I Give Up



I Give Up is the 22nd chapter of the Ranma ½ manga. It is also the sixth and final chapter of the Martial Arts Rhythmic Gymnastics Arc.

Kodachi manages to hit female Ranma and P-chan with the boiling water, but thanks to all the steam no one is able to tell the change before Akane is able to spray them both down with a fire hose. Ranma manages to throw Kodachi out of the ring, guaranteeing a victory, until the ring suddenly shifts catching Kodachi before she can land outside.

Continuing From Previous Chapter
Ranma and P-chan scream in pain from the hot water that Kodachi just threw at them. A cloud of steam then forms and the spectators note that they can see two people in the cloud of steam. The two people are Ranma and Ryoga in their non-cursed forms who begins laughing at the other's expense (with Ryoga laughing at Ranma wearing a leotard and Ranma laughing at Ryoga wearing nothing at all).

Luckily for the two of them, Akane gets a hose and sprays the two of them with cold water before anyone realises who they are. The spectators look at the stream of water and see only Ranma and P-chan and think it must've been some sort of trick that they saw two people before. Unfortunately for Ranma and P-chan the stream of water from Akane's hose is forcing them out of the ring. So to stop them from being disqualified Ranma begins to swim against the current of the water and back into the ring. This annoys Kodachi who uses her Razor hoop to try and hit Ranma, but she misses and cuts the water instead.

Ranma Returns to the Match
Ranma jumps down into the ring. Kodachi then shouts at Ranma telling her she doesn't know when to give up and must be determined to steal her Ranma away. Ranma shouts back to Kodachi asking since when was Ranma hers. Kodachi launches herself at Ranma with a Spike Baton and tells her that the time for talking has past. Ranma avoids Kodachi's attack and grabs the shaft of the baton with her feet and sends Kodachi spinning out of the ring.

While in the air, Kodachi takes a whistle out of her leotard and blows into it. Just then the whole of the ring moves so Kodachi lands back on it, much to the shock of Ranma and the spectators. When Kodachi lands back into the ring she laughs and tells Ranma that falling out of the ring is an impossibility for her. Ranma then punches the mat of the ring and pulls it away (both Ranma and Kodachi jump onto the posts of ring at this time), revealing that underneath the ring was a large group of St. Hebereke students who had been hiding there the whole match.

After the Mat is Torn Away
The students then flee in multiple directions. The Announcer then says that with the mat removed the only place Kodachi and Ranma can stand is the ropes and posts of the ring, so it's now come down to whoever falls first loses. Ranma smiles and thinks to herself that midair combat is a speciality of the School of Anything Goes Martial Arts, so this is her chance to win.

Ranma then jumps towards Kodachi through the centre of the ribbon she's spinning. However, P-chan is holding on to the rope for dear life, limiting the distance Ranma can jump (much to Ranma's annoyance). Kodachi then throws the Razor hoop at the rope which P-chan's holding onto, however, Ranma manages to wrap P-chan and the chain around another post before she falls to the floor.

Ranma then shouts at P-chan telling him that if he interferes once more he's dead. While Ranma hits P-chan on the head (which obviously angers P-chan), Kodachi wraps her ribbon around Ranma's neck and throws her into the air. This causes Ranma to fall towards the centre of the ring, while the spectators look on in shock thinking this means the end of the match. However, Ranma uses the ribbon to wrap around a beam on the ceiling and tries to kick Kodachi off her post.

Just before Ranma makes contact with Kodachi, however, she begins to swing back. Kodachi (now with a number of batons in her hand) throws a baton at the ribbon supporting Ranma and breaks it in half. Ranma lands on a rope and launches herself towards Kodachi again. Kodachi laughs and throws all the other batons she was holding at Ranma, while telling her that attacking without a weapon is forbidden. Ranma tells Kodachi that the weapon is right under her feet, she then kicks the post that Kodachi is standing on and breaks it in half.

The spectators and Akane look on as the winner of the match has been decided, as Kodachi has fallen onto the floor while Ranma is still standing and holding on the two halves of the post. The Judge then declares Ranma the winner. Kodachi then begins to cry, saying that just as she promised she'll give up on her passion for Ranma. As Akane and Ranma look on at Kodachi slightly upset for her, Kodachi stands up and says that from today she'll burn with a new passion for Ranma. This causes Ranma to collapse while Akane says that Ranma's all burnt out.

Cast in Order of Appearance

 * Kodachi Kuno
 * Ranma Saotome (female)
 * Ryoga Hibiki (P-chan)
 * Ranma Saotome (male)
 * Ryoga Hibiki (human)
 * Akane Tendo
 * Genma Saotome (panda)
 * Martial Arts Rhythmic Gymnastics Judge