A/N: This was a project I had in my creative writing class. Nothing beats college. I got an A, and 3 credit hours for writing fanfiction. As I said in the description, don't expect this to be finished. I just wanted to get some commentary on it, and post something other than pokemon.
Disclaimer: I don't own DragonBall Z.
The Tale of the New Girl Kumiko
"Gohan! Wait up!" The blonde girl pleaded as she chased after Gohan. He sighed, there was no getting away from her. She was new at Orange Star High School, a transfer student they said. Gohan supposed that most guys would be happy about that, a pretty girl following them, but he was different, he had other… obligations. He had to get away, so he could change into the Great Saiyaman. He heard the ruckus going on downtown, and he had to get over there.
"Aha! The men's bathroom," Gohan said under his breath. "I can hide out in here." He bolted into the room.
"Gah!" The girl stopped outside the door. "Aw, Gohan. Guess I'll have to wait until he comes out." She stepped to the side of the door and leaned against the wall, propping a foot against it.
"Finally. Now I can get out of here and help those people." Gohan checked to make sure no one was in the room, changed into his outfit, and hopped out the window.
Gohan flew slowly, the commotion was nearby, at a bank just across from his school. He landed and calmly walked though the sliding glass doors. To his dismay, his rival in heroics, Videl was already there, and had taken care of the thugs robbing the bank.
"You're late," Videl smirked. "What's the matter, slacking off 'Great Saiyaman'?"
Gohan was really disappointed. He hadn't gotten to take care of the last three crimes.
"As you can see, nobody needs you here. Why don't you just take off that helmet of yours and quit." Videl snidely remarked.
Gohan just sighed. He could hear the police sirens coming, so he just quietly flew off. He retreated to the school roof where he did most of his changing. This time was no different as he changed back to his school uniform. This was starting to become depressing. He hadn't stopped any crimes in a week!
He sat down beside the stairwell. He was just going to have to tell this girl to leave him alone. But how? He was a nice guy, he thought. He always tried to be polite. This girl was even worse than that stalker girl Angela who had blackmailed her way into dating him! At least the whole school wouldn't give him heck about this, like they did when he dumped Angela. After all, no one even really seemed to like this girl. Everyone said she was kind of weird. But then again, they said the same thing about Gohan too. It's not like he was really popular or anything.
Gohan lifted up his watch to check the time.
"Oh that's just great," He said as he stood up. "I'm late for class again." He took his time walking down the stairwell and down the hall. "No use in drawing attention to myself by running." He picked up the pace and briskly walked to his classroom.
"You're late Gohan" The teacher glared at him as he walked in the room. "But at least you bothered showing up this time unlike your friend."
Gohan took his seat in the back and took notice to the empty chair beside him. She wasn't there. Had she given up? Now he was curious. His thoughts were interrupted by the teacher's obvious cheer as Videl entered the room and took her seat up front. Gohan listened to his teacher comment on how Videl was always excused for fighting for justice, and remembered thinking how lucky she was for that. But his mind quickly wandered. It was odd, the girl with the blonde hair wasn't beside him, smiling that goofy smile and staring at him with those deep aqua colored eyes. He made a mental note to find out her name before he confronted her.
Class ended a few minutes late, so Gohan rushed to get to the cafeteria. He was starving and he knew he'd have to hurry to get the five lunches he normally ate done in time. He stood in line for what seemed like an eternity, and reached for his wallet once he got to the register.
"Oh that's just great, my ID card is gone." Gohan said, trying to put pity in his voice. No such luck. The woman at the register took his tray without any hesitation. Gohan sulked away, hungry. "This day just can't get any worse."
He began retracing his steps in an effort to find the card before having to pay to get a new one printed. He checked his locker and his classes to no avail. The bathroom! Maybe he had dropped it in there! He ran for the restroom only to stop just short of it. He stood in disbelief. He took a moment before walking closer. The girl was still there! She was propped up against the wall and had fallen asleep. She would have looked quite peaceful sitting there, were it not for the fact somebody had came along and took a marker to her face. There were crude drawings littering it including thick glasses drawn around her eyes. In that moment Gohan felt about as low as low gets, and he realized she must have been waiting for him to come out the whole time.
Where everyone was at lunch, the hall was empty except for the two of them. He softly poked her, but it didn't wake her. He figured she was a very sound sleeper, and against his better judgment, he pulled a handkerchief out of his pocket and began wiping off the marker. This stirred her and her eyes slowly opened to meet his gaze.
"Gohan?" She blushed as she spoke his name. "What are you doing?"
"Uh… I … somebody marked on your face. I was getting it off you." Gohan spoke so softly he could barely hear himself.
The blush spread all across her face now as she jumped up and ran for the girl's bathroom directly across the hall. He could hear her aggravation and the sink faucet running inside. Within a minute or so she returned with most of the marker removed from her face.
"It figures," she said sadly. "Everyone's always picking on me." Tears started to well up in her eyes.
Gohan didn't know what to say, he couldn't tell her to quit chasing after him now. Maybe later, but for now, he felt like he should just leave her alone.
"Umm… well, I've got to go, I'm looking for my ID card." He said as he tried to sidestep away.
"But Gohan," The girl stared up at him pleadingly "I found it, you dropped it this morning and I've been trying to give it back to you all day." She smiled a knowing smile as she said this. "Funny thing though, I guess you didn't hear me because you just kept running away."
Gohan's heart sunk. He felt awful about the whole thing and didn't know how to respond. She handed him back his card, smiled, and walked off. Gohan turned to face Videl staring at him.
"Hey you, where were you at lunch? Me and Sharpener waited for you, but you didn't show." Videl calmly said, as she watched the girl disappear from view. "She's so weird isn't she? The other day we saw her sitting by herself at break, and we walked up to her and started talking to her and she wouldn't even say a word to us! Not a word! And then later Sharpener asked if she wanted to hang out with him later, like, as in a date, and she called him a pompous jerk! Can you believe that?"
Videl was so wrapped up in her story, she hadn't noticed Gohan had left for his next class. He sat down and ignored the lecture that followed. Instead, he started thinking about the upcoming World Martial Arts Tournament. The last thing he needed was all these distractions, and yet he hadn't even got to train all week. He considered crime-fighting and training the same thing, but he figured he would just have to go home and do it the old-fashioned way. That is, as long as his mom didn't make him study.
* * *
The next morning he arrived at school somewhat early, and was surprised to see the blonde-headed girl was already in her usual seat beside his. He sat down, and although they were the only ones in the room, they didn't speak.
When the rest of the class arrived, the teacher wrote an elaborate math problem on the board that even Gohan was having trouble working out.
"Kumiko!" The teacher blurted out suddenly, and the girl beside him stiffened. It occurred to Gohan that it was the first time he had heard her name. "Give me the answer please." The old woman leaned back in her chair, prepared to give out a good scolding to the wrong answer. Kumiko stood beside him and took in a deep breath as she released the answer so calmly it almost sounded melodic. The hag jumped up from her seat. "That's wr….wait, you're right. Umm.. well, will you please explain why to the class?"
With that, Kumiko explained in great detail the reasoning behind her answer. Gohan watched as her face brightened more than he had ever seen, and he remembered thinking, she was a lot smarter than people made her out to be. She sat down once she was finished with the explanation.
Suddenly a guy in front of her seat turned to face Kumiko.
"Oh, so the loser girl's a bookworm too huh? Cool. Now we can add nerd to the list of names we call you." The boy sneered as he said this, and made some kind of motion to his friend in the row beside her. Kumiko simply hung her head sadly.
Rage bubbled up in Gohan, and as he watched the boy sitting close by readying a spitball for her, he raised his hand and caught it in midair so quickly that he was sure no one had seen. The pair of guys looked at each other, dumbfounded, confirming they hadn't seen, wondering where it was. Gohan smiled dropping the wet paper ball to the ground.
"Thank you for that." Kumiko glanced his way briefly before turning away again.
Gohan looked surprised, well, maybe it was just because she was sitting next to him.
The rest of the day went normally until school let out. Gohan began walking out the building and started his usual routine of walking out of the city until he could fly away unnoticed. Just as he was about to take off, he saw someone in the corner of his eye. He was just about to keep walking when he noticed it was Kumiko sitting on a nearby bench, and she was staring far up into the sky.
"What are you doing?" He asked, surprising her.
"Oh Gohan," She turned. "I was just looking at the clouds, thinking how I'd like to fly up into them right now."
"I feel that way too sometimes." He stated. What was this feeling coming over him? Suddenly he wanted to pick her up and make it happen. But he dismissed the thought and instead sat down beside her.
"I'm new here, so it's really hard for me to make friends. I don't mean to come across standoffish or rude, it's just… I don't know what to say." She looked down at her feet as she spoke. "It shouldn't be this hard." The last part was almost inaudible.
"Hey, don't worry about it so much," Gohan hesitantly put his arm around her, resting it on the back of the bench. "It'll be ok, you'll get better at it. I was new here once too you know."
"Yeah, and you have some friends now right?" She looked up at him nervously as she spoke.
"Sure, Videl, Sharpener, Erasa, they're great. But I know how hard it is." He paused. "I know it's not much, but if you want, we could be friends."
"You really mean it Gohan?" She beamed as she spoke.
"Yes I mean it, and if you give it time, I'm sure my friends will too."
"Even though I called that one guy a pompous jerk?"
"Yeah, he'll get over it."
"Okay, I guess I'd better get on home, but thank you Gohan. You made me feel a lot better." Kumiko stood and smiled at him happily.
"No problem, Kumiko." He smiled back and waved as they walked off in opposite directions.
* * *
The bushes rustled nearby, but not from the slight breeze. Instead, a certain high school jock was working on his latest project.
"This is just rich." Sharpener spied through the lens of his camera. "I hate to do this to you Gohan, but once the school sees this they'll be rolling in laughter, and it'll add coolness points to me, which is always a plus." He flashed a million dollar smile awaiting his sinister plot.
* * *
The next week went well, and with Gohan around no one really made fun of Kumiko. Although they would get an ominous snicker sometimes from people as they walked past. Everyday, they met and talked on the bench on the outskirts of the city; they usually talked about music, movies, and school. Sometimes they studied there, but on one particular day, Gohan brought up a topic they hadn't discussed before.
"So Kumiko, do you have any brothers or sisters?" He happily asked. There was a long pause before she responded.
"No, afraid not. Do you?" She looked kind of sad as she asked it.
"Yeah, a little brother named Goten. He's a pain, but I love him." He chuckled.
"That must be nice, hey I got to go on home and finish a project. See you tomorrow though." Kumiko said before walking on down the road. She hung her head down, and didn't notice the large pothole in front of her. But just as she started to fall, she was caught. She looked up to see Gohan, holding her up. "Wow," she blushed slightly, "You're quick. Thanks Gohan." With that, she straightened up and continued her walk.
Gohan watched as she disappeared into the distance before he flew off toward his house.
* * *
"Sharpener, do I really have to?" Videl whined.
"C'mon Videl. You don't want Gohan going with that weirdo who was so rude to us right?" Sharpener pleaded.
"Oh please, she's not that bad, and she apologized for that. In fact most people have quit making fun of her." Videl rolled her eyes.
"Just do it for me, please? Besides, if you don't go with him, you'll have to go with one of your fan boys, since I'm going with Erasa." Sharpener leaned against his locker and grinned.
"Fine whatever. But you owe me." Videl glared at him as she walked down the hallway toward Gohan. "Gohan, could you do me a huge favor?"
"Sure Videl, What do you need?" Gohan turned to greet her.
"Well, you know the school dance is coming up right? I really want to go, but I need someone to go with me. Sharpener's already going with Erasa, so… will you go with me?" She paused, and could see the surprise on his face. She gritted her teeth into a smile and spoke the word she really didn't want to say. "Please?"
"Well, gosh Videl, I didn't know you liked those kinds of things, but okay. I'll go with you." Gohan smiled half-heartedly.
"Yay! Thanks Gohan, you're a lifesaver!" Videl grinned widely. "Meet me here then ok?"
Gohan watched as she walked away. "That was kind of weird."
* * *
Sharpner snuck up behind her before popping the question. "So Kumiko, you're going to the school dance that's coming up right?"
"Umm, no, I hadn't planned on it," Kumiko stared at the floor as she answered.
"Really? Man, I thought everyone was. I mean, everyone that's anyone that is," He sneered. Kumiko looked hurt to this response, but he continued. "C'mon, just ask somebody to go with you, and see what it's about. It's going to be super cool!" He walked off casually, knowing that would draw her in. Once far enough away, he slinked off to find his camera, ready to film the drama that would unfold.
* * *
The day went on like usual for Gohan, and toward the end, he happily walked to edge of town, to greet Kumiko. He wasn't sure why they got along so well, but they did, and he was glad when he got to talk to her at the end of the day. He looked toward the bench, but no one was sitting there. And as he got closer, he noticed her under a tree nearby.
"What are you doing in the grass?" He called out. She pointed at the bench that when he got closer he could see had a "wet paint" sign on it. "Oh, I see. Well that's okay." He plopped down onto the ground beside her. "So how was your day?"
"Gohan, I wanted to ask you something." She had a serious look on her face.
"Okay, what is it?"
"You see, Sharpener told me today about this school dance, and it sounds like a lot of fun, but I'm too shy to go by myself…"
Gohan knew what she was going to say, and wanted to stop her, but couldn't form the words.
"I was wondering, would you go with me Gohan? Please?" She asked, pleadingly.
"I, I can't Kumiko," He hung his head. "I've already agreed to go with Videl. I'm sorry."
She looked somewhat surprised, then smiled a sad smile.
"It's okay Gohan. I understand." Tears welled up in her eyes, before she took off running.
"That's just great," He sighed. "If I known that she was going to ask, I would have told Videl no."
* * *
The next couple of days, Kumiko didn't show up at school, and though Gohan was worried, he didn't know where she lived, and he didn't think he'd have the heart to go see her anyway. What would he say? The night came of the school dance, and Gohan arrived promptly at Orange Star High clad in one of his nicer outfits. He was early, and didn't see Videl anywhere. He walked into the bathroom to fix his short black hair while he waited. The two boys who were picking on Kumiko during class were in there talking, and hadn't noticed Gohan walk in. He waited by the door briefly upon hearing their conversation.
"So are you going up there?" One questioned.
"Yeah, aren't you? Sharpener promised this time would be great."
"I guess so, but didn't he say that last time? I mean, no offence, but don't you think making fun of them is getting a little lame?"
"No way man! It's going to be good this time, he promised!"
"Fine, where is it again?"
"Room 304. You think we can sneak past the teachers?"
"Sure, why not?"
Gohan quickly fled to avoid being seen, and snuck around a back way to avoid being caught going upstairs. Sneaking off to become the Great Saiyaman had given him lots of practice with this. He quietly crept to the third floor, fourth room on the right. He sidled the wall and listened carefully to the clatter inside. There were a lot of people in the room, and Sharpener speaking above them.
"Listen up!" Sharpener called out. "This is going to be a great show, it's turning into a regular soap opera! I swear, I'll win a film award for this someday." Gohan peeked in to see the twinkle in Sharpener's eyes. What he saw then shocked him. There, on a projector screen at the front of the room, was video of him and Kumiko, sitting on the ground, talking about the dance, and her running away crying. He had followed her to an apartment complex that Gohan recognized as being on the outskirts of the city. He clinched his fist and a slight aura surrounded him. How could Sharpener, his friend, do this to him? To her?
"That's right folks, in addition to being a loser, now she's a heartbroken one!" Pretty hard to believe I set up all this. Cool, huh?" Sharpener puffed up with pride.
Everything in Gohan made him want to waltz right over there and punch him in the face, but he was stopped by the sound of footsteps behind him.
"Gohan?" The boys stopped short of the room, looking nervously at him.
There was a pause that seemed like it lasted longer than it really did.
"Hey! Gohan's out here!" One of the boys called out. They ran in the room like the chickens they were.
Sharpener stiffened and stared though the doorway until Gohan appeared. Gohan walked slowly toward him, with an angry look on his face. Gohan glanced over to the back of the room where he saw Erasa, but no sign of Videl. Perhaps she wasn't as much in on this as he thought.
"Now Gohan, it's not a big deal, we were just having a little fun." Sharpener nervously stepped back.
"You call that fun? How fun do you think it was for us Sharpener?" Gohan clinched his fists once more.
"Ha! What are you going to do about it? No offence Gohan, but you're puny. You wouldn't last long in a fight against me." Sharpener put his hands to his hips in confidence.
"You think you're so high above us Sharpener. You really need to be brought back down to Earth!" As he said this Gohan punched him hard, in the gut, but holding back almost all his power. It was just enough to bring him to his knees. Some in the room gasped, others cheered. But as Gohan walked toward the open window, they fell silent. Before anyone could react, he had jumped out, even before the gossipy girls in the back could get out a scream.
He knew everyone would be rushing to the window, looking for his body on the ground, so he flew high into the air where they would least expect it. He looped around the city until he saw the apartment from the video; landing in an alley behind the complex. He sighed before walking up the steps to her building. He knocked softly, praying he had the right number. No answer. Maybe he was wrong. He turned away and stared at the parking lot below. There, he saw her, pushing a heavy looking bag into the trunk of a capsule car. He waited as she walked up the stairs towards him, head down. She stopped when she saw his feet, and looked up.
"Gohan, what are you doing here?" Kumiko blushed slightly.
"I had to find you, and tell you something." Gohan said firmly.
Kumiko sighed, "Well, it's a mess, but come on in." She opened the door and slowly walked inside. Gohan followed her into a small area with a couch and attached kitchen. He sat on the couch as she walked to the kitchen area.
"Can I get you anything? I have water or soda, but only in orange and grape flavor." She pulled a grape out for herself.
"Yes, orange please. It's my favorite." He smiled thinking of memories of when Trunks brought a fridge full of soda to choose from. She interrupted his thoughts as she set it on the table in front of him.
"So what was it you wanted to tell me?" She sat in a wooden chair across from him.
With that, he explained the situation with Sharpener, the set-up, him following them, and the rest of story.
"It doesn't matter. Things would have ended up the same." Kumiko closed her eyes and sipped on her soda.
"What are you saying?" Gohan asked in confusion.
"You still like Videl." She gazed at him from across the can.
"I what? No I don't!" He retorted in shock.
"But you're going to the dance with Videl, that means you like her." She put a lot of emphasis on the "like" part.
"No I don't, just because you agree to go to the dance with someone doesn't mean you like them. If that were the case I would have asked you…" He quickly put his hands to his mouth to stop himself, but it was too late.
Kumiko looked up, surprised, then quickly looked back down with an embarrassed look on her face.
"Is that a fact…" she whispered.
"You know," Gohan looked away as he spoke. "It's not too late to go."
"You're crazy Gohan. I'm not even ready. I'm not even sure if I have a dress."
"Well, you don't have to. Might make you feel better though." He smiled.
Kumiko held a finger to her chin. She looked very deep in thought, though she came to a quick decision.
"Let me see what I have." She grinned widely while pulling a capsule from its case. She gently pushed the button on its side and dropped it beside the counter to reveal a large wardrobe.
"Wonderful inventions you have here," she said, searching the wardrobe feverishly.
"What do you mean 'here'? Didn't they have capsules where you used to live?" Gohan said puzzled.
"Oh, well no. Where I'm from they don't have such things." Kumiko continued her search.
"Really? Where are you from?" He questioned. "I thought every place had capsules now."
"You wouldn't recognize the name. It's kinda in the middle of nowhere" She quickly pulled out a dress and twirled around. "I found one! I'll be right back." She skipped away toward one of the back rooms.
Gohan wondered to himself. Where could she be from? Some rural town he suspected. Or maybe she was more back-woodsy then she appeared. Maybe she previously lived in an area like Gohan's house, which was about as far away from civilization as humanly possible. Nestled deep in a forest, maybe that's where she used to live. If so, it must have been a big change, to move to an apartment in the city. Now that he thought of it, he hadn't met her family yet. They must be at work now, he guessed.
He was distracted by the footsteps from Kumiko walking through the hall. He turned to see if she was ready, and was taken back slightly by the sight of her. She had her hair pinned back, and was now in a slender navy colored dress.
"Well, what do you think?" She put her hands to her hips, looking more confident than usual. And she usually wasn't very confident, so that was saying a lot.
"You look great." Gohan smiled sheepishly as he stood.
"Well then," she said holding the door open, "Shall we go?"
They stepped outside, locking the door behind them, and walked casually down the steps toward the parking lot. Kumiko walked up to the capsule car and placed one hand on it.
"Hop in." Kumiko said.
"You drive?" Gohan asked.
"Sure, it's not that hard." She chuckled.
"If it's all right with you, I have a better idea." Gohan smiled. "Nimbus!"
His calling out startled Kumiko. She gasped, followed by a curious look in the awkward pause that followed.
"Don't worry. He'll be here." He looked toward the sky, waiting, and hoping he'd made the right decision.
Soon enough, the small yellow cloud streaked across the sky, and cruised up beside them to a stop.
"This…" Gohan hopped on the cloud as he spoke. "Is how I get to school."
Kumiko was wide-eyed as she stared at the yellow cloud. She walked around it slowly before saying anything.
"Where did you get this thing?" she asked curiously.
"My father won it from a family friend. Try to sit on it. They say only those with a pure heart can ride the nimbus cloud. But I think you'll be ok." He winked.
Kumiko looked up at Gohan, then back to the cloud before slowly placing herself onto it.
"Good, you didn't fall though. Now then, we'd better be off before we're late." Gohan looked back at her for confirmation. She simply nodded while adjusting herself onto the cloud. "Then let's go Nimbus!"
As he yelled this, the yellow cloud took off into the air. Kumiko yelped and clung to Gohan at first, but she quickly relaxed, and began looking around in awe. Her look was that of an innocent child. Gohan thought to himself, that she was doing much better than he expected. And as the nimbus sped over the city, he hoped that by sharing some of his secrets with her that she, in turn, would do the same.
* * *
Blaring music and the voices of chatty teens filled Orange Star High School Gymnasium. Sharpener looked around nervously while adjusting some wrinkles in his suit. Erasa persistently clung to his arm.
"Sharpener? Are you sure you're okay? He punched you pretty hard." She frowned in worry.
"Please. Give me a break. That scrawny Gohan didn't even bruise me. I've taken worse hits in my football games you know." He yelled this, to draw attention to his words. Some people turned, rolled their eyes, then continued dancing.
"Well that's good!" Erasa chimed. "I was afraid he'd hurt you!" She patted his stomach.
Sharpener bit his lip and held back tears. "Nope!" He winced. "He didn't hurt me one bit."
* * *
The nimbus cloud slowly hovered to a stop over Videl's house.
"I didn't see Videl at the school, which makes me think she didn't know about Sharpener recording us. But either way, I should let her know I'm not going to the dance with her." Gohan chose his words with caution, but Kumiko didn't seem to care.
"Okay whatever. Just hurry back," She smiled. "Hey do you hear something?"
He listened. There was defiantly a commotion going on. The nimbus cloud hovered toward the backyard eventually resting high above Videl and her father Hercule, arguing in the backyard.
"Dad, it's no big deal. It's just a school dance! Everyone's going to be there!" Videl cried out.
"Oh yes! I know what it is! You're trying to go sneak off with some boy! Where he is? I'll show him he can't go taking my daughter off anywhere without getting himself a Hercule Punch!" Hercule held a fist up and shook it wildly.
"He's just a friend Dad! There's nothing going on between us at all! C'mon, just let me go. I got ready and everything." Videl put her hands to her hips in anger.
"Absolutly not! I won't have some boy messing with your training for the World Martial Arts Tournament! Now you just march right back in there and get back to training young lady!" Hercule pointed toward the mansion.
"Geez Dad! You never let me have any fun. It's not like my training matters. You're going to win again this year anyway." She glared.
"That's beside the point! Now get back in there!" He bellowed.
Gohan and Kumiko watched as Videl shrugged and went back inside to train. They saw her smile briefly on her way in. Her father leaned against his lawn chair sipping his martini, and stared toward the sky. He watched suspiciously as a small, odd yellow cloud streaked across the sky.
"That was close." Kumiko sighed. "You know, she didn't really seem all that upset toward the end."
"Of course not," Gohan stared into the distance as he spoke. "She loves to train." Kumiko looked away, as if not sure how to take that. Gohan wondered what to say to fix it, but could only come up with the truth. "I need to train too. You see, I might be entering the tournament as well."
Kumiko turned toward him again with a puzzled look.
"Okay, long story short, my father was the previous champion before, well, he passed away. That's when Hercule took over. But you see my father…" Gohan paused thinking how to word the odd story of his life.
"Oh I get it!" Kumiko beamed. "So you want to reclaim the title! Continue a sort of legacy, right?"
That of course, was not really his reasoning, but close enough.
"Yeah," Gohan smiled. "Exactly." They arrived at the school rooftop, as the cloud lowered to its level, and the couple stepped down. "Thanks Nimbus." He gave the cloud a quick pat before it zoomed off into the distance. Gohan turned to face Kumiko. "Well then, let's go." He took her hand as the walked down the stairs.
* * *
Sharpener sipped his soda frantically. He jerked his head from side to side checking to make sure they hadn't shown. Erasa was dancing next to him, oblivious to his panic. Soon, the entire gym quieted. The crowd parted and the only thing that could be heard was whispers. Sharpener turned and paled. There, through the crowd, walked Gohan and Kumiko, hand in hand toward him.
"Oh hey guys!" Erasa called out, unaware of the tension in the air. "How are you?"
"Oh fine," Kumiko replied. "In fact, we're quite happy."
Gohan stared at Sharpener. There was an odd pause. Then, Gohan took another step forward.
"I-I'm getting outta' here!" Sharpener screamed like a girl as he ran out the doors.
"Hey Sharpener! Wait for me!" Erasa chased after him like a lost puppy.
The crowd cheered as they left. Gohan and Kumiko laughed as they danced. Neither one of them was a real great dancer, but it was fun anyway. And when a slow song came on, Gohan took her hand and they held each other close as they danced.
"Well, I don't think anyone will be bothering us anymore." Kumiko smiled.
"I don't guess so, especially not Sharpener." Gohan chuckled.
"Yeah! You must have really given him a scare," She replied. "Hey Gohan, I heard there's a circus coming to town. I've never been to one, but I'd like to…" She looked away embarrassed.
"Oh sure, we can go. Would you mind if I brought my little brother though? I'm sure he'd like that too." Gohan asked.
"Yeah, that's fine. I'd like to meet him." Kumiko put her head on his shoulder and sighed happily.
Gohan blushed slightly. "It's a date then."
* * *
Children took to the streets clutching bright balloons as a parade flooded the city streets when the circus strolled in the next week. Clowns frolicked beside the elephants that carted various bright floats. The ringmaster sat atop a pedestal and called out all the events and attractions in a rather sleazy voice. He donned a deep purple suit, with huge sunglasses on. Kumiko stood on the sidewalk watching, holding tight onto her ticket.
"Gohan's late. Well, at least I'm used to waiting on him." She laughed.
* * *
"Goten! Goten! Where are you bro?" Gohan called out. He looked around the valley before resuming his flight. "Goten! C'mon, you're going to make me late!" He flew past a mountain range before he sensed Goten's location. He swiftly landed in the large Pterodactyl's nest his brother was sitting in.
"Gohan! Chobi's not here! He's missing, he can't fly yet Gohan! He's just a baby." Goten teared up in worry.
"Goten, don't worry so much, you know Chobi's parents. They would never let anything happen to him." Gohan put his hand on his brother's shoulder to reassure him. "Now come on, you don't want to miss the circus now do you?" He smiled.
"Oh! I forgot about that! Yeah! Yeah! Let's go!" Goten hopped onto the nearby nimbus cloud. Gohan followed suit as they sped off toward the city.
* * *
Kumiko stared up to the sky as she watched the yellow cloud streak by. She noticed it disappear from view in a nearby alley, and as she walked to it's entrance, she saw Gohan and Goten stroll toward her.
"You guys ready to go to the circus?" Kumiko grinned widely.
"Yeah! Circus! Circus! Circus!" Goten hopped over to her.
"You must be Goten, I'm Kumiko," She knelt down to be on his level, glanced up at Gohan, and back to Goten. "You know, I'm not sure who's cuter."
"Me! Me! Me!" Goten continued jumping.
"I don't know…" Kumiko winked at Gohan.
"Um, let's go." Gohan said as he drug them both by the hand.
The group walked up to the circus tent and handed in their tickets. They walked inside to take their seats as whimsical music and sights surrounded them. The ringmaster had taken his seat at the back of the tent, and had begun counting his stacks of money. Gohan stared at him for a moment before Kumiko and Goten's laughter broke his gaze. A lion tamer, juggler, and various gymnasts littered the stage before the tent quieted, and the ringmaster came out toting a shivering baby dinosaur. He set the dinosaur down and lifted up his microphone to speak.
"And now the main event folks! The one you've all been waiting for! It's the insanely cute Rocko, the baby dinosaur!" He announced before rushing to his seat in the back.
The little dinosaur lifted its head, and then looked away in fear as the nearby trainer snapped a whip beside it. The crowd cheered as the dinosaur jumped though a hoop, making it hard to hear Goten's cry.
"Gohan! That's Chobi! That's Chobi out there! They stole him!" Goten cried out.
"Yeah I see, this is not good. When Toto gets wind of this, there's going to be trouble." Gohan clenched his fist together.
"What's going on? Who's Toto and Chobi?" Kumiko asked inquisitively.
"Chobi is the real name of that dinosaur down there. Toto is his dad. We've grown up with this family of dinosaurs. They live close to our house. It looks like these guys took him." Gohan replied.
"That's awful." Kumiko looked at the baby dinosaur in pity.
"Gohan! You gotta' help Chobi!" Goten again teared up.
"Yeah, I will Goten." Gohan looked up at Kumiko. "Can you watch Goten for a while, I'm going to have a word with the owner."
"Sure, be careful though Gohan." Kumiko replied.
Gohan got up and carefully weaved his way around the perimeter of the tent. By now, the show was over, and people were flooding out the front door. Gohan fought to reach the back of the tent, to the owner's seat. He was again, counting his money.
"Excuse me sir, that dinosaur you have, I know it's not yours." Gohan stated.
"Hmm? Who are you? And what right do you have saying what's mine and what's not?" The short man stood on his chair and got right in Gohan's face. "I found him! So he's mine!"
"Please, you don't understand. When his parents find out, they'll terrorize the city, looking for him." Gohan pleaded.
"No way! Now get out of my face boy! I've got important business to attend to!" The man returned to counting his money.
Gohan walked off. He didn't like it, but he knew the Great Saiyaman would have to step in for this. He slipped into an empty room in the back of the tent. He pressed the button on his wristwatch to change to his outfit. He then stepped toward the back of the room where he found a cage Chobi had just been placed in. The straw under his feet startled Chobi. The baby dinosaur began to cry.
"Shhh, It's ok Chobi, it's me Gohan." He pulled back the bars on the cage to free him. He pulled the small dinosaur out, and turned to find the ringmaster behind him.
"What do you think you're doing? You mean to tell me the city's hero is stealing my dinosaur?" The man looked shocked.
"No citizen! I'm simply returning him to his rightful home!" Gohan said in his most heroic voice, before rushing out of the tent, Chobi in tow.
"I can't believe this!" The ringmaster dialed the three-digit number until it connected. "Yeah! You'll never believe this! The Great Saiyaman just stole my dinosaur!"
* * *
"Chobi! Quit squirming! I can't fly with you moving around everywhere!" Gohan was flying haphazardly toting Chobi on his back. "Fine, I know you're scared of heights, so I guess we'll have to go on foot." He landed on a sidewalk and took off running.
He didn't get far, a capsulecopter stopped just in front of him. The wind from it almost knocked Chobi off his back. Gohan was irritated to see Videl hop out of the chopper.
"Well, well, well! I should have known you weren't the hero you pretended to be! Now I see you're just a common thief!" She began laughing hysterically. "I guess now everyone will see your true colors!"
"Please Videl! You must let me pass. You don't understand what will happen if I don't get this little guy home right now!" Gohan pleaded.
"Oh I understand perfectly. The gigs up Saiyaman. Hand over that dinosaur to its owner now." She pointed at the ringmaster who was now standing in the crowd that had developed. The police had also arrived and were on scene. The ringmaster looked at one of the policemen before he spoke.
"Hey! What are you goons doing just standin' around? Apprehend that guy! I don't pay you all my tax dollars for nothin' ya know!"
"Sir, that's Videl, Hercule's daughter. If anyone can get your dinosaur back, it's her." One of them replied.
"Videl? Oh yeah, I remember now. I outta' be paying my tax dollars to her instead of you donut-packing monkeys." The owner sneered.
Videl burst into a flurry of punches and kicks, all of which Gohan dodged. He was forced to sit Chobi down to defend himself. The ringmaster seized the opportunity and grabbed Chobi, resulting in lots of whining and whimpering.
"I'd put him down if I were you." Kumiko appeared behind him.
"Oh look!" The man laughed. "Now some girl's going to stop me? Give me a break girly."
Kumiko snatched Chobi up in an instant before calling out. "Goten! Now!"
Everyone, including Videl and Gohan, mid-fight watched dumbfounded as Goten and the nimbus cloud picked up Kumiko and Chobi before speeding off into the sky. Unfortunately, being high up and in a stranger's arms only scared Chobi more, and it began to cry out loudly.
"Oh no, not that." Gohan said in horror.
"What's it doing?" Videl questioned.
"He's calling for his parents!"
Within minutes, the pair of monstrous pterodactyls circled the city. Closing in on the nimbus cloud, Chobi's father swooped in toward them. Gohan called out to try to stop him, but Toto wouldn't respond. He lunged at Kumiko, knocking her and Chobi off the cloud. Chobi's mother caught Chobi, and the family angrily flew off. Goten and the nimbus had already traveled too far away to catch her in time, and could do nothing but watch helplessly as Kumiko fell.
Gohan watched for a brief moment, wondering, if with everything he'd seen, he was somewhat suspicious that there was a way she could save herself. There was something that told him she could, but as he watched her plummet toward the ground, he powered up, and raced to reach her time.
He flew at top speed, but it wasn't enough. His black hair turned bright yellow, and his dark eyes a deep blue. Turning super saiyan would be just enough to get him to her in time, and under the protection of his Saiyaman helmet, he was sure no one would notice. He swiftly flew with the gold aura surrounding him, until he was close enough to see her limp body staring back at him.
He gently scooped Kumiko up in mid-air. He held her close and for a brief moment, they just floated there staring at each other. He slowly lowered onto a nearby building. The yellow aura around him dissipated as he reverted to his normal state.
Gohan looked down off the building, the crowd of people from before was still there, including the ringmaster.
"There they are! On that building! The ones who stole my dinosaur! What are you all waiting for! Shoot em'!" The owner waited impatiently with only strange looks from the crowd. "Fine, if you won't do it, I will!" He grabbed one of the policemen's guns and shot twice at the pair.
Gohan simply flicked them away.
"Huh?" The owner's jaw dropped. In his shock, he was handcuffed.
"You're under arrest sir. Stealing a dinosaur isn't a crime, but taking an officer's handgun is!"
Videl stood in the back of the crowd. "And don't forget shooting it at innocent civilians." She remarked, as she hopped into her copter. "Saiyaman! I'm glad you're not as bad as I thought!" She called out before flying off into the distance. The crowd dispersed as the ringmaster of the circus was taken into custody. Gohan and Kumiko now stood in silence until it was broken.
"T-thanks for saving me." Kumiko blushed and smiled.
"It's no problem, Kumiko. Only my civic duty." Gohan realized him knowing her name would be suspicious, and silently kicked himself for that. "Well, see you later!" With that, he took to the air. "No, no, Gohan! You're the Great Saiyaman! You won't see her. Stupid, stupid, stupid!"
He flew until he had caught up with the nimbus and Goten.
"Hey Gohan! Is Kumiko okay?" Goten pushed himself forward on the cloud in anticipation.
"Yeah, don't worry Goten. She's fine. Don't know how I'm going to explain this one though." Gohan said as he pushed the button to revert to his school uniform. "Tell Mom I'm going to be a little late okay?"
"All right Gohan! Oh and Gohan…" Goten grew quiet.
"Yes Goten?"
"You were so awesome today!" Goten smiled widely.
"Oh thanks. I was pretty cool, wasn't I? Gohan stood in mid-air confidently.
"Yeah! Not as much as Kumiko though!" Goten giggled as he zoomed away with the nimbus cloud.
"She was pretty cool…" Gohan thought to himself as he floated back to where he left her. He landed on the sidewalk below, and snuck up the stairs to the store, and out the rooftop door. He saw her sitting on the edge of the roof, dangling her feet off the edge, looking off into the sunset. "Hey you!" He called. "I've been looking all over for you."
"Really?" She turned.
"Yeah, I saw Goten on my way over. He told me all about your adventures today. Is it true you all helped out Chobi?"
"Yep, sure did. With a little help from the Great Saiyaman." She stood, and walked over to where Gohan was.
Gohan tensed slightly. "Well that's great. I sent Goten on home. Shouldn't you be going on home too? I'll walk you there."
"There's something I need to tell you Gohan." She sounded very serious.
"Okay, what?" He laughed nervously.
"I never thought I'd be one of those silly girls like this, but I must confess. I have a crush on the Great Saiyaman."
Gohan was unsure of how to respond to this. He feigned a jealous look. "Well I know he's a cool guy, but I'm not real happy about that."
"I didn't think you'd mind too much." She got even closer before speaking again. "I know it's you Gohan. I know you're the Great Saiyaman"
Gohan stepped back in shock. "What are you talking about?" He asked. "I'm not."
"Don't play dumb. You made it painfully obvious. You do martial arts, you wanted to help that dinosaur, and you conveniently disappeared and reappeared whenever the Great Saiyaman would. Really Gohan, I'm a smart girl, but it didn't take a rocket scientist to figure that one out."
Gohan sulked. He'd been found out. "Fine, you're right. But you have to promise not to tell anyone! My whole family would be exposed and put on a pedestal like Hercule has, and that's the last thing we need right now."
"Don't worry silly, I won't tell." Kumiko teased. "But will you do me a favor? Will you take me to the World Martial Arts Tournament? I really want to see you fight."
"Ah man Kumiko, I hadn't really planned on entering. I haven't got to train any, and really I was only going to see a bunch of my family friends."
"Even better! That way I get to meet your family at the same time!" She beamed. "But you've just got to enter! From what I saw today, you'd do great!"
"To be perfectly honest, I don't really like to fight all that much. But fine, I'll compete." Gohan sighed.
"Yay! I'll cheer for you the whole way." Kumiko smiled. "Umm… Gohan, are we, like, dating now?"
Gohan laughed. "Yeah, I guess we are."
* * *
"You're what? Gohan! You can't enter the World Martial Arts Tournament!" Chi-Chi exclaimed.
"But Mom! All the rest of the family is, why can't I?" Gohan persisted.
"Absolutely not! You're final exams are coming up and if you don't hit the books you'll never make it into college! I just want you to get a good education and not end up a bum like your father. Is that so wrong?" Chi-Chi began weeping.
Gohan thought to himself. "But Mom, the winner gets a million yen that could help pay for college."
"A million yen? You could go to any college with that kind of cash!" Chi-Chi's eye's twinkled. "Why didn't you say that earlier? Of course you can compete Gohan!"
Gohan breathed a sigh of relief before Goten sleepily wandered in the room.
"If Gohan gets to enter, I do too, right Mom?" Goten rubbed his eyes.
"Sure! With you boys and your father competing we'll triple our chances of winning the prize money!" Chi-Chi danced happily into the other room.
Goten walked up to Gohan with a question written all over his face. "Gohan," he asked. "Why does Dad get to come home again?"
"Well Goten, Dad saved the world so many times, he earned some good credit. So he's allowed to come back for one day to compete in the tournament." Gohan paused. "You were too young to remember him, so I guess this will be like your first time meeting him, right?"
Goten nodded. "What's he like Gohan?"
"He's great Goten. He's a lot like you actually. Trust me. You'll like him."
"Okay." Goten bounced his way back to bed.
Gohan walked over to the window and stared out at the night sky. "I can't wait to see you again Dad. Just three more months left to go."
* * *