Son Goku slowly opened up his eyes and saw what could be described as the perfect day: bright blue cloudless sky, a slight breeze, the sun shimmering brightly. Goku smiled. It was not often he got to enjoy a day like this.
"Dad! Dad!" Goku sat up slowly to see Goten racing towards him with a large smile on his face. Goku stood up, stretched, and yawned. Goten ran faster, until finally, he leapt off of his feet and flew into his father's arms, knocking Goku off his feet.
"Hey, Goten!" Goku ruffled his son's hair and hugged him. "What's up, little guy?" Goten looked up, his face ever so similar to Goku's, and gave him another big smile.
"Mister Piccolo is here." Goten said. "He said it's impor...impor...im..." Goten scrunched up his face and thought hard. Goku laughed.
"Important, Goten. Important." Goku laughed again. Apparently, his looks were not that Goten had inherited from him. "C'mon. We'll Instant Transmission. Where's Piccolo at?"
Goten scratched his head. "I think he's still at the house. He came for Gohan too, and Mom was yelling at him 'cause Gohan had homework to do. But the sight of Mom mad scares most people, so he might've left."
Goku nodded. He didn't know one person (with the exception of Piccolo and Vegeta) that had ever not shown fear when Chi Chi lost her temper. "Hang on." Goku put two fingers to his forehead and father and son were off.
"NO! Piccolo, Gohan has way too much schoolwork to go gallivanting off on some new 'save-the-world' adventure again! For Kami's sake, he was only five when he had to fight the Saiyans! Leave my boy ALONE!!"
Chi Chi's face was red as she screamed at Piccolo, who was standing as still as a stone, his dark green face emotionless. She had been yelling at him for about a quarter of an hour, while Gohan sat miserably on the couch, occasionally trying to reason with his stubborn mother.
"Mom, but...they need...I...school...Piccolo..." Every time he tried to defend himself, his mother silenced him with a furious look. Gohan sat looking at his feet until he sensed a ki coming their way. A few seconds later, Goku and Goten appeared in the Son living room.
"GOKU!" Chi Chi raced over to Goku, grabbed Goten, put him down, then got right in his face. "I'm glad you're here! Piccolo is trying to take Gohan away from his schoolwork, and he has a test tomorrow! Tell me that's not..." But she was interrupted as Goku strode over to Piccolo and said, "What's up?"
Piccolo gave a small smile. "Good thing you showed up, or I would've had to shoot your wife."
"Oh, please! You all don't realize the value of a good education, that's all! Gohan's destined for great things, and all you can do is..." Finally, Goku shot Chi Chi a look which actually silenced her.
"Please, Chi, this might be important. And if it is urgent-" Goku nodded at Gohan, who perked up and smiled, "-Gohan must come with us." Goku looked back at Piccolo and questioned him. "What's going on?"
Piccolo sat down and took off his heavy helmet. As he rubbed his temples, his green antennae twitched slightly. "I just came from Dende's tower. He says he and Mr. Popo were given a message from the Supreme Kai. He has been kidnapped, he said, by a person he calls the 'Dark Kai.'"
Goku looked at Piccolo with a confused look on his face. "Dark Kai? What's a Dark Kai?" Piccolo set his helmet down, closed his eyes, and began to speak:
"According to whatever the Supreme Kai said, and with some help from King Kai, Dende told me this: when the Supreme Kai created all the other Kais to help overlook the galaxies, he made sure that all of them were pure in heart. To do this, he siphoned the evil in all the Kais created, and put the evil in a black hole he called Darkworld. No living thing except the Supreme Kai himself has seen this Darkworld, but supposedly, the body or spirit of a fighter entered Darkworld, allowing the evil to possess it, creating the Dark Kai. Apparently, there was a lot of evil and the fighter possessed was very powerful, since when the Dark Kai invaded the Supreme Kai's home, he defeated him easily."
For the first time, Gohan stood up and said, "But what does this have to do with us? What can we do if the Supreme Kai, one of the strongest beings in the universe, can't defeat this Dark Kai?"
Piccolo stood up and placed his helmet back on his head. "The Supreme Kai said that the Dark Kai would let him go and never return if we defeated five of his hand-picked opponents. If we don't..." Piccolo sighed and then continued. "...Then we are killed, and the Dark Kai takes over everything."
Goku's confused look suddenly became serious, and he stood up. "This is serious. We have to go save the Supreme Kai. Let's see..." Goku quickly counted. "We have me, you, Piccolo, Gohan, and Goten. That's four. Let's just go get Vegeta."
"But Dad," Gohan interrupted, "This Dark Kai's hand-picked opponents definitely won't be creampuffs. What about this: We get Vegeta and Trunks. Vegeta can handle himself, but Goten and Trunks can fuse. That way we have a better chance instead of just Goten or just Trunks."
Goku stared at his son with amazement. "...Man, no wonder you're mom makes you go to school. That was incredible! Very strategic!" Goku slapped Gohan on the back, which made him smile.
"Goku." Goku looked over his shoulder at Piccolo, who was standing with his arms folded across his chest. "We should be getting ready."
Goku nodded. "Right. So when do we leave? How long do we have??" Goku saw Piccolo's face get even more serious than before, if it was possible.
Piccolo sighed. "We get our allies, then make our way to Dende's tower. No training at all. If we don't go to Dende's tower within 24 hours, the Supreme Kai will be killed. So let's go get Vegeta and Trunks and get over there." Piccolo turned and began to walk out.
Goku shrugged. "Alright. Let's go" Goku turned to his sons. "Gohan, get your gi on. Goten, get ready to fuse." Both boys nodded, and quickly went to get ready. Goku looked at Piccolo. "I suppose we'll see you at the tower?"
Piccolo smirked. "Yeah." He walked out the door and flew off, leaving a white aura behind him. Goku gave a small wave and turned around...and walked right into Chi Chi, who's face was redder than before.
"Oh, my Kami..."
"GOKU, HAVE YOU LOST YOUR MIND?! HAVING OUR SONS GO OFF AND FIGHT SOME DARK WARRIOR? DO YOU WANT GOHAN NOT TO FINISH HIGH SCHOOL AND BECOME A PROFESSOR? DO YOU WANT GOTEN NOT TO LIVE PAST TEN YEARS OLD? ANSWER ME GOKU!!"
Gohan and Goten appeared and walked over to Goku. He smiled at Chi Chi and said, "Don't worry. I'll bring 'em back alive." He glanced at his sons. "Hang on." He put two fingers to his forehead and father and sons disappeared, leaving Chi Chi alone and fuming.
"What's this, Kakkarot?" Vegeta sneered at Goku. "You need me and my son to go fight for the fate of the Earth? Again? Kakkarot, I have better things to do then save a planet I care nothing about."
Goku gave Vegeta a pleading look and said, "C'mon, Vegeta. We need you. You're one of the strongest beings in the universe..." At this Vegeta exploded in anger.
"Oh, yeah that's easy for you to say, Kakkarot! With you being the strongest fighter in the universe, everyone's always lower than you, isn't that right?" Vegeta looked to be charging up. "No Kakkarot. I won't take orders under you anymore. I am PRINCE VEGETA!" Vegeta went Super Saiyan, blowing furniture everywhere. He gave Goku a challenging look. "Come on, Kakkarot. Let's end this now."
Goku stood still, then murmured. "If you come with us, and we survive, then I will face you. Full power, no interference. What do you say?"
Vegeta stopped his power-up and looked at Goku with amazement. "You're serious, Kakkarot? You'll face me if I come with you and we survive this thing?"
Goku nodded. "Yep. Let's just do this first." Goku held out his hand to shake. Vegeta balked at it. "Look, Vegeta, no shake, no battle." Vegeta scoffed, then reluctantly shook his rival's hand. "Good. Let's go."