Sendai
is the first of MZephyr's Ranma 1/2 fanfics.
Shortly after the failed wedding, Ranma and Akane meet up on the roof on the Tendo residence, clear a few things up between them, and acknowledge that they may in fact love one another. But they also lament that, as long as they're in Nerima, they won't ever get the chance to confirm this because of all the chaos caused by the fiances, rivals, and their fathers.
At this, Ranma gets an idea: They won't be able to have a relationship in Nerima, but what if they were somewhere else?
The two of them subsequently pack up and leave while the rest of the Tendo household's out, and move in with Dr. Tofu, who left Nerima a while ago and now resides in the city of Sendai. They're joined by Kasumi, who is intent on starting a relationship with Tofu. From here on out, the fic is pretty much about the two couples growing closer together, as well as how all the different people in Nerima deal with Ranma and Akane's disappearence.
The fic provides examples of the following tropes:
- Aesop Amnesia: In her letter to Soun, Kasumi makes clear that his constant attempts to push Ranma and Akane together were one of the reasons they moved away. When Soun hears that Ranma, Akane and the others are returning to Nerima for a visit, the first thought in his mind is to contact Genma and start planning to convince Ranma and Akane to get married.
- Borrowed Catchphrase: Akane's response to seeing Ryoga for the first time since she finds out about him being P-chan is to yell "Ryoga Hibiki! Prepare to die!"
- Earn Your Happy Ending: To make their new life possible, Ranma and Akane both end up working part time jobs in-between their schoolwork and martial arts training, so that they can contribute to the household's income and afford their university fees, with both of them planning on studying physical education there in order to be able to run the dojo properly. Ranma in particular has to work hard to get his school grades up to scratch.
- Enemy Mine: Shortly after learning about Ranma's disappearence, Kodachi and Shampoo briefly team up to try and track him down.
- Happily Married: By the end of the fic, Ranma and Akane, along with Kasumi and Tofu, and Konatsu and Ukyo.
- Hoist By Her Own Petard: After spending two years trying to get Ranma to marry her because of her tribe's laws, Shampoo ends up trapped in a marriage to Ryoga by those same laws.
- I Just Want to Be Normal: Both Ranma and Akane quickly agree not to tell anyone in Sendai about Ranma's curse, the guy not wanting people to regard him as a freak.
- Know When to Fold 'Em: Upon learning that Ranma and Akane have run away together, Cologne decides to give up helping Shampoo win Ranma's heart, fearful of the damage Ranma could do if forced into something against his will.
- Mugging the Monster: Morishita, an Arrogant Kung-Fu Guy at Ranma and Akane's new school tries to pick fights with the both of them, not knowing that they're both a lot tougher than he is, and it ends the way you'd expect. Goes into Bullying a Dragon after they both kick his ass, and he still doesn't give up.
- Screw This, I'm Outta Here: The first part of the fic in a nutshell: both Ranma and Akane become fed up with all the chaos in Nerima, so they just up and leave (with Kasumi).
- Took a Level in Badass: Akane convinces Ranma to train her shortly after they move, and by the end of the first term, she becomes as tough a fighter as he was at the start of the series.
- What the Hell, Hero?: Akane to Ranma, twice. The first time for keeping Ryoga's jusenkyo curse a secret from her, and the second time for breaking into Furinkan High School to remove the information on where their school records were sent, since he didn't tell her his plans beforehand.
