Nodoka Saotome

Nodoka Saotome Age: 32 Gender: Female Species: Human Relatives: Genma Saotome (husband), Ranma Saotome (son) Residence: Tendo Dojo, Saotome residence (formerly) Loves: Genma Saotome Loved by: Genma Saotome

Nodoka Saotome is the wife of Genma Saotome and the mother of Ranma Saotome.

History Nodoka was very reluctant to let her husband take her young child away from her, on a training journey. The only way she agreed to let Genma take Ranma from her was to promise that he would train Ranma to be "a man among men." If Genma were to ever fail in this regard, both he and Ranma would commit seppuku (the Japanese ritual suicide by disembowelment). Nodoka agreed to this deal and would be the kaishakunin (beheading assistant) for her husband and son, hence the need to always carry the katana. She is then supposed to join them in death after their own lives are taken.

Plot Because of this promise, Genma and Ranma are terrified of showing their true forms to Nodoka and for her to find out about their curses, although Genma is more afraid than Ranma. To prevent her from finding out, they hide in their cursed forms, with Ranma taking the alias of "Ranko" and pretending to be Akane's cousin from the countryside, and Genma assuming the identity of "Mr. Panda" and pretending to be Ranko's pet. But the existence of Ranko's identity created a strange situation for Ranma when Ryu Kumon arrived. Posing as Ranma, the rival martial artist had sought out Nodoka for his own ends. She was initially convinced as to the imposter's identity as her son, but became suspicious after seeing him interact with Ranma's fiancée Akane Tendo.

Nodoka eventually saw Ranma from behind as a male while he was with Akane, but threatened him as she thought that he was trying to molest her. However, when he used the Tatami Flip technique on his mother to escape, she realized that it was her son and excused his behavior as signifying his manliness. It was arranged for the two to meet face to face with Genma kept from interfering, but Happosai slipped a sailor outfit onto Ranma, which Nodoka then saw him in from behind. She slipped a man's death robe onto him to prepare for his seppuku, but he escaped. She was confused as to why Ranma fled, to which a sarcastic "isn't it obvious" was given.

The family then decided that to prove his manhood Ranma would deliberately peep on Akane while she was bathing, which she reluctantly agreed to, while Nodoka would watch. Nodoka at first thought that Ranma was after Akane's clothes when he slipped and crashed into the laundry hamper, but then saw that he was actually disappointed that Akane was not naked as he had expected, but wearing a bikini. Reassured that Ranma was a man, mother and son would have been reunited then had not Happosai again interfered with his Happo Ring of Fire after being held back from peeping on Akane. Nodoka doused the bombs with a showerhead, causing Genma to slam Ranma through a wall with a sign. Although she then saw Ranko, the name "Ranma" from Mr. Panda's sign was on Ranko's forehead, leading Nodoka to start to suspect that they were the same person

Ironically, it was Genma who brought about the reunion between his wife and son through his machinations to steal the Saotome family treasure. However, Nodoka decides she won't force them to commit seppuku regardless if her son turns into a girl so long as Ranma stays romantically interested in girls and continues to fight like a "man amongst men." After this, Genma and Ranma live for some time in Nodoka's house until it is destroyed (in an unshown scene) by Shampoo, Ukyo Kuonji and Kodachi Kuno, who are trying to take what they believe is an engagement ring. She and her family then move back in with the Tendos.

Appearance Nodoka is a gentle-looking, attractive woman, who very closely resembles Ranma's female form, noticeable after Nabiki comments on how similar they look during Nodoka's first visit to the Tendos. She has shoulder-length hair (medium brown in the anime) that she wears up and typically dresses in a kimono. She always carries around a long bundle, the family katana covered by a wrapping.

Personality Nodoka, bordering between progressive and old fashioned, has a very strange set of bizarre principles. She quickly approved of her son's fiancée because of her warrior-like spirit, but offered to help with her cooking skills so that she could make a "better wife". She is very wiling to defend younger woman and seems to despise perverts, but allows and even encourages her son to perform perverted acts such as peeping on girls, play with women's underwear and spy on said fiancée while she took a bath. It is explained, however, that she sees this as the way her son can "prove" his manliness. Her view of a true epitome of masculinity seems to lie much closer to the savage, imposing and semi-militaristic Ryu Kumon.

Nodoka wants nothing more than to see her child, to whom she has not spoken since he was two years old. She is not the only one who has been affected by the ordeal, however. Ranma has tried on numerous occasions to talk to Nodoka in his male form, but Genma repeatedly foiled their son's efforts. For Nodoka, her glimpses of Ranma as a male have been fleeting at best, usually because he was pursuing some other objective at the time, or attempting to escape her. Nodoka dotes on "Ranko" as if she was her daughter, taking the girl shopping to find her more suitable feminine clothing, including a bra, something Ranma would never normally wear.

In contrast to her enthusiasm to see her child, Nodoka has displayed an often comical lack of concern for her husband, going as far as to not notice him right next to her, and making almost no response at all when Ryu Kumon said that he was dead. Despite their long absence, she was been faithful to Genma, even after he stopped updating her following their acquiring the curses at Jusenkyo.

Abilities Noboka is a skilled yet somewhat clumsy swordswoman. She routinely fumbles her katana when unsheathing it, usually sending it flying or at the very least dropping it, and her strokes are quite uncoordinated, but in contrast, the strength in her blows is formidable, being able to stab through the inner walls of an ordinary house or cut a rolled up tatami in half with one stroke. She has, upon drawing it, accidentally thrown it into the air, nearly impaling Ranma.