The sun shone bright on the Lookout that day. The old Guardian of Earth marveled at the sight of his two little students sparring on the courtyard while leaning on his staff. Oh, the youthful energy, the laughter, the joy. Despite both young Goku and Krillin were giving their best to win the match, they still managed to do it in a fun way, a way only the mind of a child could come up with. Kami let out a sigh.

"Oh, to be young again…" he thought. The almost never ending energy of the two youngsters was something he was almost jealous of. And who could blame him. At several hundred years old (he had long since stopped counting); he had faced the tolls age brought along in several ways already.

He watched as his male servant and the caretaker of the Lookout, Mr. Popo, arrived and began teaching the two younglings about some new fighting techniques. Even if Kami was much younger than Mr. Popo, one would have thought of the very opposite. This was due to the fact that the genie was ageless. He had never been a child, but also would never age. He had been working for the previous Guardians of Earth as well, at least the last two or three before his reign that Kami knew of. This would make him thousands of years old, the least. Technically the genie was immortal, since he would never die of old age or so. Kami sneered at the thought. Who would even want an eternal life like that?

But that wasn't the real reason the old Guardian was thinking of all this. Yes, he was of very advanced age, and he was very aware that he might not live for too long anymore. He looked back at the two children. Either one of them would probably become his apprentice and successor. Maybe, just maybe though, as it wasn't sure at all whether either of them would be up for the job. He had to be honest with himself though… He hoped either Goku or Krillin would prove to be worthy to become the new Guardian of Earth after he passed away… It's not like there was much of a choice. Though if they declined… He wouldn't know what to do. These two children were the only ones on the planet with the needed potential for the job, as Kami himself didn't have any offspring to take the position after his death, this was the only way. He sighed again, grasping his staff even tighter.

Yes, it was true. He was childless. Not that it was completely uncommon for a Guardian to not have a family… But it wasn't a matter of choice for Kami. He had just never found an appropriate woman to be his wife. Not just one who was worthy to be the wife of the Guardian of Earth… But one that was actually of the same species as him.

Kami sighed once more. You didn't have to even look at him to know he wasn't your regular being from the planet. Or was he from this planet in the first place? The fact is, he didn't know. He stood 7 feet tall, had green skin with once pink - now yellow patches on his arms, body and legs accompanied with red outlines that also went around his body (you wouldn't know this since he's wearing his robes), and had huge pointy ears framing his face and two antennae sticking out on his forehead.

Besides these striking differences between him and the humans, he also had fangs and sharp nails, and many special abilities that he had long since when he was young himself noticed that not many, if any, of the people on Earth possessed. Not to mention his age. He had to be at least 500 years old by then. No mortal being lived that long on the planet.

Those were the reasons why he had never taken a bride. Not that any human woman would have even wanted to have him as her husband… And even if someone had, they would have been long gone by then, as would likely be any offspring they might have had together. That is, if his kind was even compatible with the human race the way that conceiving an offspring was possible the first place.

Kami let out yet another sigh. Nobody knew how painful the subject was for the old Guardian. One might easily have thought of him as the kind of a person who preferred to be a loner and childless, but that was far from the truth. It was true he had grown accustomed to being alone, but it was more due to the fact that he had never had much people around him the first place, and not that it was of his true nature. Not that he wanted to have a ton of people around… But he wouldn't have minded to have a spouse… and especially children. Underlining the word 'children'.

He sighed once again, turning around and casted one final peek at the genie, who had just finished sparring with the two kids. "I'm going back in, Mr. Popo. I'll see you later, Goku, Krillin." With that said, he opened the door and stepped in the building.

"What's wrong with him?" Goku asked, being surprised by the old Guardian's sudden departure.

Mr. Popo stared the door of the palace his master has just disappeared in and left out a sigh.

"I don't know, Goku. Something has been troubling him as of late, but he won't talk about it.

"Oh, what a shame. You think he's going to be okay, Mr. Popo?" The boy continued.

"Yes, I'm sure he is. He just needs some time for himself now."

The boy nodded, turning back to his friend, came closer and suddenly slapped him on his shoulder yelling: "Tag, you're it!", and ran away laughing with his startled bald friend yelling and running right on his heel. Mr. Popo smiled as he looked at the kids, but it disappeared as soon as his gaze fell back on the door. He sighed once more, and left thinking he could as well go and water the plants now, and hoped his master would open up to him about what had made the old man so apprehensive.