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SAOTOME NODOKA

The mother of Ranma. She was separated from him when he was like 2 years old or something; Genma, her husband, took him on a journey of training.

When Ranma is being taken away from her, of course, Nodoka refused. But Genma promised her that when they return, Ranma would be "a man among men." If not, the father and son would commit ritual seppeku (self-abdomen stabbing) for having failed, and Nodoka, fulfilling her wifely duty, would cut off their heads and then slit her own throat. Being a martial artist's wife, she agrees. And so, they're off...

Nodoka received letters from Genma until their trip to Jusenkyo, until they suddenly stopped. She comes to the Tendo dojo wanting nothing more than to see her son Ranma grown to be a man, and intends to hold Genma to his promise if he isn't. But there she only meets Tendo Akane's "cousin" Ranko and her pet panda...She can't seem to see Ranma anywhere. Everytime she's there, he's not. And so is her husband. They seem to have disappeared, but according to Akane and the others, they're just around there, somewhere.

While at the dojo, she's very curious of what Ranma is like, and asks Akane constantly about him. Except for some close calls, Ranma's secret is luckily kept as it is.

One day, Akane promises her that Ranma would meet her that afternoon in a park…They did meet, but unfortunately, Nodoka thought it was in a dream, where Ranma was so manly, and he saved her.

I really wish that Ranma-kun and Nodoka would meet, I mean, REALLY meet. I think Genma should just stop bugging Ranma and let him tell her the truth. Actually, Ranma reaaly DOES want to tell Nodoka that he's there, but because of the curse he hesitated a bit. But later, he really went to meet her.

In the manga, though, they eventually met, and Nodoka found out about Ranma's curse, but she didn't make him kill himself (thank goodness!). She's too happy to see him, and she found him to be manly (in a strange way). Then she wants her family to move back to their house, but thanks to Shampoo, Ukyo, and Kodachi, The Saotome family had to stay in the Tendo dojo.

Nodoka is a very nice, sweet, and straighforward. The problem is, she has this katakana which she absent-mindedly swings when she thinks of something horrible or when she's startled.