Meet Miss Satsuki

Satsuki wa n dosu (茶月はんどす) is the 57th chapter of the manga and the second chapter of the Martial Arts Tea Ceremony Arc.

Synopsis
Akane arrives and tries to save Ranma. Sentaro decides that she should take Ranma's place in the tea ceremony now that he has revealed he is actually a boy. After Sentaro sees Akane attempt the ceremony though, he decides Ranma would be a better candidate.

Plot Overview
Sentaro invites Ranma into a room and tells her to sit down, he then tells Ranma he's going to educate her in the ways of Martial Arts Tea Ceremony. As he says this, Ranma, meanwhile, notes that the water is just hot enough. Sentaro continues (with his eyes now closed) that when she wins, Ranma will be his most noble bride and far more beautiful than his lowly self deserves.

Unfortunately for Sentaro, when he opens his eyes he sees Ranma (now covered in hot water) in his male form. Ranma then asks Sentaro if he doesn't fit the gown anymore. Ranma doesn't get an answer as Sentaro recoils in shock at seeing Ranma's true form for the first time. Still in shock, Sentaro checks Ranma's male by feelings his chest before crying that Ranma is male.

Unimpressed with how Sentaro's acting, Ranma tells him to knock it off. Sentaro responds by telling Ranma that he'd thought he finally found a woman rescue him from his horrid fate, to which Ranma tells Sentaro to just give up and marry the girl. Hearing this, Sentaro turns to Ranma and declares that only a man who does not know Satsuki could lacerate such harsh words.

Before Ranma can respond to this, the pair hear a ruckus going on outside. When they check what the fuss is about, they see Akane storming around looking for Ranma. Sentaro quickly walks up to Akane and sees the Tea Ceremony spoon which he says he "carelessly dropped". Akane, however, has a differing opinion since she remembers it being thrown at her. Sentaro continues by telling Akane he has her gratitude for coming all this way to return it, he then hugs Akane but is soon hit by her and Ranma.

Some time later, Sentaro has asked Akane is she'd be willing to take Ranma's place in the Tea Ceremony. Akane doesn't give a definitive answer, only that she's had some experience in Tea Ceremony. Ranma then asks Akane to show them, Sentaro then thinks to himself about how the Gods haven't forsaken him yet and that Akane will make the perfect wife for his unworthy soul.

Akane then attempts a tea ceremony, but soon loses her temper and begins to angrily stir the tea until she's burnt by the hot water. Ranma and Sentaro look on at this, with Ranma sarcastically commenting on Akane's abilities. Sentaro cries slightly and notes that Akane's cute.

Ranma then interrupts Akane by telling her not to worry as he'll take care of the match. Sentaro questions this, but is soon convinced when Ranma notes nobody else is going to do it unless wants a klutz like Akane doing it. This comment angers Akane who begins to hit Ranma repeatably. Sentaro then agrees with Ranma and that no-one else can win the match for him. He then adds that he refuses to marry though, causing Ranma to angrily ask Sentaro who said he wanted to marry him.

Ranma, Sentaro and Akane have moved to a different part of Sentaro's home (with Ranma now back in his female form and dressed in a Kimono). Sentaro explains that Martial Arts Tea Ceremony is based on sitting and all fighting is done from the proper sitting position. As Ranma is confused about it being based on sitting, Akane wonders why Sentaro's house is so long.

Sentaro invites Ranma to follow him and he quickly zooms off, but is still sitting. Akane is surprised at this feat, while Ranma desperately tries to keep up by using running with her hands. Sentaro tells Ranma that this is an unwise thing to do, causing Ranma to note that she's managing to keep up with him. Although Sentaro agrees that she's keeping up, he notes that if Ranma can't use her hands she needs them the results could be quite painful. As he says this, Sentaro quickly gets behind Ranma and hits her on the head.

Angered, Ranma stands up to try and hit Sentaro, but is quickly stopped when Sentaro makes her resume the correct seating position. Sentaro's Grandmother then laughs at how Ranma can't even sit properly. After briefly wondering where Sentaro's Grandmother is both Akane and Ranma are shocked to see her hanging from the ceiling, still in the correct seating position. Continuing, Sentaro's Grandmother reveals that the match against Satsuki will be held tomorrow, much to Sentaro's shock.

Sentaro's Grandmother adds that Satsuki is a master of Martial Arts Tea Ceremony and asks Sentaro if he thinks "Miss Clumsy" has a chance of winning. Instead of waiting for a reply, Sentaro's Grandmother glides off along the roof and notes that she'll be looking forward to this match. As she leaves, Ranma notices that Sentaro's Grandmother's feet are actually grabbing the beam on the ceiling. This leads to Ranma realising that the "gliding" that Sentaro and his Grandmother perform is just running while in the seating position. Sentaro then finally snaps and declares that his he must train Ranma until she drops.

That night, Ranma is still deep in training with Sentaro. After Ranma is unable to move with weights on her and performs a technique in a way which Sentaro disagrees with, she finally snaps herself and kicks Sentaro. In response, Sentaro tells Ranma that kicking isn't allowed, to which Ranma says that ever since Sentaro found out her true gender he's been laying into her. The pair then begin to fight, while Akane yawns as she looks on.

After a night of fighting each other, Sentaro tells Ranma she's mastered all of the techniques. Ranma tells Sentaro that she showed him.

Akane, Sentaro and Ranma then walk to where the match to take place. As they walk, Akane asks Sentaro what kind of girl "Miss Satsuki" is. Sentaro explains that she's the heir to the Miyakoji School of Martial Arts Tea Ceremony and was also "Miss Tea Ceremony" of 1993 (hearing this Ranma thinks that she must be quite attractive). Slightly confused, Akane asks if this means her personality is horrible, but Sentaro says that tell the truth she's very bright and sociable.

Ranma then angrily shouts that if she's got all these good traits then why does he not like her. The group go into the room for the match, where Sentaro introduces "Miss Satsuki", revealing her to be a monkey. As Ranma is speechless at her opponent being a monkey, Sentaro melodramatically notes that his unworthy heart just can't warm to her.

Cast in Order of Appearance

 * Ranma Saotome (female)
 * Sentaro Daimonji
 * Ranma Saotome (male)
 * Satsuki Miyakoji (mentioned, debut)
 * Akane Tendo
 * Sentaro's Grandmother
 * Sanae (debut)

Quotes
To be added

Trivia

 * Ranma's comments about the water just before he transforms in front of Sentaro seems to indicate that there is a minimum temperature that the water has to be in order for Ranma to transform into his male form.
 * In the original Japanese manga, Satsuki was "Miss Tea Ceremony" for 1988, while in the english translation the year is changed to 1993.
 * The reason for the change as the dates reflects the respective original publication dates for this chapter.