Set three months after Second Kiss, First Time.

Yamcha stepped out of his taxi and looked around with a contented sigh. He'd only been here once before, but the Tenkaichi Budokai had left its mark on him, and he was excited to be competing in it once again. Straightening his tie, he made his way to the registration desk. Really, the only disappointment was that his friends were still back in the jungle, busy with various things – it would have been nice to have them see him compete, especially Raditz. He signed his name in the registration book with a smile at the thought of the tall saiyan. They'd been officially dating for a few months now, and Yamcha, for one, was enjoying it immensely. Raditz seemed to have grown more comfortable with the concept as well…

The ex-bandit was interrupted from his pleasant thoughts by a hand on his shoulder. "stop staring into space and move out of the way – some of us actually have a chance of qualifying."

Bristling, Yamcha turned to see a familiar green-clad figure glaring at him, all three eyes narrowed. He gulped, recognising the man as the Crane School student who had challenged Geta back before the saiyans arrived and, sure enough, his small friend was also there with him. His attitude apparently hadn't improved since then, but his power level certainly had. He would be a challenging opponent.

Then Yamcha blinked and realized he was looking down at the man slightly. Hadn't the guy been taller- oh, right, saiyan second puberty. Trust Bulma to make everything weird.

The triclops signed up and was turning back towards him, most likely to make another cutting remark, when another familiar voice spoke up.

"Yamcha?"

He turned to see a short youth in a suit with a fedora on his bald head and smiled. "Krillin! Good to see you! And you as well, Master Roshi."

"Hmf, your cute girlfriend not with you this time?" the old man asked in disappointment, looking around in the vain hope of spotting Bulma.

"We broke up a few years ago," Yamcha admitted, "And she's busy right now with work-"

"So, you're the Turtle School student who caused a stir at the last tournament," the triclops's cold voice interrupted, and Yamcha turned to see the man smirking at them, "I must admit, I had been expecting a more… impressive figure. Then again, what can you expect from Turtle School?"

Krillin bristled. "Oh yeah? And who're you, anyway?"

The triclops folded his arms. "I am Tien Shinhan of the Crane School, and this is my associate, Chaotzu," he gestured at the youth beside him, "And the next time you see me, it'll be when I'm throwing you out of the ring and showing the world that Crane School is the best – provided you make it that far, of course. Come along now, Chaotzu." And with that the Crane School students left, Chaotzu pausing to turn back and stick his tongue out at them before running to catch up with Tien.

Krillin glared after them. "That- those- those jerks!"

Yamcha snorted, "Yeah, he had a bad attitude last time I met him, too."

Roshi started at this. "you met a student of the Crane School and survived the encounter? I'm impressed – you must have improved greatly since the last Budokai."

"No, well, yes," Yamcha admitted, "That is, I have gotten a lot stronger, but I've never fought that guy before – he challenged the champion of the dojo where I was studying at the time."

"Ah," Roshi's expression went grim, "Then you've at least seen what he's capable of."

"Kind of?" Yamcha scratched the back of his neck, thinking back to that fight and the exact level of success Shinhan had had with it, but Krillin got distracted before he could elaborate.

"Hey, Yamcha, I didn't know you had fans."

The ex-bandit blinked at this. "Fans? What are you talking about, I don't have any-" he stumbled to a halt as he turned to see what Krillin was pointing at. Standing by the entryway was a figure holding a large sign on a stick in front of him that had 'GO YAMCHA' written on it in blocky script. The sign hid the person's face, but the tip of a very familiar flame of black hair was peeking over the top, and as Yamcha watched an equally familiar grin appeared from behind it.

"Hi, Yamcha!" Geta called happily, "I'm a distraction!"

"A distraction? From wha-" Yamcha stopped mid-sentence as something warm, furry, and familiar wrapped itself around his wrist, and he spun to fin Raditz, Bulma, and Pu'ar behind him, Geta scampering over to join them a few moments later, his sign resting on his shoulder, and Yamcha beamed, delighted. "You came!"

"Of course we did," Bulma smirked, "You didn't think we'd actually miss something like this, did you?" then she jumped and spun around to punch Roshi.

"Bulma, I see you're the same as ever," the Turtle Sen'nin grumbled, rubbing his head.

"Right back at ya, you old pervert!" Bulma snarled and went to stand with Geta, who turned a little pink at her proximity, "Anyway, Kakarrot couldn't come – busy training with Chichi."

"I can't say I'm surprised," Yamcha replied before turning to the two short men standing next to him, "By the way, Krillin, Master Roshi, these are Geta and Raditz. Guys, this is Master Muten Roshi, the master of the Turtle School, and Krillin, his top student and the runner-up from the last Budokai."

Raditz looked Krillin u and down "He's the one who bested you last time? He's tiny!"

"Normally I would take offense to that last statement," Krillin said, staring up at Raditz, "But I kinda see how that would appear to be the case from your perspective. Also, I hate to point out the obvious, but you have a tail."

Raditz looked down at the limb in question, which was still wrapped around Yamcha's wrist, then folded his arms and raised an eyebrow at Krillin. "So? You don't have a nose."

"Touché, I guess." He looked between Raditz and Geta, "Are you two going to compete in the tournament?"

The two saiyans looked at each other, then Geta shrugged and spoke for them both. "Nah, tournaments aren't really our thing."

Yamcha breathed an internal sigh of relief at this. He'd been matching strides with Raditz pretty evenly since the whole species-swap fiasco, but Geta had blazed ahead in a swift rise of power that was outpaced only by Kakarrot. The flame-haired man had found the challengers he'd been looking for all his life in the form of his race, and then he'd hit his second spurt. The results had been fairly impressive, and the saiyan's slight frame was more deceptive than ever in regards to the power it contained.

The relief was short-lived, however, as something else occurred to him. "You might have to fight anyway, Geta, unless you do something to hide your hair."

Geta blinked. "My hair? Why would I need to do that? I mean, I put a shirt on – and shoes, be impressed – and I've got my power down. I can't look that threatening!"

"Yeah, I was noticing," Yamcha admitted, "Any particular reason you decided that that was the shirt to wear for this event?"

Geta stood up proudly, "Today I am here to cheer, not fight. And ain't nobody picking a fight with a guy who looks like me wearing a shirt like this! Also, it says 'bad man' on the back, which is funny because I'm not one – see?"

"I- yes it does," Yamcha snorted as Geta turned around to show him, "However it's still your hair that's going to be the problem right now – remember that triclops guy you fought a few years back? Well he's here and his attitude's as bad as ever. He'll probably want revenge."

"Oh. Well crap," Geta stuck his hands in his pockets, considering, "Hey, could I borrow your shoulder-cloth to use?"

"It's a kerchief and it's part of my gi, so no," Yamcha replied firmly.

"Shit. Guess I'll have to find something else. Hey Bulma, hold my sign while I look, please?"

Bulma accepted the sign and Geta wandered off into the crowd, an annoyed look on his face.

"Okay, who was that and why would Crane School Guy want to fight him?" Krillin demanded as Geta left.

"You know how you came to Master Moo-sun's dojo about a year ago to try yourself against the champion?"

Krillin nodded, "Yeah, he wasn't there so we fought instead. And I should warn you I'm way better than I was back then!"

"I noticed – your ki's increased," Yamcha grinned, "I think we're going to have a tough fight if we face each other. Anyway, Geta's the champion of Master Moo-shun's dojo."

"What?!"

"WOULD ALL CONTESTANTS PLEASE MAKE THEIR WAY TO THE PRELIMINARY AREA – THE 22ND TENKAICHI BUDOKAI IS ABOUT TO BEGIN!"

"Well, that's our signal." On a whim Yamcha hopped up and hovered for a moment to steal a quick kiss from Raditz. "Later, babe!"

"Good fighting, bandit," Raditz responded, cheeks only lightly coloured.

"Thanks!" beaming, Yamcha headed for the contestants' area, followed by Krillin.

"So," Krillin started, sounding a little stunned, "You and Raditz, you're…?"

"Dating," Yamcha replied happily, hands behind his head, "Met him over a year ago now, got together with him a few months back, have been disgustingly happy since according to Bulma."

"Oh," Krillin digested this, then spoke again hesitantly, "So… you're gay now?"

"Bisexual," Yamcha responded, voice firm, "And I always have been. Why, you're not going to be weird about it, are you?"

"No!" Krillin said hastily, "But I want you to know I'm straight as a nail!"

"Also five years younger than me and not my type. I'm not automatically attracted to everyone, you know," the ex-bandit said, unruffled. He hadn't exactly been the most knowledgeable kid on the block about sexuality when he'd been sixteen, either, and was willing to give the younger martial artist a little room to catch up.

"Right. Sorry." Krillin blushed, looking awkward, "I… know nothing about any of this. At all. Well, a tiny bit."

"Don't worry about it – a tiny bit's more than I knew at your age. You'll learn."

"Thanks."

"Again, don't worry – but do pick up your pace, we're the only ones still out here!"

"Crap!"

OoOoOoOoO

The preliminary rounds were easy, and Yamcha was surprised to see that he, Krillin, and the Crane School students ended up in separate blocks, though not that they'd all made it to the final eight. Yamcha had braided his hair for the preliminaries to keep it out of his face, but now he tucked it down the back of his tunic and removed the kerchief to store with his suit. It might have been part of his traditional gi, but there was no point in giving his opponents extra things to grab onto, especially things that could be used to strangle or control his head. He was generally confident enough in his skill to leave his hair loose, but he was taking no chances against Shinhan.

The lots were drawn for the first matches of the finals – Chaitzu versus Krillin, Jackie Chun against a man called King Chappa, Yamcha against an indian youth named Upa, and Shinhan against another youth named Panpoot.

Krillin blinked when he spotted Yamcha's opponent in the final group, then smiled and waved. "Hey, Upa! I didn't know you were coming here!"

"Krillin!" the youth smiled back, "I've been thinking about the stories you told me about the last Budokai and decided it would be nice to have some stories of my own to tell one day! So I trained and climbed the Tower, too, and, well, here I am! I was hoping to see you here."

They shook hands and Krillin turned to Yamcha, still smiling, "Yamcha, this is my friend Upa, of the Karin Sanctuary, Upa, this is Yamcha, the guy I fought last time!"

"Pleased to meet you," Upa bowed politely, "Krillin spoke highly of your skills when he came to train at the sanctuary. It will be an honour to test my skill against yours."

"Likewise, I'm looking forward to it," Yamcha replied, bowing back.

"Psh, sentiment."

The three looked up to see the Crane School students watching them coldly, Shinhan with an expression of distain on his face. "I recognise you now – you were at that little backwater dojo a few years ago, giggling in the back with some girl about numbers. You'd best pray you don't make it past the semi-finals, because if you do I'll be there, and I will destroy you for witnessing my humiliation at the hands of a pathetic ki senser!"

Yamcha folded his arms and met his gaze levelly. Two-thirds of his gaze, anyway. "Oh yeah, I remember that conversation. We were rating your attractiveness – I think we gave you a 6.3?" he looked the man up and down, "Pretty generous, looking back on it. I'd say you're more of a 4.8, factoring in your terrible attitude."

The triclops blinked at him, looking confused for a moment, then smirked. "Your attempt to disorient me would be admirable – for a child." He levelled his gaze at Upa, "I will assume that you will be the one I face in the ring. Prepare yourself."

"Yamcha," Krillin said very quietly as the triclops and his friend left, "I will admit, that was pretty ballsy. But you just pissed off a guy training to be a professional assassin. That was not smart."

Yamcha glanced at him, surprised. "Why are you so scared? He's tough, but not unbeatable. You, me, him – we're all actually pretty close in terms of ki, and with levels this similar brute strength'll be less of a factor in deciding the victor than skill."

"If you say so," Krillin mumbled, still looking nervous.

OoOoOoOoO

The first four matches were interesting but unremarkable in comparison to the ones that came after. Yamcha beat Upa with relative ease and offered him a friendly hand up after the match; the fight between Jackie Chun and King Chappa proceeded in a similar manner with Chun's victory. Panpoot and Shinhan's match was short and violent, ending with a vicious punch to ribs, the sound of snapping clearly audible. Really, the most memorable fight was the one between Krillin and Chaotzu.

"I can't believe you beat him with math," Upa snorted as Krillin walked out of the ring to join them in the spectator's area.

"I can't believe it worked," Krillin admitted, "Kinda wishing I hadn't won right now, though."

That comment surprised both Upa and Yamcha, and the Indian youth glanced at him curiously, "Why not?"

"Did you see the look that Crane School guy gave me afterwards?" Krillin shivered, "And I have to fight him next!"

Yamcha gave him a light punch in the shoulder, "Hey, like I said earlier, the three of us are close. It's gonna be a fight that relies more on skill than brute strength."

And it was a close match – close in strength, close in speed… but not close in one area. Yamcha had forgotten a key difference between the three of them. Yamcha had been in life-or-death battles before – the life of a desert bandit was a dangerous one and tengu were not known for their mercy. Shinhan was training to be an assassin, and the lessons he had received were cold and lethal. Krillin… was sixteen. He was sixteen and he'd grown up in a monastery – he'd never been in a fight where his life was on the line, and as a result he lacked a certain edge, a lack that showed in his style. The youth managed to dodge his own Kamehameha when the triclops bounced it back at him, and even twisted around the kick to the chest in mid-air that followed. However before he could reorient himself the taller man had struck him with a lethally quick blow that knocked him out of the ring and into the wall of the spectator's area with a sickening snap. Shinhan moved on to the final match with a triumphant sneer and Krillin was taken away by the medics to be treated for a broken collarbone.

Yamcha approached his own match with grim determination, only to halt at a hand on his shoulder. He turned to see Jackie Chun standing there, a mild expression on his face.

"One of us is going to have to fight that misguided young man, my boy," he said conversationally, "And I remember you from the last tournament. Probably gotten a lot stronger since then?"

"Yes sir," Yamcha replied, confused.

"Good," Chun nodded, "Then come at me with all your strength, right from the get-go, but if you have any new tricks up your sleeves, keep them there." He headed into the arena before Yamcha could respond.

OoOoOoOoO

Nobody yell at Krillin, okay, please? No one is born with gender or sexuality knowledge, not everyone is exposed to it early on – I actually learned most of what I know about sexuality beyond hetero pretty late, older than sixteen. The point I'm trying to make here is, he messed up, yes, but it was from a place of legit ignorance, not ill intent, and the moment he learned he was acting in a way that wasn't okay, he apologized and did his best to correct his behaviour. I'm very fond of Krillin, but he can be a little awkward at times.

And his first fight with Chaotzu is AMAZING, definitely look it up in the anime or manga if you haven't seen it. DBZ could have used a few more fun battles like that one. ;)

Krillin and Upa met when Krillin went to Karin tower for training, and they're actually pretty good friends in this universe.

The saiyans aren't fighting in this tournament partially because it wouldn't be a challenge for them, so they don't see the point (okay, Raditz is at Yamcha's level but he considers himself a mechanic more than a warrior at this point), and also because it's for 'the strongest under the heavens.' And they're technically from the heavens, so they don't qualify. ;D

…okay, yeah, thin excuse. But let's be honest… it's more interesting this way. ;)