Chapter 1: The Search Begins

'Dear Sensei Sayaka,

It's been too long, hasn't it? It's been about a year since you last wrote to me and told me to help you with your gi issue… Well, I have, indeed, made a new gi for your school. The gi is either orange, or red, depending on the person's tastes. I made two separate ones for you, and they each have your kanji on them. I hope you like them.

I swear, Sensei, something strange has to do with my boy, Ethan… The rate in which he becomes stronger seems impossible. Of course, he has yet to go through Turtle Training, but I hope that you'll train him soon, as I've foreseen the beginning of his journey through the many endless dreams that I've had… Anyways, Sayaka. The gis are in a capsule inside of this envelope. I hope to see you soon. Farewell, teacher.

Sincerely, Your Student,

James.'

James signed the letter, and folded it over itself twice. He put it in the envelope that he had specifically addressed to Sayaka. He put the envelope on his pocket, and got up, going to the kitchen portion of the cabin he lived in. He stirred the sauce he had had ready for lunch. The cabin he lived in was a nice, wooden cabin, and fairly big as well. The walls were dark brown, inside and outside, and the roof was an even darker brown, with the ceiling being a light brown with a light dangling down from the middle. In the left corner of the cabin, as you walk in, there are two beds, separated by the tiniest of gaps, with a dark brown dresser next to the nearest bed to the door. On the far right corner of the house was the cupboard full of bowls, plates, knives, forks, spoons, etc. On the far left of the house was a gasoline stove, and next to it, a sink with running water. Though, there was no refrigerator.

James stepped outside, looking around at the place he'd lived in since he'd been a child. His house was in the middle of an open field, filled with lush green grass. An abundance of trees seemed to surround his house endlessly, and there were paths in the trees going north, south, east, and west. If you took the wrong path, you could get lost forever.

James was an old man, in his seventies, and was short for his age, because he had been shrinking due to age. He was about four foot five inches tall. He wore green cargo shorts, and brown velcro shoes, with two velcro laces. He wore white ankle socks, and also had a white tanktop. He was bald, with a short, gray moustache. He was a kind old man.

"Ethan! It's time for lunch! Hurry, before I eat it all!" James shouted. His voice seemed to echo throughout the woods…

Ethan was in the middle of the woods, swinging from vines, when he heard James's voice. He then began swinging towards James with his quickest speed. As James waited for Ethan to come out of the woods, he walked to their blue mailbox, and placed the letter he'd written for Sayaka inside of it, closing it, and putting the red mail flag up to get the mailperson's attention. After about a minute, he swung out of the forest, and landed on the ground, staring at James. He then began sprinting towards James, and within about ten seconds, he arrived next to James. James cleared his throat, and looked from the spot that Ethan ran from, and then at Ethan, and thought to himself for a moment.

"Ethan… Let's see… Well, I'd say that you ran about fifty yards in… Ten seconds. Nothing revolutionary, but still, impressive, especially considering your age." James said. Ethan smiled, and chuckled.

Ethan was just a boy, ten years old in age. He wore red sweatpants, and a red tanktop, with white wristbands, about one and a half inches in width, around his wrists. His shoes were black sneakers with white laces, and they were ankle shoes. His hair was very dark brown, and all of it stood up straight, spiked, except for one lock, that went down the center of his forehead, but not long enough to be in his eyes. The back of his sweatpants had a hole just above where his butt was, and there was a golden tail sticking out of it, much like an ape's tail.

James and Ethan went inside. James prepared the plates for lunch. Right to the right of the entrance, about a foot from it, was a wooden table with three chairs, two on either side, and one in the center top of the table, where Ethan and James always ate. James brought two plates to the table, and put them on either side, with two drinks of soda. Ethan's plate was stacked about a foot high, and James had a normal sized portion. As Ethan walked to the table, his mouth watered.

"Spaghetti… My favorite! Thanks, Daddy!" Ethan shouted. Ethan ate quickly, and he a lot more than a normal boy ate for his age. James ate slowly, and politely. It seemed that James hadn't completely been able to get manners into Ethan yet.

As soon as Ethan had eaten about five plates, he stopped eating, and burped.

"Thanks for lunch, Daddy. It was really good. Now I'm full." Ethan said. He sat at the table, rubbing his stomach. Outside of their cabin, they heard a vehicle stop, and its door shutting.

"Hello? It's the mailgirl!" A young, female voice shouted. Ethan yawned, and got up.

"I've got it." He said. He walked outside of the cabin, rubbing his stomach. He looked at young girl, a few years older than him.

The girl was sixteen years old, with the average height of a sixteen year old. She wore a bright pink dress down to her knees, and had black high-heels on. Her socks were see-through. She also had bright blue eyes. Her hair was shoulder length and a dark purple color. She looked younger than she actually was.

"Hello, Misses Mailgirl!" Ethan shouted. The girl bowed.

"Hello. My name is Yuki… Could I come in?" Yuki asked. Ethan nodded.

"Daddy, we have a visitor!" Ethan shouted. He walked back into the cabin, followed by Yuki. Ethan sat at his spot, and Yuki walked in, sitting in the middle chair.

"Would you like some food?" James asked.

"Uhm, no thank you." Yuki said.

Yuki reached into a purse that she had on her shoulder, and grabbed out a small, strange device. From the back, the device was completely silver, with only one button on top. She pressed the button once, and Ethan heard beeping.

"What's that?" Ethan asked.

"It's… A radar." Yuki said.

"Ooh, cool." Ethan said. Yuki jumped out of her seat, and looked around.

"... Are you looking for anything in particular?" James asked. Yuki nodded.

"I'm looking for a special object called a Dragon Ball… There are seven of them in all. It's small… Orange, with a red star on it?" Yuki said. James placed his hand on his chin, and closed his eyes for about a minute, then opening them.

"It's not really ringing a bell, dear." James said. Yuki reached into her purse, and grabbed out three, orange balls. She set them on the table. One ball had one red star, directly in the center. The other had three stars, and the last one had seven stars, six stars surrounding a singular star.

James looked at the balls with much focus, and thought for a moment. Ethan got out of his seat, and ran up to the balls, looking at them closely.

"... They do look familiar. I think I remember collecting one of these long ago…" James said. He paced around the room, thinking of where he had put the ball, before remembering, and walking to the dresser near the beds. He crouched down, and opened the bottom drawer, pulling out the Dragon Ball that was in the bottom. It had two stars. He walked over to Yuki, and gave it to her. Yuki nodded her head.

"Thank you so much…" She said. James nodded. Yuki gathered her Dragon Balls in her purse, and began towards the door.

James seemed focus, his thought visible by the expression on his face.

"Wait." James said. Yuki turned around.

"Yes?" She asked.

"... Would it be possible for you to take my son, Ethan, with you? See… He has yet to experience… Life. He hasn't left this forest, and I feel as if it would benefit him to go out on an adventure… And, who knows, you could use protection on your journey for these Dragon Balls." James said. Yuki nodded.

"I'll take him with me… Uh, kid. Pack your things. We'll be leaving soon." Yuki said. She walked outside.

About five minutes later, Ethan walked outside with a pile of stuff in his hands. He had a few changes of clothes, and a sword on top of them. The sword had a green handle, and the sword itself was a light golden color, that seemed to shine in the afternoon sky. The sun was now overtop Ethan and Yuki, and the day was warm.

"You can just throw your stuff in the back." Yuki said. She opened the back door, and Ethan put his things in there, except for his sword, which he brought in front into the passenger side. He waved to James, as Yuki reached into the mailbox, and grabbed the letter James had put in there. Yuki's car was a light blue color, and small, perfect for only a few people. She put the red flag down, and got into the car.

"We need to deliver this letter, and then we'll begin looking for the rest of the Dragon Balls." Yuki said. Ethan nodded. She turned her vehicle around, and began driving out of the forest the way she'd come in. James waved until Ethan couldn't see him anymore.

The world was a brand new experience for somebody like Ethan. There were endless possibilities for his journey. But, for the time, Ethan sat quietly, twiddling his thumbs, as they drove down a straight path. Finally, after a while, Ethan decided to talk.

"So… What do these Dragon Ball things do… Are they worth a lot of money? Or do you just like their looks?" Ethan asked. Yuki laughed.

"No, nothing like that. The Dragon Balls are magical… When you gather all seven, you can summon a dragon that will grant a wish." Yuki explained.

"That sounds so cool!" Ethan said. Yuki nodded her head.

"What are you going to wish for when you grow up?" Ethan asked. Yuki smiled.

"I'm going to wish for a lot of money, so I can be set for life." Yuki said. Ethan nodded.

"I've never seen money, but I bet it's valuable if you're going to use a wish on it!" Ethan said.

After a drive that lasted a few hours, Yuki and Ethan came to a stop when the road did, which was right in front of an ocean that seemed to endlessly sprawl out to every direction except back. Ethan and Yuki got out of the car, and looked around.

"What happened to the road…? I could have sworn that… That I didn't take a wrong turn anywhere… I mean… The road was straight… Oh no, I don't want to have to drive another three hours back just to go on a missed turn!" Yuki shouted. Ethan looked around, and to his left, behind Yuki, he saw a mailbox, and pointed at it. Yuki turned around, and looked at the mailbox.

"... I didn't see this mailbox the first time I came through here." Yuki said.

"Because I didn't have it out yet!" A voice shouted. Yuki looked around.

"Who said that?" She asked.

"Me." The voice said, coming from the water.

Ethan and Yuki looked, and saw a woman standing on a boulder, very close to the beach. The boulder seemed to be floating on the water. After a minute or so, the woman's boulder landed on the sand, and she stepped off of it. She wasn't much older than Yuki, in her twenties, possibly, and she wore a pink tanktop, with green knee shorts, and pink knee socks, with brown sandals. Her hair was black, and long, and she wore red-tinted sunglasses.

"Who are you?" Yuki asked. The girl chuckled, and took her sunglasses off.

"My name is Sayaka. I suppose you might have a letter for me…?" Sayaka asked. Yuki reached into her pocket, and took out the envelope that she had taken from James's mailbox.

"Well… Yes, it's true, I do have a letter… But it'd be almost impossible that it's for the first person I meet on the road… Let's see, it's addressed to a Miss Saya...ka…" Yuki said. She handed the letter to Sayaka, who opened it, and read it over a few times.

Sayaka glanced at Ethan.

"Excuse me, boy… What's your name?" Sayaka asked. Ethan looked around.

"Who, me? My name's Ethan!" He shouted. Sayaka smiled.

"Ethan… It seems as if your father wants me to train you in the art of the Turtle Hermit… If you're interested, you should come visit me at my island anytime…" Sayaka said. Ethan thought for a minute.

"Well… Yeah, I want to be a martial artist! But, I'm going to go with Miss Yuki and collect the Dragon Balls first, then I'll come back for training." Ethan said. Sayaka had a confused look on her face.

"Dragon's what, now?" She asked.

"Dragon Balls. Small, orange spheres that grant wishes!" Ethan shouted. Sayaka chuckled, and reached into her shorts pocket, grabbing a Dragon Ball, and tossing it to Ethan.

"It's all yours." She said. Ethan handed the ball to Yuki.

Yuki jumped in happiness, and placed the Dragon Ball in her purse.

"Now we have the one star, the two star, the three star, the four star, and the seven star! This is going much quicker than I thought! Now, we just need two more Dragon Balls, and we'll be set!" Yuki shouted. She walked over to her car, and pressed a button. The car converted into a tiny capsule-shaped object with a button on top, and Yuki put it in her purse. She grabbed out another capsule, and pressed the button, tossing it a few feet in front of her. A puff of smoke formed, and then an airplane just appeared in front of them, a silver one.

"If you don't want to wear out your technology, I have something that'll do just the thing for you." Sayaka said. Ethan stared at Sayaka.

"I'm not much for these strange machines Miss Yuki has… Maybe I could have this "something" you're talking about?" Ethan asked. Sayaka nodded.

The girl turned, and pointed towards the ocean. Yuki turned, and watched with Ethan.

"I call you forth… Pablo the Turtle!" Sayaka shouted.

"A… Turtle?" Ethan questioned.

"I thought they were slow… And… Couldn't fly." Yuki said.

"Just you wait." Sayaka said, a smirk on her face. In the distance, a dot was seen in the air, and it was coming closer, into shape. After while, it was apparent that it was, indeed, a flying turtle, coming their way.

"I'm coming, Master!" The turtle shouted. He flew fasted, and then landed in between Ethan and Sayaka. The turtle had a black shell, his face red, with curvy, tan horns. His arms and legs were gray, and his eyes were yellow, the pupils red. His voice was nerdy. And he was big enough to fit most people on his back, whether they stood, or sat.

"Uhm, hello! My name is Pablo! It is nice to meet you!" Pablo said, turning to Ethan and Yuki. Yuki screamed, and ran behind one of the airplane's wings.

"Wh-What is that thing?!" She shouted.

Sayaka heartily laughed, and patted Pablo's head.

"This is a legendary Flying Turtle, and he is the last of his kind… His name is, of course, Pablo. Ethan, I think it'd be nice for you to have Pablo… I'm giving him to you." Sayaka said. Ethan jumped up and down.

"Really?! I'm so excited! We're going to have so much fun, Pablo!" Ethan shouted. He hopped onto Pablo's back.

"I like to wander off a little bit away from you sometimes, so whenever you need me, just shout my name." Pablo said. Ethan nodded. Yuki got in the airplane, and Ethan strapped his sword onto his back with a blue strap over his chest. The airplane began into the air, and began towards the left of where they just were.

Ethan waved to Sayaka, as Pablo flew into the air, using his arms, following Yuki.

"I'll see you later, Miss Sayaka!" Ethan shouted. Sayaka stood at the beach for a moment, before turning back to her boulder.

"Have a safe journey, young one." She said. Yuki flew her airplane, following her radar to find the next Dragon Ball. They went over lush plains of grass, and wastelands that had tall, rocky mountains, that stood up at the height of buildings, and they went over ponds, and even a forest. Finally, they found a Dragon Ball in a desert, and Yuki landed her airplane. The winds were calm, and the night sun was the only thing blaring in the sky. The desert seemed to stretch in every direction forever, with the endless sand mountains, and endless tumbleweeds flying. Pablo landed on the ground, and Ethan hopped off of him.

"See you later, Pablo! I'll call you when I need you!" Ethan shouted. Pablo nodded, and flew up into the air, eventually disappearing from sight.

Yuki grabbed the radar out, and clicked the button, the radar beeping.

"My Dragon Radar says that a Dragon Ball isn't too far from here. Follow me." Yuki said. She began walking towards one of the rocky mountains. Ethan followed her.

"I'm hungry." Ethan said.

"Hush." Yuki said.

"But Yuki, I'm starving." Ethan said.

"Hush!" Yuki shouted. They came upon a cliff that oversaw more sand, but below the ten foot cliff was a man, and that's where the Dragon Ball signal was coming from.

Yuki looked at her radar, and then down at the man.

"Psst. Ethan. You think you could go get the Dragon Ball from him?" Yuki asked.

"Can I have something to eat first?" Ethan asked. Yuki reached into her bag, and pulled out a chocolate bar, and handed it to Ethan. Ethan ate it, wrapper in all, and chuckled.

"Thanks!" He shouted. The man became alert that somebody was there.

"Who goes there?" The man asked. Ethan jumped off of the cliff, and landed in front of the man.

The man looked to be about Yuki's age, just a bit taller. His skin was very tan, and he wore green pants, with no shoes. His shirt was a dark blue tank top, that went down to just above his knees. He had a white sash tied around his waist, and long, purple wristbands, about a foot in width. His hair was long, messy, and black, and went about halfway down his back. He had a green scarf tied around his neck, and there was a kanji on the upper center of his tank top. The kanji read "竜", which means "dragon".

"I go here! My name is Ethan, and I think you have something that I need!" Ethan shouted. The man turned his head.

"What would that be?" He asked.

"A Dragon Ball! A small, orange, circular object with a star on it!" Ethan said.

"Well… I have one of those. With six stars on it. But, I don't know if I should give it to you… I mean, even if you wanted it, you couldn't take it from me." The man said. Ethan growled. Yuki stood up, over the cliff.

"Don't let that man bully you, Ethan! Take him down if you have to!" Yuki shouted. The man looked up, over the cliff, and saw Yuki. He reached into his pocket, and grabbed his Dragon Ball, showing it to the both of them.

Arrogantly, the man put his hand behind his back.

"My name is Masmik. My Dragon Flame attack will be too much for you to handle… I'll fight you with one hand. If you win, I'll give you the Dragon Ball." Masmik said. He clenched his fist, his right one, since his left hand was behind his back. Ethan ran at Masmik, and kicked him in his stomach with such speed, that Masmik couldn't even see it coming. He growled, and swatted his hand at Ethan. Ethan ducked, and punched his leg.

"You're lucky I'm holding back!" Masmik said.

"Me too!" Ethan shouted. He jumped into the air, and landed behind Masmik. He grabbed the Dragon Ball from his hand, and kicked him into the cliff. Masmik hit the cliff, and fell backwards onto his back. Ethan walked over to him.

"Are you okay, Mister?" He asked. Masmik growled.

He got up, and brushed the sand off of his clothing, staring at Ethan.

"I'm fine. You're strong for your age… Do you think I could possibly… Travel with you?" Masmik asked. Ethan nodded his head.

"Sure! I'm sure Yuki wouldn't mind one more person traveling with us!" Ethan said. He jumped up onto the cliff, followed by Masmik.

"Yuki, Mister Masmik is going to travel with us now. Okay?" Ethan asked. Yuki nodded her head slowly. She threw out her capsule that released an airplane, and Masmik and Yuki got in.

"Hey, kid, aren't you going to get in?" Masmik asked. Ethan shook his head.

"Paaaaabbbloooooo!" Ethan shouted. Pablo came flying down from the sky, and landed next to Ethan. Ethan hopped onto his back.

"We're ready for the final Dragon Ball! Here we come, Dragon Ball!" Ethan shouted. Yuki's airplane began into the air, followed by Ethan and Pablo.

What new adventures awaits Ethan, Yuki, and their newfound partner, Masmik? Will they find the last Dragon Ball? Find out in the next chapter of Dragon Ball E!