As the sun sunk lazily into the horizon, it cascaded an endless sea of rolling waves with shades of brilliant, glittering orange. At the center of those gentle tides, an unassuming island sat above the depths. It was absolutely diminutive, having only just enough room to fit three palm trees and a two-story house. It looked just as shanty and ancient as the endless blue that shifted around it. It's old frame and peeling pink paint suggested countless repairs and renovations. It stood the test of time and the elements, however, the red lettering across it's walls proudly declaring it as the 'KAME HOUSE'.

A salty-scented sea breeze whipped around the old structure, making the old tin weathercock atop it's roof dance wildly. The palm trees swayed and the grass was tugged every direction at the wind's passing. A particularly powerful gust blew away a few puffs of sand from the island's humble beach, carrying the dust away to part's unknown, making room for two young men.

They faced each other, neither of them carrying even the faintest sliver of fear or hesitation. Both were well built, bodies rippling with muscle, testaments to their lives discipline and training. The first man stepped forward, his bare feet shifting the sands below. The sweet-smelling sea breeze tousled his short, cleanly cut chestnut hair. His smirking face showed a sort of playfulness, but his eyes were hard and serious as stone.

"Don't go crying when I pound your face in, Raspin."

Across from him, the man named Raspin folded his arms against his bare chest and smiled even wider. He was clean-shaven, but his pitch black hair was as spiked and wild as could be. His grin flashed with a cocktail of bemusement and barely-restrained excitement.

"I'd take my own advice if I were you, Kash."

Raspin took on a heavily defensive martial arts stance. One foot held behind the other, his right arm slanted to the ground and the other cocked back. Kash adopted the same pose, leaving no doubt as to their shared tutelage under the turtle style. Another whispering wind swept by, but after that, only the waves gently lapping at the shore and the faint cry of a distant gull could be heard. The tension hung between them like a bomb, the silent hiss of a lit fuse steadily counting until the detonation.

Then, with a thundering bang, it went off.

The two warriors left plumes of sand in their wake. They dashed forward at speeds any untrained eye couldn't hope to follow. Their fists collided roughly, shooting waves of pain up each one's arm. But both remained beaming like two kids at the playground. Kame House's speck of an island was far too small a battleground for fighters of their caliber. They took a few yards off the ground in an impressive display of flight, each circling around the circumference of the island countless times as their battle picked up in earnest.

The very waters beneath them were disturbed under the shock-wave of their blows. A punch blocked by Kash's knee forced a massive wave to go rolling in all directions. A roundhouse Raspin ducked under sent a rain of sea spray into the air. When both men threw an elbow at their opponent at once, a small whirlpool stirred the salty brine beneath them. After several minutes of trading titanic blows, the two broke away from each other. Both looked battered and beaten, but far from defeated.

"Not bad, Raspin. You've improved… just a bit." Kash chuckled, rubbing his bruised jaw.

"Back at ya. You're a little less of a wimp, I guess."

Kash floated backwards, the competitive fire in his eyes burning like an exploding star. He held back two hands, cupping them together. Faintly, a sapphire light began burning between his palms.

"Why don't we settle this?"

Raspin returned the gesture, in both the cocky smirk and the posture for the technique.

"Now we're talking… lets rock!"

Low, throaty roars erupted from both men as they gathered up every last drop of power from their bodies. The deep blue light shot through the gap between each of their clenched fingers, and a milky-white aura consumed both their bodies.

"Ka..."

"Me..."

"Ha..."

"Me..."

"HAAAA!"

The beams flew closer like two warring dragons, and met with all the force that such a clash would carry. The water below, the island some distance away, and even the sky above began glowing faintly with the same color as their white-blue beams. They struggled back and forth, each gaining on the other before being momentarily pushed back in turn. Neither could surmount the other in terms of raw strength, but both were equally bullheaded. Surrender wasn't an option on the table for either.

The stalemate went on for a full minute, but felt like a grueling hour for both warriors. Even as both Kash and Raspin began dripping with sweat and grunting from exertion, not an inch of ground was given by either party. The ocean below their hovering feet began parting, the sheer force enough to start boiling the sea.

Eventually, things came to a head, in spite of both's best efforts. Finally unable to keep up the strain, the fighters released their hold on their beams at once, leading to a violent explosion. Mixed sparks of their energy flew every which way. Some landed safely in the ocean. Others violently dusted seabeds and sunken rocks. When the light had at last faded and the wind carried away the black smoke hanging between them, the two warriors were left staring dumbly at Kame House.

Or what was left of it, at any rate.

"D-did that just…?" Kash almost whimpered.

"Please… no…" Raspin gulped.

They both looked utterly and thoroughly defeated, the grit they boasted to each other gone with the tide. The two floated limply back to the island, surveying the egregious damage their sparring match had inflicted. A stray fragment of energy had flown straight through the second story, causing it to collapse and crush the rest of the house.

"Daaaaamn!" Raspin cried. He collapsed onto both knees, yanking at his wild locks of hair, "What are we gonna do, Kash?!"

"I… I'll think of something, don't worry!" Kash stammered, frantically pacing back and forth, bare feet kicking up puffs of sand.

"Y-you'd better! This is your fault anyway!" Raspin cried, aiming an accusatory finger Kash's way.

"My fault?! How the hell is this crap my fault?!"

"You wouldn't give up during the beam struggle!"

"Neither did you!"

"You're supposed to be the smart one!" Raspin retorted, angrily kicking at the sand below.

Rolling his eyes, Kash, nervously tapped a fist against one of the island's trio of palm tress.

"A-alright, look. Its won't be that hard if we go at full speed. We just need to go pick up some supplies and work our asses off for a few days. If we're lucky, master won't get back from his vacation until we're finished."

The lines of worry still crested his face, but Raspin managed to crack an uneasy smile. He gave Kash a thumbs up in approval.

"Yeah, great idea, Kash!"

"Yeah, Kash. That's a pretty solid plan."

Raspin and Kash went in for a high five, but stopped mid-swing as they at last processed a third voice cutting into their nefarious scheming. They both looked down with terror in their eyes, which burst all the wider as their deepest, most bone-chilling fear became a reality.

An old midget of a monk stood before them. He wore traditional orange and yellow robes, loosely fitting around his small and bony body. His thick gray mustache furrowed in tune with his frown. And while his glare remained unseen under the thick lens of his sunglasses, both boys could practically feel the judgment and disappointment aimed at them.

"M-m-m-master Krillin! Y-you're back early!" Raspin stuttered, the fear evident on his aghast face.

"Really? I didn't notice." the monk spat bitterly, his head swiveling over to the wreckage of his home, "I see you fellas did some redecorating while I was gone..."

"We're so, so sorry Master!" Kash gasped in desperation, "We went overboard during a spar! We swear we'll rebuild it, good as new!"

"Yeah! Thats a promise!" Raspin cried in quick agreement.

With the oaken cane in his hand, Krillin gave each of the boys a light tap on the head. It looked so gentle that a newborn kitten could've shrugged it off with no problem – but the force it carried buried both of them halfway into the sand with quickly developing lumps.

As his two students dug their way out of their sandy graves, Krillin hobbled his way over to the wreckage. Pulling the fridge and a few other choice items out from the wreckage, the monk set up a hammock between two of of the palm trees and pulled out a tall can of beer, looking not too terribly distraught from his destroyed abode all the while.

The diminutive master shrugged off the heavy purple turtle shell on his back, the very island quivering under it's weight as it embedded itself in the sandy earth. Cracking open the can, he threw himself into the hammock and took a long sip.

"Well, better get to work boys. Kame House won't fix itself." he said, raising up his sun glasses to watch his two pupils dust themselves off.

"Yes, Master Krillin… we're so sorry..." the two defeated youths yielded and bowed at once, the goosebumps already sprouting from their unkempt heads of hair.

Krillin sighed wearily and took another gulp of beer. Wiping the foam from his mustache, he wagged his free pointer finger towards the boys, "Oh. As punishment… no using your ki while you fix it."

The training the turtle school put it's pupils through was brutal to say the least. Out swimming sea dragons. Pushing gargantuan boulders across entire fields. Delivering milk across an entire county in less than a half-hour, restarting if so much as a scratch ended up on even one of the bottles. All sorts of absurd challenges meant to break the student's mental and physical limits, and all performed with a weighted shell upon the back, which gradually increased in density upon each hurtle successfully conquered.

And yet, through all of that, Kash and Raspin weren't bound completely to the baseline of their muscles. They utilized their ki, their inner life force, to enforce their bodies and push themselves far beyond the physical limits of their bodies.

In that regard, having to rebuild an entire two-story home by hand wasn't particularly rigorous, even under the summer sun's brutal rays. What was truly mind-numbing to Raspin was how slow the entire process was taking without the boon of mustering up even a sliver of energy.

As usual, their Master Krillin was lazing about in his hammock, reading some sort of magazine all about vintage cars. Kash was carefully nailing in the final boards on the house's left wall, while Raspin busied himself by sawing a few long boards into a proper size not but a few feet away. As he split his fifth board in half, he heard his stomach growl in protest.

Raspin let out a whine unbecoming of a manly fighter. His stomach's voracious fangs ripped at him from the inside, demanding he give into his hunger. If only he could finished up just a tad bit sooner, he could take lunch.

He raised his ki by the most paltry of amounts. Grinning like a scoundrel, he prepared to saw apart another board at top speed.

"No ki, Raspin!" Krillin cried from his hammock.

"Yes, master." the dejected student grumbled, banishing his energy and returned to work, "Damn. We could've been done a week ago if we could use even just a teensy bit of our ki."

"Thats just the nature of the punishment, Raspin." Kash groaned irritably, "Just hope Master Krillin hopes we've learned our lesson soon so we can finish this thing up fast. We need to ramp up our training after this… we'll already be making up for lost time as it is."

"Sorry for bitching. Just a little hungry, I guess." the black-haired man said, cradling his empty belly with his free hand, "But whats the hell is happening that we've gotta ramp up our training for?"

There was a moment of stunned silence. Staring wide-eyed at Raspin, Kash had refrain from smacking him over his empty noggin with his hammer.

"Are you kidding, Raspin?! Did you hit your head or something?"

"Yeah, I got conked in the dome pretty hard by a board two days ago. But I don't see how that-"

"The World Martial Arts Tournament! Duh." Kash interrupted Raspin, brandishing his ball-peen hammer down with the same amount of conviction a judge would use with a gavel, "I can't believe you forgot! The preliminaries start six months from now."

"Ahh, the World Martial Arts Tournament. That sure takes me back."

Raspin and Kash dropped their tools, shocked to find their master sitting casually between them with a lit tabaco pipe pinched between his lips. Even with neither using ki to bolster their senses, the fact the tiny old monk slipped between them so casually was still an astounding feat.

"Oh. T hats right! You've said you've participated in them a few times before, right Master Krillin?" Kash asked with bubbles in his tone. He grinned brightly, like a child expecting a riveting story from his grandfather.

"In my younger years." Krillin explained evenly, taking a drag on his pipe and blowing out a puffy ring of smoke, "Never did make it to the finals. I probably could've easily taken home the champion title if I had waited till all the competition had all retired… but the whole thing had basically became a giant showboat to stroke the reigning champ's ego for a good twenty years. By the time he hung up his belt, I more-or-less lost interest in the whole thing."

"Right. That's why we should be pumped for this next one! The monks are finally back in charge of the whole operation. Now, it'll actually be a real competition to see who the best fighter on the planet is!" Kash cheered, excitedly pumping his fist in the air.

Raspin didn't seem impressed. He casually leaned against the table he was using to saw boards, "Pfft. This planet? Who cares who the strongest on this dirtball is? All the strongest fighters are aiming higher."

Krillin removed his pipe, cockin a brow, "Hehehe. So you have your eyes set on something a bit more prestigious?"

"Don't tell me," Kash narrowed a sour gaze at his boneheaded friend, "The Milky Way Championship?"

"Thats just a stepping stone." Raspin boasted, "I'm gonna win the King of the Universe Tournament."

Kash looked absolutely done with Raspin's nonsense. Krillin, on the other hand, just smiled warmly under his deep-gray facial hair, sunlight dancing across the lenses of his shades.

"Well, champ, whadya say to a little lunch?"

The wrinkled monk pulled out a capsule from his pocket, making both hungry boys water at the mouth. Lobbing it away, the capsule burst open, a large fridge appearing. Krillin hobbled over, opening it up to see what they had stored… only to find a few empty cans and used dishes.

Immediately, Kash and Krillin turned their heads to a sheepish Raspin.

"S-sorry. I might've had a lil' midnight snack…"

Krillin used one hand to move up his glasses; he used the other to rub where the theoretical bridge of his nose would be, "Urgh. For the love- look, I think you've both learned your lesson. Kash, why don't you power up and finished up the house? Raspin… you can go buy us some more groceries."

Raspin's nervous smile spiraled into a tight frown, "What? Why do I have to do the shopping?"

"Because you hate it… but a real man makes up for his mistakes, doesn't he? You wouldn't let poor Kash and I starve, would you?"

Raspin was unable to read his master with the thick mustache and large shades blocking his face. It only took one look to see Kash wasn't amused, on the other hand. Sighing, Raspin raised both hands in a show of surrender.

"Fine, fine. Let me grab my pack. I keep all my capsules in there." Raspin grumbled, folding both hands behind his head and marching into the incomplete home.

"Ah, Raspin. I've known you for the good part of decade, and I still can't fathom what goes in that thick skull of yours." Kash found himself muttering in frustration, "Guys stubborn, if nothing else."

A knowing smile played across Krillin's cheeks. He gently bowed his head, folding both arms behind his back.

"Yep. A stubborn bastard, right down to the core. He doesn't know his place, and he never knows when to quit… but if you ask me, that's one of the best qualities a fighter can have."

Raspin was in his still unfinished room, not hearing his master and fellow student's hushed words. He dug through his pack, making absolutely sure everything when it's proper place. When he was satisfied, he peaked towards the back, checking his pack's most secure pocket - and when he saw that familiar orange glow, a certain warmth filled his heart.

Throwing the pack over his shoulders, he took off through the hole in the wall, blasting over the sea with the wind at his back.

When Raspin was young, he found nothing as deep, mysterious, and beautiful as the ocean. Yet he soared above the waves, he saw them steadily degrade. Every time he soared above polluted waves, nature seemed much more fragile. As he rocketed to the city along the shoreline, the crystal blue went all the more cloudy and murky.

All the life and ki he could sense playing happily below the waves steadily petered out. Trash and gunk skimmed along the dirtied surface, and Raspin did his best not to let the sorry site get him down. He flew into the city, slowing down a good bit.

He floated above the docks, carefully avoiding the hovercarts hauling cargo around from ships to warehouses and back to ships. He landed atop one of the warehouses, staring towards the urban sprawl of the city and thinking it had it's own sort of beauty. Hectic and messy, complete averse to the serene crawl of nature. He knew each had their own perks and appeals, but his life of training and pleasure on his master's island was far more his speed.

Watching hovercars zip through the urban center, he lost track of time for a few long seconds. That was all that it took for someone to get on his case. A burly worker fitted in his safety gear pulled up next to Raspin in his hovering forklift, shaking a fist out from the driver's seat.

"Hey! Get outta here, you punk!"

Smiling cheekily, Raspin just then realized he was technically trespassing. Chuckling, he jumped from the top of the warehouse and flew backwards above the traffic of the city, weaving between dome-shaped roofs and waving goodbye to the dour worker all the while.

His course was abruptly halted as he felt his back hit another floating figure. He spun around midair, instantly meeting the unmistakable insignia printed on a thick white chest plate.

A galactic patrolman.

"H-how ya doin', officer?" Raspin sheepishly asked, raising one hand in a sign of peace.

The patrolman folded his beefy arms over his chest. And while his face was concealed underneath a white helmet, Raspin could easily imagine a sour frown behind the patrolman's orange visor.

"Flight is off limits to civilians in urban sectors." the officer explained steadily. From his expression, it sounded like he assumed the boy before him was just an ignorant hillbilly more than a willful violator of the law, "If you're itching to zip around, buy a ticket and move to a frontier planet. Here on Earth, we like to keep things a tad more civilized."

"Right." Raspin mouthed, bowing his head in apology, "Sorry."

Immediately the youth descended to the relatively uncrowded sidewalk below, grumbling and folding his hands into his pockets. He was certain he could've pounded the smug patrolman's face in – it wouldn't have been his first time tussling with one. As much as surrender and capitulation turned his stomach, the disappoint from his Master Krillin would've been far more bitter a pill to swallow.

And so he walked to the farmer's market at a brisk pace, dodging past the throngs of colorful people from all walks of life. So many different sorts of aliens filled the streets, living in a strained harmony with the native earthlings, be they animal-hybrids or purely humanoid.

Walking with a certain aloof swagger, Raspin cut through the crowds and shortly arrived at his destination. The farmer's market was crowded as usual, thick throngs of sharp-eyed shoppers scoping out deals on the freshest produce for the best price. The sounds of friendly banter and casual bartering from voices high and low filled Raspin's ears; the sweet and hardy smells from all sorts of fruits, veggies and meats were easily caught by his twitching nose.

Raspin already knew his destination. He hustled past a stall of a portly majin slinging salted cuts of beef and an elderly namekian selling his herbal remedies, stopping before his favorite stall. Behind the counter, between rows and rows of fresh produce, a dark-violet alien with a stocky build waited with a wide grin. He bobbed his head, long and ovular like an octopus but covered with dark yellow spots all over.

"Hey, hey! Raspin! Nice to see ya, kid."

"Same here, Gala." Raspin beamed,"You're the only one in this damned city I can bargain in without having to take my anger out an

"You can always just go to a supermarket to shop, y'know." Gala laughed softly, laying his rough hands against the counter.

"Nah. As much as I hate dealing with farm boys, I don't exactly have a steady income. I've gotta be a frugal shopper." Raspin mouthed. He reached into his pack, feeling around for his wallet for payment and his small collection of capsules for storage, "Anyway, I'll take the usual, if you don't-"

Raspin paused. He could feel eyes locked on his back; and although it was barely readable among the crowd gathered around, he could at last noticed a singular one having been behind him for a good bit.

Gala looked puzzled, the seriousness on the younger man's face not something he was used to. Saying nothing, Raspin slowly towards the back of the stall. Not fully understanding anything but the urgency in Raspin's dark eyes, Gala nodded in turn and crept back into the depths of his stall, trying to act inconspicuous as possible.

Raspin slowly turned on his heel, spotting some skinny man of around his age staring at him. Messy, light-blue hair fell all around his ears and the back of his neck. The stalker dressed casually in a worn black t-shirt and baggy sweatpants. For whatever odd reason, he wore a stained lab coat over all of it. Raspin could only guess he was some kind of oddball scientist. Raspin snarled against his better judgment. He didn't have most sterling opinion of eggheads in lab coats.

"The hell do you want with me?"

The scientist took a moment to readjust his glasses, smirking and stepping forward as he did so.

"Hello there, friend. You have something I need… if you hand it over, I'd be willing to reimburse you appropriately. Interested?"

In that single moment, time froze for Raspin. His mind zipped for any answer to why this unkempt geek would target him specifically. It couldn't have been money; surely there would've been more appealing targets. He didn't hold much of value on his person, and there wasn't much in his pack worth pilfering. Then, something snapped in in the young fighter's mind. He remembered the smooth, orange, glimmering little ball he always kept in his pack's very back pocket. His good luck charm; the greatest gift his master ever bestowed upon him.

His four-star dragon ball.

Raspin didn't know exactly how the scientist knew he had it, but he had no doubt thats what the four-eyed man was after. Raspin's grimace grew as hard and cold as a glacier.

"Fuck off, you stupid mouth breather. You'll get my dragon ball over my cold, dead body."

The geek's thinly-veiled amiable nature shattered in an instant. His thin shoulders arced, and his pasty skin flushed an angry pink color.

"Watch your mouth, punk! I'm the greatest genius this side of the cosmos, and I won't be talked down to."

"That right? Well, if you don't buzz off in the next five second, I'll kick your smug ass to the other side of the cosmos. How does that sound?"

"Sounds like a challenge, and one I'm eager to accept." the scientist snickered, tucking his hands into his coat's pockets "Lets take this outside of town so we can settle this without randos getting in the way."

"Good idea. Don't want to traumatize any kids or geezers after they see what I'm about to do to you."

Smirking all the while, the smug scientist pulled out a capsule, which he promptly lobbed at the ground. What was summoned from the puff of smoke was a high-end hoverbike, painted a bold electric blue. While the crowd of bargain hunters flowing around them had thinned, there were still enough people to let out nervous mutterings and bound away as the bike appeared.

Their insults and taunts were traded. The arrogant geek mounted his bike and took to the sky, Raspin flying not far behind him, not giving enough of a damn to heed the Galatic Patrolman's warnings against flight in city limits.

The hoverbike's gentle hum and the rush of wind filled in what would've been a tense silence between the two men. They flew deeper into Mount Paozu, leaving the concrete and steel of city behind in favor of serene landscape. Over bamboo forests and gentle streams they flew, until the gray towers of the city were nothing but thin fingers sprinkled along the horizon. The fact that the sweeping wave of pollution hadn't yet claimed the mountains filled Raspin with some small measure of hope for the future, but his mind was more focuses on the incoming fight.

Raspin hummed under his breath. He stared at the scientist's coat as it flapped violently in the rush of the wind. Briefly, he wondered just what the scientist was going to pull. His ki was absolutely pathetic, he was using a jetbike instead of flying, and his unimpressive build suggested his diet constituted more energy drinks and quick snacks than water and hearty meals. If he was hiding his ki, he would be the greatest master of concealment Raspin had every come across.

Somehow, he doubted that was the case. More likely, he was hiding some kind of bomb or blaster in that coat. Most of the weaponry sold to civilians wouldn't do much harm to him at this point in his training, but there was always the possibility the scrawny fellow could've smuggled weapons off planet or built some of his own.

Either way, something about the situation unnerved him. He rushed headlong into the fight, and he was somewhat glad that their trip away from civilization gave him time to think and compose himself. If it was some sort of trap, Raspin was afraid he could have very well taken the bait in the heat of the moment. The hoverbike dipped in velocity and vertically. It landed in a craggy canyon, and Raspin followed without trepidation.

Raspin's feet touched the ground as the scientist threw himself from his bike, returning it into a capsule and tucking it back into his labcoat. As he returned it, he drew another from the same pocket. He clicked down on the trigger, but hesitated to throw it.

"Ah," he gasped, a sudden realization dawning on him, "Silly me. We haven't even introduced ourselves."

Raspin stayed silent for a moment, not willing to give out his name to the pompous ass. But as almost half a minute past with the just the bastard smiling expectantly, Raspin realized that they wouldn't be going anywhere without trading names. He tossed his bag to the side, stepping forward with a thumb forked against his chest.

"Its Raspin."

"And I," he roared boisterously, raising the capsule in the air, "...am Corset Briefs, the heir to the Capsule Corporation and the greatest genius in history!"

Corest slammed his capsule to his feet, and it was only then that Raspin realized it wasn't any normal capsule. In addition to the usual inane puff of smoke, an intense white light flashed in the center of the cloud.

Raspin watched in awe as the fog cleared. First, he saw the legs – smooth gray metal, backwards jointed and three-toed just like the legs of a tyrannosaur. Then the fog dissipated around the arms, or more accurately, the heavy weapons taking their place. One was a heavy gatling gun, the other a nasty-looking missile launcher with three loaded barrels.

Lastly, the smoke cleared from around the round body, and the light faded. There wasn't a head, only a cockpit set right at the center. And standing triumphantly from the seat was the smug scientist. Before Raspin could act on any smart ideas on blasting him right out of the mech, Corset hopped in and let it's emerald windscreen slam shut, sealing him safely in the cockpit.

"And this is my masterpiece, the Titan Slayer Mk III!"

Slack-jawed, Raspin could only stare at the towering moutain of metal for a long moment. The walking weapon tripled him in height and quadrupled him in width. While Raspin couldn't sense the artificial energy that was generated by machines, he had a sinking feeling that the hulking suit would be hard to take down.

In spite of all that, he smiled wide.

"Nice ride." Raspin laughed, shifting into his stance, "It'll be a crying shame when I send it flying all the way to the scrapyard!"

Fear, panic, hesitation. Whenever Raspin fought, he let it all melt away and allowed his excitement to run wild throughout his entire body, leaving a fiery feeling in it's wake. No matter how deadly the battle or dire the odds, he just couldn't stop himself.

Because above all else, he lived to fight.

Author's Note- First and foremost, I'd like to thank anyone who's read this far. Secondly, don't expect too many of these. I don't typically enjoy the concept of author's notes unless I actual fell like there's something that needs to be said.

And so, just a bit of background of why I decided to write this. Simply put, I love all things dragon ball. Yes, I even enjoyed some parts of GT and many parts of Super. While I do think some parts of the series are stale or feel forced, I can still sit down and appreciate the series for what it is. The recent Broly movie has resparked my love for the series and made me want to publish this ancient story from the depths of my hard drive, never having been published before.

How long will this series last? Not sure. I just felt like telling a story about my favorite anime and sharing it with other fans. What I utterly lack in artistic ability I'll try to make up for in somewhat more gripping plots and ideas in the form of writing and keep the lovable characters and humor in tact.

And as for anyone curious about the numerous things I brought up in this chapter - who exactly are Raspin and Kash, how Krillin is still kicking, how the earth has changed so much since the end of Z - I'll eventually provide and answers. Just know that the story takes place roughly five-hundred years after Goku takes Uub under his wing.

Also, if anyone's confused to the puns of any characters names, I'd be happy to provide you the answer. Every name will bear some relevance to Toriyama's original works, so keep that in mind. Just for example, Kash is Krillin's student - Krillin's original name is a pun on chestnut, so Kash is a cashew. Please, save your applause for a pun that has at least three seconds of thought put into it.

Oh, and one last thing. If anyone would be willing to act as my proofreader, please contact me. I do my best to spot typos and grammatical errors, but I'm not perfect.