The Chinese Amazons: Shampoo, Mousse and Cologne

A Chinese Amazon warrior named Shampoo arrives seeking Ranma after he defeated her, bound by tribal law to either kill his female form or marry his male form, dragging the love struck Mousse and elder Cologne into the chaos.

This saga introduces one of the most important love rivals in the series. Shampoo is a warrior from a Chinese Amazon village who first crossed paths with Ranma near Jusenkyo. By the laws of her tribe, because Ranma's female form beat her in combat she must hunt that girl down, while because his male form also defeated her she is bound instead to marry the boy. Shampoo follows Ranma to Japan, and she too carries a Jusenkyo curse that turns her into a cat with cold water. Trailing behind her is Mousse, a hidden weapons master with terrible eyesight who has loved Shampoo since childhood and despises Ranma as a romantic obstacle. Their elder, the tiny and immensely powerful matriarch Cologne, arrives to oversee the situation and frequently trains Ranma in advanced techniques despite the rivalry. This arc multiplies the love polygon at the heart of the comedy, raising the stakes of Ranma and Akane's unspoken bond. It also escalates the martial arts content with new powers, secret techniques and increasingly outlandish opponents, balancing romance, action and humor in equal measure.