Chapter 11


Everyone waited – if not patiently, then quietly – for the two hours to pass. Bulma and the mysterious boy were the only ones with watches on, and although neither one checked the time very much, neither of them was asked for the time by the others. Bulma was having a nice, quiet nap while everybody else stared in distrustful silence at the young warrior on the rock next to her. The fiercest glares came from Vegita, who was grinding his teeth so much he looked like he was chewing a cud or something. If Bulma had been paying any attention to him, she might have laughed out loud at how ridiculous he looked.

It was just nearing the last bit of the second hour when Bulma awoke with a start. It was a cry from Kuririn that had awakened her, and as soon as she woke up she understood what the cry had been about. Her senses immediately alerted her to the fact that a very powerful ki signature was approaching. And it was definitely one that she knew!

“He’s coming!” She said, wide awake now. She got to her feet, and found that everyone else had already done the same. “I can feel it! That’s gotta be Goku!” They all watched the sky expectantly. It wouldn’t be long now!

“I wasn’t sure I should believe it,” Gohan said, his eyes brimming with tears. “But there’s no doubt about it! Daddy’s coming home!”

Vegita didn’t say anything. He was watching the sky with the same look of surprise that was on Tenshinhan’s and Yamucha’s faces. Bulma supposed that none of them had figured the boy would be telling the truth. But they could all sense him coming now, and there was no mistaking that ki as belonging to anyone else but Goku.

The strange boy was smiling slightly, but he had an air of determination about him too. Everyone was too preoccupied to notice, though. They were watching the sky with fervent intensity, most of them with their faces aglow with joy. Goku was VERY close!

“I see it!” Gohan shouted suddenly. “It’s a spaceship!” He pointed to a pinprick of light way up in the sky, and as it grew larger, everybody seemed to grow more and more excited. Finally, the small pod zoomed to the surface, crashing into the ground not less than a quarter-mile away. They all flew eagerly toward the edge of the crater, each one wanting to be right there when the pod opened up.

It only took them a few seconds to reach the crater, but Goku’s pod was already opening when they did. When he climbed out and saw everyone out there to welcome him home, you can only imagine his surprise!

“H- hey, guys!” He said, confused but obviously very happy. “Wow, you’re all here! Gee, I wasn’t expecting you to see me coming that far ahead of time!” He looked around a bit, and his face brightened when he saw Bulma.

“Bulma!” He cried. “Hey, it’s great to see you in one piece again!”

Bulma laughed. “Yeah, well, I’m kind of glad about that too,” she said, grinning at him.

“And Yamucha, Chouzu, Tenshinhan!” He cried. “They brought you back too! All right!”

“Don’t forget Vegita!” Kuririn laughed, feeling a little braver now that Goku was here.

“I didn’t forget,” Goku said, giving Vegita one of those smiles that always let everyone know that he was ready for anything. Vegita just smirked and gave a grunt of disdain. He, for once, wasn’t going to try to have the last word.

“But what I don’t understand,” Goku said, scratching his head in befuddlement, “is how you all knew to be here. Was this your doing, Bulma? Did you teleport them here when you sensed me coming?”

“Nope,” Bulma replied, shaking her head. “We all came on our own to fight Freeza. But it turned out that didn’t have to. This young man here took care of him for us.” She motioned to the thus far unnamed boy with a casual jerk of her thumb. “He also predicted the exact time and place of your arrival. It was because of him that we’re all here right now.”

“Who is he?” Goku said, smiling eagerly at him.

“Well, …” Bulma hesitated. “I was kind of hoping you knew. You see, he says he can’t tell us who he is, but he somehow seems to know who you and all the rest of us are. But none of us have ever met him. Oh, and get this! He’s a Super Saiyan too!”

“Unreal!” Goku gasped. “Wow! At his age! What an accomplishment!”

Vegita growled. “Kakarrot!” He spat at him. “Doesn’t it bother you in the least bit that you, I, and your brat are the only ones left with Saiyan blood? How in the hell can he be a Super Saiyan?!”

“Oh, I sensed him transform on my way here,” Goku said, shrugging. “And it really did surprise me then. But now, I understand how he got so strong so quickly. I believe him if that’s what he says.”

Bulma shot an “I told you so,” look at Vegita, which he ignored entirely. “Imbecile!” He roared. “Have you a vacuum between your ears?! Do you realize that what you just said is the most inane and ludicrous statement I have ever heard?! Such idiocy!” Vegita was, to say the least, a little miffed at Goku.

Goku just grinned. “I had almost forgotten what a friendly person you were, Vegita!” He laughed, his grin widening at the fury building on Vegita’s face. “Anyway, I can tell he’s not an enemy. There’s not a bit of evil in ‘im.”

That seemed to be the final word. And Vegita looked like he was about to explode. But remarkably, he didn’t. He just held his tongue, and he glared with utter contempt at Goku. Bulma stifled a giggle. It was great to see Vegita at a loss for words for a change.

“Goku,” the boy said suddenly, interrupting her thoughts. “I realize this may sound strange, but I need to speak with you in private for a few minutes. It’s very important.”

“Hey, wait a minute!” Yamucha said angrily. “What could you have to say to Goku that you can’t say to us?”

“Please,” the boy persisted. “I mean you no harm, and I’m afraid it may do more harm than good if I tell you what I need to tell him.”

“All right,” Goku said, his expression becoming more serious. “I’m willing to listen to you. Follow me.” He flew off all the way to the other side of the crater, and the boy followed closely behind him.

“I can’t believe Goku just did that!” Yamucha cried, totally shocked.

“Man,” Bulma said, thinking aloud. “What that boy said was really cryptic, don’t you think? You know, it makes me wonder… You don’t suppose he can see the future, do you?”

“What?” Kuririn asked. “Are you serious? Whatever gave you that idea?”

“Well,” Bulma began, thinking for a moment. “He seems to know so much about us, and about Freeza. And the way he predicted Goku’s arrival was uncanny, to say the least. Maybe he knows something terrible is about to happen, and is afraid telling us may change the future for the worse. I don’t know,” she sighed, shrugging. “If that were the case, then I don’t see why he should tell Goku about it, though. Maybe I’m just reading too much into this.”

No one responded to her then, because for some unknown reason, Goku had just gone Super. Bulma gasped.

“Is that what Goku looked like on Namek?” She asked Kuririn. He nodded at her. “Amazing,” she cried. “He does look like that boy did! He even has the same yellow ki aura!”

But she needn’t have made the comparison in her mind, because the boy suddenly became a Super Saiyan too. They all gasped in amazement.

“What does it mean?” Gohan asked nervously. “Are they gonna fight? I can’t hear what they’re saying out there!”

Suddenly, with lightning speed, the boy unsheathed his sword and brought it down to within a centimeter of Goku’s face. Goku didn’t move a muscle.

“Man, did you catch that speed?” Bulma breathed. “I never saw it happen! One moment he’s standing there, and the next he’s got his sword in Goku’s face! Yow!”

“Yeah, but what’s he up to?” Kuririn asked nervously. “He’s not trying to hurt Goku, is he? He could poke an eye out with that thing!” He gave a nervous laugh.

“Nah, I don’t sense the right kind of anger in him,” Bulma said. “Besides, Goku’s got him covered. Look at that!” She was right. The boy was furiously swiping at Goku with his sword now, but Goku was blocking each hit effortlessly with only an index finger. Finally, the boy stopped, and he tossed the sword high into the air. He then reverted back to his old form, leaned to the left slightly, and skillfully caught the sword with its sheath. Beaming, he then began talking to Goku again, who also reverted back to normal.

Bulma marveled at Goku’s new abilities. And here she thought the kid was incredible! But Goku blew him clear out of the water! But that wasn’t all that was on her mind. She was like Gohan and the others. She wanted to know what the two were talking about out there too. Unfortunately, she was never going to get the whole story.


“So what’s on your mind, kid?” Goku asked the strange boy. “I have a feeling that you wanted to talk to me about something other than my being a Super Saiyan. Am I right?”

“Yes,” the boy replied, nodding eagerly. “The only reason I did that was to confirm what I was told about your awesome fighting ability. If I had been told wrong, then my trip here would have been in vain. But I can easily see that that’s not the case. So all right, Goku. I’m going to tell you everything; everything I couldn’t tell the others. And soon you’ll understand why I could only tell you.”

Goku waited patiently for him to continue. “Here goes,” the boy said, his smile fading a little. “First off, my name is Trunks, and I’m not from your time; I traveled here from the future. About twenty years into the future, as a matter of fact. And that’s the reason I knew when and where you’d land when you arrived back on Earth. In my time, it had happened long ago, and it was only a matter of adjusting the time machine accordingly to be here.”

“Whoa!” Goku exclaimed. “That explains that! A time machine! Wow!”

“Yeah, it’s an amazing invention, even for its time,” Trunks replied with a proud smile. “It took a real genius to design and build it.”

“Wow,” Goku said again. “So how about your being able to go Super Saiyan? Can you explain that too?”

“Yes,” Trunks replied. “Vegita was right about you, Gohan, and him. You three are the only ones with Saiyan blood… in your time now. I’m half-Saiyan, just like Gohan, and I got my Saiyan blood from Vegita. He was my father.”

Goku’s jaw dropped nearly to the ground. “No way!” He practically shouted. “Vegita’s your dad?! Oh man, do I feel sorry for you!” Giggling, he glanced off toward Vegita. “Hey, now that you mention it,” he gasped, “you do look like him! Wow! Vegita, a Dad! This is incredible!”

“Goku,” Trunks said impatiently, “please listen. I have a world of things I need to tell you that are much more important.”

“Okay, but first I have to know one thing!” Goku said with a goofy grin. “Who’s your mother? I’m dying to know! Do I know her?”

Trunks smiled. He almost felt like he was talking to a little kid. “Yes, you do,” he said calmly. “She’s standing right over there.” He pointed over Goku’s shoulder at the group on the other side of the crater.

Goku lost all control then. “Bulma’s your mother?!” He yelled, falling to his back out of either surprise, mirth, or both.

At the same time, Piccolo’s eyes bugged out, and Bulma sneezed. She rubbed her nose a little and sniffled. “That came outta nowhere,” she said in surprise. *

“Try to control yourself, Goku,” Trunks said, his cheeks beginning to flush a little. “They might hear you!”

“But man, Trunks!” Goku hooted. “Bulma and Vegita! I mean, Vegita’s a rude, bossy, obnoxious jerk, and Bulma’s a quick-tempered, bossy…” He paused suddenly, his face aglow with an epiphany that had just hit him. “Hey!” He cried. “You know what? Those two were made for each other! Do they like each other yet?”

“Er… no,” Trunks said, growing even redder. “I didn’t really ask my mom how she felt about my dad when you got back to Earth. But it doesn’t look like they do to me. Now please, Goku,” he said insistently. “Don’t mention anything about this to either of them. If you do, I may not even be born. Don’t worry; they’ll find each other on their own, but if anyone says anything to them about this, it might not happen.”

“Oh, okay,” Goku said, still grinning. “I won’t say a word; I promise.”

“Good,” Trunks sighed. “Now, listen,” he said, his face adopting a more stern expression. “That wasn’t what I came here to tell you, Goku. There’s something very terrible in store for this planet, and I’m here to warn you about it. It’s something that won’t surface for three years yet. At precisely ten o’clock a.m. on May 12 three years from now, two jinzouningen – artificial humans – will appear on an island nine miles southwest of Metro South and begin to wreak havoc. These two are more powerful than anything you’ve ever encountered, Goku. They make Freeza look like nothing at all. And these creatures are evil, pure and simple. They delight in the pain and suffering of others, and they make life in my world a living nightmare. They’ve slaughtered entire cities already!”

“Where did they come from?” Goku asked, horrified by Trunks’ prophetic words. “Did they come from another planet?”

“No,” Trunks replied. “The answer to that is going to haunt you for the rest of your life. They were created by a scientist by the name of Gero. Dr. Gero, from the Red Ribbon Army. Do you remember them?”

“Hey, yeah!” Goku said. “I defeated them when I was a kid!”

“Yes, you defeated the Red Ribbon,” Trunks agreed, “but you let Gero go. That was a terrible mistake, Goku. Look, I know that you’re a decent guy who just wants to give everyone a chance to change. But this man is different. He’s been holding a grudge against you ever since the day his whole army came crashing down around him. And that grudge is causing him, at this very moment, to create two of the most horrible beings imaginable in an effort to destroy you.”

“So why are they killing all those innocent people in your time?” Goku asked. “They’re after me, aren’t they?”

“That was the purpose Gero created them for,” Trunks sighed. “But the moment he awakened those creatures, they turned on him, and killed him. They’ve run their own twisted little reign of terror ever since. They’re monsters, Goku, and everyone who’s ever gone up against them has died, everyone except for me and my mother.”

“All of them?” Goku gasped. “Dead?”

“All of them,” Trunks replied. “Piccolo, Yamucha, Tenshinhan, Chouzu, and even my father were all killed in the first battle with those bastards! And since Piccolo went with them, the dragonballs are gone too. They’re all going to die here in that awful battle three years from now, and there’ll be no way to bring them back.”

“What about me?” Goku asked. “Do I get killed by the Jinzouningen too?”

“No,” Trunks replied. “You die long before it. You’ve contracted a strange new heart disease from your trip to planet Yardrat, Goku. In two and a half years’ time, only a few weeks after I’m born, you’ll die from it. You’ll never even get to see the Jinzouningen.”

“What?” Goku cried. “How terrible! Killed by a stupid heart disease?! That’s not fair at all! I want to fight those Jinzouningen with the others!”

“Huh?” Trunks said, obviously surprised. “You want to fight them? Even after all I’ve told you about them?”

“Well, sure!” Goku said, balling his fists. “I mean, I may not win either, but I might make a difference! In any case, I’ve got to try!”

“Mom was right about you,” Trunks laughed, his face full of relief. “You are amazing, Goku. Here,” he said, reaching into his jacket pocket and pulling out a small pill bottle. “Take this and keep it safe.”

“What is it?” Goku asked, looking at it curiously.

“In your time there’s no cure for that awful disease,” Trunks replied, “but in my time there is. Take those as soon as you get sick. Wait any longer, and it might be too late.”

“Wow, thanks!” Goku cried. “I hope they taste good, too!”

Trunks just smiled at him. Goku stuffed the pill bottle in his pocket, and then he looked at Trunks in confusion. “Wait a minute,” he said. “What about Bulma? You said she’s still alive. Was she involved in the first battle?”

“No,” Trunks said, shaking his head. “She wanted to fight, but Dad was totally against it. She said that he must have sensed there was something very dangerous about the Jinzouningen, because they had the most violent quarrel they’d ever had when she insisted on coming. She said they never really resolved it, but the next day, before she had even taken two steps out the door, Dad snuck up behind her and knocked her out cold. Then he picked her up and carried her up to her room. He locked her in there and told Grandma and Grandpa that she’d be out for a good six hours, and if they didn’t want their grandson to grow up without a mother, they’d better leave her that way. So they did. Mom says that when she thinks back on it, she doesn’t hate Dad for what he did, nor her parents for following his orders. But she always wonders how long she might have lasted against them in the end.”

“Did she ever try?” Goku asked.

“Once,” Trunks said, his expression darkening. “And they came damn near close to killing her. If she hadn’t teleported away in time, they would have destroyed her. She was in the hospital for almost four months, and that was before Karin could get her a Sensu bean.”

“Poor Bulma,” Goku sighed. “Well, what about Gohan? You didn’t mention him. Did he fight the Jinzouningen too?”

“Yes,” Trunks said. “While my mom taught me the basics of fighting, I eventually got better than she was, because of the Saiyan part of me. Then, she asked Gohan to take over my training. He was my mentor, as well as my best friend. And although he was far better than I was in every way, even he didn’t escape their power forever. They killed him, four years ago in my time, and it was that act that caused me to go Super Saiyan for the first time. I still get so angry when I think of what they did to him!”

Goku waited patiently for Trunks to regain his composure. “But that’s all there is to say, I guess,” Trunks said finally. “Mom decided five years ago in my time that if she couldn’t physically destroy the Jinzouningen, then she’d have to be more indirect. She actually thought up a way to construct a time machine, and it’s taken her all of the past five years to build it. And she told me that there was only one chance to save the future: save the past of Son Goku. She had such faith in you, Goku, and now I know why. Please, Goku. Try your best to prepare for the Jinzouningen. When the time comes for them to appear, I too will come to help you fight. Hopefully the past will change to create a better future. I’ve told you all I can tell you. I hope it does you more good than harm.”

Trunks then opened a small capsule case and took out a little yellow capsule. He threw it out and it popped open to reveal a large craft of some kind that didn’t look like anything Goku – or the others, for that matter – had ever seen before. The word “hope” was written in simple, hand-painted letters on the side.

“Goodbye, Goku,” Trunks said, climbing in and sitting down at the controls. “Stay well!” The machine flew up into the air, and Trunks waved goodbye to the rest of the group across the crater.

“Oh, he’s leaving!” Bulma cried. “Isn’t he?”

“Yes,” Piccolo said. “He’s going back to his time.”

“Don’t you mean his place?” She asked him quizzically. Piccolo just ignored her. Suddenly the machine overhead began to glow white, and in a split second it had disappeared.

“Whoa!” Kuririn cried. “Where did it go?”

“Here comes Goku,” Bulma said excitedly. “Let’s ask him what that was all about!”

“Hey guys!” Goku said, grinning at them all, Bulma and Vegita in particular.

“Come on, Goku, don’t keep us in suspense!” Bulma cried. “What did he say to you?”

“Oh, uh, nothing really!” Goku laughed nervously, his hand behind his head.

“It didn’t sound like nothing to me,” Piccolo said coldly. “In fact, I thought it all sounded quite important.”

“Y- you heard?!” Goku squeaked.

“Yes,” Piccolo replied with a stern frown. “My ears do more than just frame my face, Son. And I think all of us have a right to know about the danger that awaits us, so that we’ll be able to prepare ourselves for the upcoming fight.”

“But Piccolo!” Goku cried, his voice sounding panicked. “You heard! You can’t…!”

“I won’t say anything to endanger that boy, Goku” Piccolo interrupted. “But we all have a right to know what’s coming. Not just you.”

“All right,” Goku sighed. “I guess you have a point, Piccolo. But be careful!”

“Fine,” Piccolo said. And then he explained all that was discussed, excluding Trunks’ name and who his parents were. When he had finished, everyone stared at him in silence. Finally, something occurred to Bulma, and she spoke up.

“Wait a minute!” She cried. “Okay; let’s assume for a moment that everything that boy said comes true, and Gero is going to create these Jinzouningen no matter what we do. Why should we even let it happen? We might be able to find Gero and stop him ahead of time! Although, if it comes down to it, we may have to kill him; I don’t think we’ll be able to reason with a man like that.”

“But he hasn’t done anything yet, Bulma,” Goku said, frowning. “We can’t kill him for something he hasn’t done yet.”

“Well, you know,” Kuririn said, rubbing his chin a little. “Bulma does have a point. I mean, Gero IS going to create those Jinzouningen if we don’t stop him. And who knows? Maybe even after three years of training we won’t be able to handle them. At least this way we can be assured of a victory.”

“And you can be assured of cowardice!” Vegita snapped, making Kuririn flinch. “I’m not such a coward that I’ll kill some withered old man just to avoid a battle! Let him build his little junk piles. I don’t run from conflicts; I confront them.”

“No, you CREATE them,” Bulma snapped back at him. “And I’m sure that in that warped little brain of yours you do see it as being cowardly to take out Gero before he can create the Jinzouningen. How do you know you’ll be strong enough to win against them? Your training your ass off now, and you died along with everyone else in that boy’s story. Now, unless you decided to stop your training for some reason in his past, I don’t think that any training you can do now will make that much of a difference. There’s more to winning than relying on your own brawn, Vegita.”

“Don’t you tell me how to win my battles!” Vegita growled. “Artificial or not, no human could ever defeat me!”

“Artificial is not the same thing as inferior,” she retorted. “And you’re just being pig-headed! At least Goku had a moral reason for disagreeing with me! You’re just doing it to show off! You’re such an idiot, Vegita!”

“I’m about this close from blasting you to the afterlife!” Vegita snapped, pinching his fingers together and stepping closer. “And if you don’t hold that insufferable tongue of yours, I just might lose my temper with you, woman!”

Bulma stood her ground. “Just try it!” She growled, balling her hands into fists and glaring fiercely at him. “And you’ll find yourself minus one appendage!”

“Whoa, whoa, whoa!” Goku cried, darting in and pushing them apart. “Cut it out, you guys! D’you want to kill each other before the fight even starts?!”

“Suits me fine,” Bulma said, crossing her arms and sticking her tongue out at Vegita. “But he’d be the one to get killed.”

“Hmph!” Vegita grunted, turning away and crossing his arms too. Goku laughed nervously and put a hand behind his head.

“So what are we going to do?” Kuririn said anxiously. “If we aren’t going to stop Gero before he creates them, what guarantee do we have that we’ll stop them?”

“We’ll all just have to train as hard as we can,” Goku replied, his expression hardening slightly. “We have three years. And if this medicine Tr-… er, that boy gave me works, I’ll be there to help. Maybe knowing what’s coming will allow us to prepare for it.”

“Well, I still say you’re doing the wrong thing,” Bulma sighed. “Goku, Gero was responsible for a lot of deaths back when he was working for the Red Ribbon. That man never should have survived in the first place. And suppose it isn’t enough? Suppose that, after three years, we still aren’t strong enough to defeat the Jinzouningen? Think of all the innocent people that are going to die from our mistake!”

“I’m sorry, Bulma,” Goku said sternly, “but my heart tells me that killing Gero is the wrong thing. I can’t blame you for wanting to be cautious, but I believe we can win. If we just do our best to improve before they arrive, I know we can defeat them!”

Bulma just shook her head. There was just no reasoning with Goku sometimes. “I hope you’re right,” she sighed.

“Hey Goku,” Kuririn said, his face brightening. “I almost forgot! Where the heck have you been all this time? Why did Porunga tell us that you didn’t want to come home?”

“Oh yeah!” Goku cried. “Well, he wanted to transport me to Earth, but I asked him to tell you guys that because I wasn’t ready to come home yet! I was doing some special training that I wanted to finish!”

“Special training?” Bulma asked, her interest having been sparked. “What special training? Where?”

“I think I’d better start from the beginning,” Goku said, scratching his head and glancing upward thoughtfully.

“You can start with how you managed to escape Namek’s destruction,” Bulma said. “I’ve been wondering about that.”

“Oh, that,” Goku said, smiling. “I almost didn’t make it; that’s for sure. If I hadn’t found that space pod there at the last second, I would have been toast!”

“That’s a Ginyu pod,” Vegita remarked, snorting in disgust.

Bulma grinned. “I bet it’d eat them alive if they knew that one of their pods had gone toward saving your life,” she chuckled. “So you escaped Namek. Then what?”

“Well, when I got in the pod, I just pushed some buttons to make it go,” Goku said, frowning. “I didn’t know what I was doing, but Namek only had a few seconds left. But whatever I pushed worked. I shot off away from Namek just as it exploded, and just barely made it out of range of the explosion. I ended up flying through space for a good three days before I crash-landed on a planet called Yardrat. It turned out that I was really lucky. The inhabitants were really nice, and they nursed me back to health. And they’re the ones who gave me the training I told you about.”

“So, what kind of training was it?” Bulma asked impatiently. “C’mon, Goku, show us what you learned!”

Goku grinned. “I guess the best way to explain it IS to show it!” He said. “Here goes. Now watch this!” He waved at them for a few seconds, and then he just kind of faded out like a bad TV signal.

“Wha?” Kuririn gasped. “Where’d he go?”

But Goku reappeared just as suddenly, and with an addition. He was wearing a pair of red-framed sunglasses, and was grinning goofily at them. “Heheh,” he said, adjusting them on his face. “Pretty cool, huh?”

“What?” Vegita snorted. “So you disappear, only to reappear with those? What’s so incredible about that?”

“Hey, wait a minute!” Kuririn cried. “I recognize those! Those are Master Kame’s shades, aren’t they?”

“Heheh,” Goku laughed, grinning from ear to ear.

“You’re right!” Bulma gasped. “But the Kame House’s a long way away from here! How’d you get those, Goku? Is that a new technique?”

“Yep,” Goku said proudly. “It’s called Instantaneous Movement. The inhabitants of Yardrat weren’t really strong, but they had a great way of getting around. This is how it works: you have to focus your senses on a ki source, and then you convert your body to energy and transmit yourself to the person you’re focused on. I was going to use it to get here ahead of Freeza, but then I sensed Tru-… er, I mean, the boy from the future, and I realized that it wasn’t necessary.”

“Wow!” Kuririn cried. “Is it hard to do?”

“Naw,” Goku said, shaking his head. “And it hardly takes any energy at all to do it. It’s just a matter of making the conversion correctly.”

Bulma grinned. What seemed easy for Goku usually took normal fighters years and years to master. He always did have a knack for picking up moves that he’d seen before.

“Here, Kuririn,” Goku said, taking off the sunglasses and handing them to Kuririn. “I’ll let you take these back to the old man. Tell him I’m sorry if I made him mad.”

“Heheh,” Kuririn chuckled as he put them on. “I can’t wait to see the look on his face.”

“So I guess that’s it, then, huh?” Goku said, adopting a more serious expression. “We’ll all go and train until the Jinzouningen appear. We’ll meet three years from now on that island, at nine a.m. on May 12.”

“Right,” everyone but Vegita and Piccolo said in agreement.

“Kakarrot,” Vegita said coldly. “I’m joining you in this battle, but I’ll let you know right now that this changes nothing between us. When all this Jinzouningen business is over, I’m going to kill you next.”

“Fine,” Goku said, with the same confident grin he had used before. “Have it your way.”

And without so much as a word, Vegita blasted off for Capsule Corporation. Bulma sighed. Great. So she could look forward to a whole three more years of living around that unsettling, obnoxious, insufferable jerk. She could hardly wait.

“Well, that’s it then,” Kuririn sighed. “I suppose I’ll get Kame Sennin to help me train. I’ll want to be ready. How about you, Goku? What’re you going to do?”

“I’m going home, first thing,” Goku laughed, hugging Gohan. “I can’t wait to see the look on Chichi’s face when I walk in the door!”

“Yeah,” Kuririn said impatiently, but smiling despite himself. “And then what?”

“Then it’s off to the mountains to train for me and Gohan!” Goku said cheerfully. “You wanna come with us, Piccolo? It’d mean a lot to Gohan, and I know I could only get better if I had you as a sparring partner!”

“All right,” Piccolo grunted, trying to keep from smiling at Gohan’s gleeful expression, but only managing to tone it down to a grin. “I suppose I can put up with your wife’s screeching for a while, at least.”

“You two wanna come too?” Goku asked Tenshinhan and Chouzu. “We could always use more!”

“I think Chouzu and I will train on our own,” Tenshinhan replied, smiling briefly at Chouzu, who smiled back. “But thanks for the offer, Goku. Maybe we’ll drop by sometime for a quick match or two.”

“Okay,” Goku said, nodding in understanding. “I hope you do. I don’t suppose either of you are going to come either, huh?” He said, turning back and looking at Bulma and Yamucha with a friendly smile.

“Nah, I’ve got a long way to go before I’d consider sparring with you guys,” Yamucha replied dejectedly. “I guess I’ll just pick up where I left off with the gravity training at Bulma’s. Besides, somebody’s gotta keep Bulma outta trouble, right?” He added with a forced laugh.

Bulma shot him a resentful glare. “I’m going to have to pass you up on it too, Goku,” she said, looking back at him. “I need to stay home for a while. Quite frankly, Vegita’s caused more than a little tension with some people, who I think need to be watched,” she added, glaring at Yamucha. “Besides, I don’t think I could keep up with even Gohan, much less you two. I’ll just train at my own pace. Us full-blood humans don’t quite measure up to the standards of Saiyans and Nameks,” she laughed good-naturedly.

Everyone laughed, except for Piccolo, who only smirked a little. As they broke up and began flying their separate ways, Goku couldn’t resist yelling one more thing at Bulma.

“Hope you have a healthy baby, Bulma!” He cried as he, Gohan, and Piccolo shot off for Mt. Paozu.

“Huh?” Bulma said, very much bewildered and surprised.

“Er…” Kuririn said, hesitating along with Bulma and Yamucha, who had both come to a dead stop at Goku’s words. “Exactly what did Goku mean by that, Bulma? Are you gonna have a baby?”

“I don’t see how!” Bulma snapped at him. “It wouldn’t be physically possible, Kuririn! Goku’s gotta be confused about something!”

Yamucha’s cheeks were red and he had a very goofy grin on his face. “Maybe that boy from the future told him you were going to settle down with someone and start a family!” he said, giggling mischievously.

“Don’t be ridiculous!” Bulma laughed angrily. “And you can stop giggling like a teenager, Yamucha! I certainly have no intention of starting a family with you! Write it off, pal!”

But Yamucha only laughed and took off, leaving Bulma and Kuririn on the ground, staring at each other with confused looks. Finally, Bulma sighed and rose into the air.

“Ah well,” she sighed. “Take care, Kuririn. You know you’re always welcome to come train with us, don’t you?”

“I know,” Kuririn said, smiling. “But I don’t think I’ll come by too often. Gravity training’s really not my thing.”

“That’s okay,” she replied, smiling at him. “Just give me a ring if you change your mind.” Then she and Kuririn parted ways and headed for home. Bulma grimaced on the way back to Capsule Corp. as a disturbing thought occurred to her. She was going to have to get over this nervous condition she’d developed if she was going to train herself as hard as she planned. At the very least she was going to have to regain her strength. Sighing, she decided that it was time for a short vacation away from home – and Vegita. And if Yamucha bothered him and got himself creamed, then so be it. It’d be his own fault if he provoked Vegita into killing him. She smiled faintly as she mentally listed the things she’d need to pack for a few weeks of camping in the mountains.


*Author’s note:
The Japanese culture regards sneezing rather differently than we Americans do. In Japan, if you sneeze for no apparent reason, it is often thought that someone is talking about you. You will see many references to this belief in anime and manga. There are several examples in DB/Z other than the one I’ve mentioned. Go see for yourself!



On To Chapter 12 ~~~>