaving School Grounds
With a roar of rage, Ryoga manages to lift himself and Ranma both with his free hand, then hurls them multiple meters into the air with a flex of his muscles. The two struggle in mid-air, but Ranma manages to block or dodge Ryoga's blows while dealing some fierce shots of his own to the lost boy, finally hurling Ryoga to the sidelines with a diving kick he pulls off by using Ryoga's own handcuffs idea against him. Evidently unnerved, Ryoga dives for his umbrella and leaps away, Ranma readily following him over the fence.

Figuring out where they're going, the Chem Club conceals a quintet of their homemade mines at the spot where they will be duking it out next and hides, expecting their bombs to finish off both martial artists. However, to their horror, the mines are duds and so they leap out with mallets and try to overpower their "foes". All they succeed in doing is severing the handcuffs binding them, allowing the disinterested boys to bound away to find somewhere else to fight, and blowing themselves up. Nabiki and her flunkies spot the explosions and use this to track Ranma and Ryoga down, the two fighters having left the school grounds, and catch up to them just as Ranma seems to have Ryoga overpowered. Interrupting the fight, Nabiki approaches Ryoga with some "steroids" (really vitamin tablets) and convinces him that his strength will be increased tenfold if they take them.

Ryoga eagerly downs them and, after a brief pep talk from Nabiki, gains a restored confidence, uprooting an nearby telephone pole and demanding Ranma fight him fair and square (Ranma incredulously asking if Ryoga is seriously calling something like that fair), then starts swinging it at him. As the two run off, Ranma clearly on the defensive now, Nabiki's flunkies stare in frightful awe at Ryoga's feat of strength and bloodthirstiness, while Nabiki herself merely chuckles in satisfaction.

Ranma and Ryoga's path of destruction leads them to the Nerima District Zoo, where Ryoga ends up releasing many different animals -- much to the horrified disbelief of the workers. Cornering Ranma near a fence, Ryoga swipes at him with the now broken, jagged-edged pole. Ranma leaps back onto the fencetop without taking any damage, but his shirt has been cut open. When Ryoga responds to Ranma's dismay at his favorite outfit being ruined by mocking his masculinity, though, he's pushed Ranma too far; with an angry affirmation of his manhood, Ranma smashes the pole to worthless pieces with one diving kick. Now it's Ryoga's turn to look unnerved and go on the defensive, which leads to Ranma shattering a drinking fountain when Ryoga dodges a diving kick.

It is the resultant geyser that draws the attention of Akane and all the other students following them.

Akane's Bad Cut
Ryoga manages to desperately shield himself from the water with his umbrella, but the soaking wet Ranma, breasts now clearly visible through the cuts in her shirt, leaps out to confront Ryoga, too angry to notice the change. When Ryoga is stunned by the sudden change, Ranma uses it as an opportunity to kick him in the face and makes ready to attack again when Akane arrives on the scene and calls her attention to the fact her nipples are showing. Ranma blushingly tries to cover up her breasts, even as Akane incredulously asks if Ranma didn't even notice the change.

While there is a slight delay in Kuno choosing that moment to show up and come running up to try and glomp Ranma, only to be kicked by her into the lion pit for his troubles, Ranma confirms that this is really him and emotionally declares she has no idea why Ryoga hates her so much and that she's just trying to get by in this cursed body. Ryoga snickers darkly, asks since when it's been that having such a beautiful body is a curse, and declares Ranma makes him sick, even as he withdraws several bandannas from around his head and spins them rapidly to turn them into razor-edged projectiles. Ranma just manages to shelter Akane from the first volley, but then Akane unthinkingly runs off to try and retrieve some hot water for Ranma despite Ranma's warnings -- fortunately, she trips over a tree root just in the nick of time and two bandannas only cut slices in the back of her skirt rather than in her back.

Ranma races over to help her, which prompts Ryoga to throw first his umbrella, spear style, at her and then some bandannas. Ranma proceeds to knock the umbrella out of the air with a kick, grab it and flick it open with one arm, grab Akane in the other arm, and leap up high enough to land on a convenient tree branch while using the umbrella as a shield. Ryoga angrily demands Ranma return his umbrella, while Ranma yells at him to wait and leaps off from branch to branch to try and get Akane to shelter.

Elsewhere in town, one of the zookeepers is trying to coax "Hanako", possibly an orangutan, down from a telephone pole. When Genma comes out of a store in his panda form, he gives up on her and tries to coax the bemused Genma to come along peacefully.

Ranma finally lands on a tree branch relatively far away. She and Akane sit there for several moments before Akane timidly, but quickly, extracts herself from Ranma's arms and scoots away from her. Ranma defensively asks why Akane had to go and butt in like that, which prompts Akane to defend her actions, and soon the two are bickering fiercely. Ryoga approaches, angrily comments on Ranma "picking on a girl", then cuts the tree down with his belt and no further warning.

Upon feeling their perch drop out from under them, Ranma instinctively grabs Akane and blocks a strike from Ryoga with the umbrella, which is destroyed. Still hopped on anger, Akane angrily demands that Ranma let her go, and promptly gives her a powerful slap when Ranma exasperatedly comments that she's not doing this because she likes Akane, proceeding to storm off with tears in her eyes. Ranma watches her go, unthinkingly disarms Ryoga with a mule kick when he lunges at Ranma from behind with his belt, and gives chase to Akane. Hesitantly, Ranma tries to apologize to Akane, who sulkingly declares she wants nothing to do with Ranma. Fortunately for her, she spins to confront Ranma face to face when she declares this, so Ryoga's belt sword only shears off a good sized length of her ponytail when it comes spinning back down to earth. This is still enough to render Akane, Ranma and Ryoga all paralyzed with shock.

Meanwhile, Genma has been placed into an enclosure all his own, and seems willing to tolerate it for now.

Trivia

 * This episode marks the first time in the series that Genma uses the signs to communicate, this will later become his signature as a panda.