A/N: Welcome to "Eye of the Rabbit"! Though I won't stop you from jumping right in, I highly recommend reading "Eye of the Turtle" first, otherwise you probably won't understand half of what's going on. For those of you who came from DeviantART and are new to : just click on my username and then scroll down for a list of stories I've written. Go on, give it a chance: it won't take that long to read and the sequel will be right here waiting for you ;)
Enjoy!
Prologue:
"Absolutely not!!!"
"But it's efficient!"
Kameko Roshi rolled her eyes at her husband, who was honestly not seeing the problem. Kami, they had been married for five years now, but the former villain was still dense as ever.
"We are not calling our child 'One', Cell! It's a baby, not an android!"
"Well, technically it'll be half…"
Cell quickly shut up when he saw his wife's deadly glare. Buu had been a frightening opponent, but he would rather fight that creature blindfolded than undergo the wrath of an angry, four months pregnant Kameko.
"What did you have in mind then?" he asked, and her features softened a little.
"Well, we can already sense it's going to be a girl," she said, putting a hand on her stomach. "I was thinking about calling her 'Bunny', after my grandmother… I know technically speaking Bulma and I aren't even related, but her folks are still the closest thing to grandparents I have and I want to do something for them."
"Bunny Roshi… Oh well, fair enough," Cell smiled, wrapping an arm around her shoulders. "Though I still think my naming system makes more sense."
Six months later
"I'm not sure…"
"She's your daughter too, and my arms are getting stiff."
Cell awkwardly glanced at the stroller, scrunching his nose and suppressing a shudder.
"I know… but did Miss Briefs really have to buy us a pink one?"
"Oh, grow a pair, you dip."
The former android sighed, putting his hands on the handle. It didn't take long for a smile to appear on his face.
"Hey, this is… this isn't so bad," he said as they walked through the park. Kameko giggled.
"Told you so," she grinned. "Bunny likes it too, see?"
He glanced in the stroller, their daughter laughing and reaching for them with her little hands. The baby girl looked exactly like him, from her slender, sharp nose to her bright green hair. Only her eyes were different; she had gotten those brown orbs from her mother.
"Kameko, I think she wants…" he started, sweatdropping when he saw his wife was holding her sides, pointing at something and laughing hysterically.
"Ce…Cell… Oh my Kami… look over there, sitting on that bench… isn't that…? WHAHAHAHA!!!"
While she burst out in another fit of insane giggles, his database quickly recalled all available data he had on the dark-haired, slightly graying figure she had spotted. General Tao. Mercenary for hire. Briefly employed by the Red Ribbon Army and partly rebuild as a cyborg after suffering defeat at the hands of young Goku. Highly skilled in the Crane school arts and younger brother of the Crane Hermit, Master Roshi's archrival. Cell, however, could not identify the baby boy he was holding in his arms and clumsily trying to bottle-feed.
"What are you doing here, turtle wench?!" Tao barked when they walked up to him, startled that she had caught him in such a vulnerable state. "Can't I even take my son for a walk through the park without you getting in my way?!"
"As long as you're not trying to destroy anything, I won't… OH MY KAMI! HE'S YOURS?!" Kameko exclaimed, now laughing so hard that tears were streaming down her face. "I just thought you were babysitting or something!"
"I was at a bar, had a few too many drinks and next thing you know, there's a basket with a baby inside on my doorstep, with a note that says 'I can't take care of him anymore, good luck'! I would have dumped the little brat at an orphanage, but then I realized that I will probably never find a more perfect disciple than my own flesh and blood. I will raise Tsuru to be a merciless warrior, the ultimate assassin!" He lifted the infant over his head, sticking out his tongue and making funny faces. "Who's going to be a handsome, ruthless killer when he grows up?" Tao cooed. "Yes, you are! Yes, you are!"
"Well, he sure is an adorable little fellow, considering who the father is," Kameko chuckled, trying to keep herself from snickering again. "If you ever need a babysit…"
"I AM NOT LETTING YOU OR YOUR PERVERTED FATHER'S TURTLE TEACHINGS NEAR MY SON!!!" the general yelled, protectively holding the boy with one arm and balling his free hand into a fist. "Just you wait, woman! I may be getting too old to settle our feud, but Tsuru will follow in my footsteps! He shall become stronger than even me, a master in the Crane arts, and he will crush your spawn like a fly!"
"Oh, is that so?" Cell said icily, his magenta eyes glowing dangerously. The assassin paled, a sweatdrop appearing on his temple. Though he didn't know his enemy's husband's background, he could sense that threatening his wife and daughter was probably a bad idea. With his son still in his arms, he quickly blasted off and disappeared behind the clouds.
"That nutball… I don't think he'll ever learn," Kameko shook her head. "Come on, Cell, let's go home and…" her face paled when she turned back to the stroller and found it completely empty.
"Bunny!" she panicked. "Oh Kami, our daughter! Tao must have snatched her while we weren't looking!"
"No, she's still close, I can sense her," Cell said, his eyes scanning the environment. Suddenly they heard her crying; it was very faint, as if it was coming from far away… or very high up.
"Bunny!!!" Cell exclaimed, jumping up to the top of the tallest tree in the park. There was his daughter, clinging to a branch and crying her eyes out. He quickly grabbed her and brought the girl down to the ground. She tightly clutched his neck, her bottom lip trembling and her eyes wide with fear.
"Oh, poor thing, come here," Kameko shushed, taking the child in her arms. "How on earth did she get up that tree? She can't even walk yet, let alone fly."
"I can't think of anything else than Instant Transmission," Cell said, staring at his daughter who's face was white as a sheet. "My genes must be more dominant than we originally anticipated."
"Well, I just hope this doesn't traumatize her," Kameko sighed, still cradling the terrified baby girl. "I doubt she'll remember any of this when she's older, but you never know…"
Chapter 1: The Turtle and the Crane
"Come on, Bunny… you can do this… you can do this!"
Slowly the girl ascended, flying three, four meters above the streets. After gathering all her courage, Bunny Roshi balled her fists, took a deep breath and peeked through one eye at the ground below. Bad move: the sixteen year old flailed her limbs and with a panicked yelp, rushed back to Earth's surface. Well, at least she hadn't fainted like last time. That meant that she was making at least some progress, right?
"Still haven't gotten your sky legs, eh, turtle girl?"
She groaned and looked up to see a raven-haired boy hover above her, sporting his trademark cocky smirk.
"Beat it, Tsuru," Bunny glared. "I'm not in the mood to deal with you right now. Didn't I kick your ass last week?"
"Your parents kicked my ass," Tsuru corrected her smugly. "You passed out when I flung you up in the sky and you made the mistake of looking down."
"Get bent, crane boy!" Bunny snapped, her face red with anger and embarrassment. "You caught me off guard, that's all! I can make you eat the pavement any day, and you know it!"
"Sure you can," he mocked in a childish, high-pitched voice. "And if you fail, you can always call for mommy and daddy to rescue you."
Bunny fumed, steam almost coming out of her ears. She desperately wanted to chase after her lifelong rival and introduce him to her fist, but then again… he was flying awfully high up…
"I might have strong parents to watch my back, but you only stand a chance against me by taking advantage of my fear of heights," she smirked, putting her hands on her hips. "You think you're such a big shot, Tsuru, but you're not so tough when it comes to hand-to-hand combat!"
"You're saying I can't beat you in a ground battle?"
"I'm saying you can't punch your way out of a wet paper bag!"
"Well, I'd love to give it a try… but I wouldn't want to upset your folks, now would I?"
Bunny glared daggers at the arrogant youth, mischievous onyx eyes staring back at her. She knew many girls at her high school would give their right kidney for a date with the elusive Tsuru Tao, but she honestly couldn't fathom why. Just the thought of walking hand in hand with that pompous jerk was enough to make her lose her lunch.
"One of these days, crane boy, I'm gonna blast that cocky grin off your face and mail it to you!" she barked. "Maybe not now, maybe not tomorrow, but mark my words: you're roadkill!"
"Why not yesterday?"
Bunny blinked, narrowing her eyes at the general's son.
"What do you mean?"
He flew down, tucking a stray lock of black hair behind his ear. Unlike his father, he kept it relatively short and combed back, with a few loose bangs framing his face.
"I mean, why not fight yesterday? Or they day before that? Or perhaps even further into the past?"
His feet touched down on the streets, and he took something out of his pocket.
"What's this?" Bunny arched an eyebrow, warily eyeing the scrap of paper he handed her. It looked like a newspaper clipping, but it sure was an old one. The paper was all yellow and threatened to crumble under her touch. She couldn't make out the finer print, but the headline read: "Warriors worldwide prepare! 19th Tenkaichi Budokai begins tomorrow."
"The Tenkaichi Budokai, a tournament where martial artists from around the globe duke it out for the title of 'strongest under the heavens'," Tsuru said slyly. "I was thinking we could enter."
Bunny stared at the general's son as if his head had just spontaneously caught fire. She opened her mouth to protest, but Tsuru beat her to it.
"Oh, don't even think about playing dumb, turtle girl. I know Miss Briefs has invented a time machine in her younger years."
"How'd you find out about that!?"
"I have my ways," he grinned arrogantly. Oh, how she hated that cocky smirk!
"Just get to the point, crane boy," Bunny ordered. "What are you up to this time?"
"You and me. The 19th Tenkaichi Budokai. We'll fight on the ground to accommodate your ridiculous phobia, and in a time where your parents aren't even born, and thus are unable to break up our battle… or my spine, when I kill you."
"Did Tao drop you when you were little?! We're both done for if we go even near grandma Bulma's time machine!" Bunny exclaimed, throwing her hands up in exasperation. "She said it's for extreme emergencies only!"
"Such as?"
Bunny didn't have an answer to that. In fact, all Bulma had told her was that her son Trunks had once used it to help fight the androids in an alternate timeline and save the legendary son Goku from an early grave. But the androids in this timeline were gone now, also thanks to Trunks, and Earth had been relatively peaceful for almost fifty years. It really was a shame that their savior had died from a mutated version of the same heart virus that struck Son Goku. At least, that's what her parents had told her. Bunny always had a strange feeling that they were lying through their teeth. Especially her dad was very secretive when it came to his past. For instance, she had never seen any baby pictures of her father, or even a single photo of him as a teenager. As if his entire childhood had simply never existed. There was no trace of her paternal grandparents either, and Bunny didn't even know their family name; her father had taken his wife's last name as his own when they married. When she asked questions about him or his past, he either lied to her (she could tell) or quickly changed the subject. Bunny still loved her dad dearly nonetheless though.
"Hey, turtle girl! I asked you a question!"
"Look, crane boy," Bunny snapped. "Grandma's time machine isn't a toy! Even if I were to agree with your harebrained scheme, what if something goes wrong? We could end up changing history and preventing our own births!"
"I've got it all covered," Tsuru declared confidently. "The last Tenkaichi Budokai before the android's reign was the 23rd, when Demon King Piccolo's son destroyed the ring. We will enter the 19th edition, which is a bit more low-key. Not even your grandfather's or my uncle's students will be there, so we'll have the whole tournament pretty much to ourselves. And once we reach the finals, with the whole world watching us, we'll have one last grand battle and finally settle this tiresome feud once and for all. Or… are you afraid to fight me on your own?"
Bunny glared at the assassin's son, balling her fists.
"Ha! Bring it on, crane boy! Your ass is mine!"
"Heh, you wish my ass was yours," he smirked, making the girl blush furiously. Damn him, damn him, damn him…
"We leave tonight," she spat, narrowing her eyes. "Two AM, when everyone's asleep. Meet me at Capsule Corp, I'll open my window so you can sneak in without setting off the alarm. It's on the main floor, second one to the…"
"I know where you room is, turtle girl," he snickered. "And I've been wondering: do you always sleep in the nude, or is it just a summer thing?"
Bunny's face flushed an even deeper shade of red and she let out a long and colorful string of profanities as the boy flew away, his laugh still echoing through the streets. Oh, that arrogant, pompous, son of a… She was going to grind his face in the Budokai ring and make him eat every tile of it! But first she was going to buy some supplies for the trip.
And curtains. Lots and lots of curtains.
A/N: Me: Oh, magic eight-ball! Is this going to end badly?
Magic eight-ball: All signs point to yes.
Me: Well, it wouldn't be much of a story otherwise, huh? I hope you enjoyed the first chapter, please let me know what you think! And as a post-chapter bonus, here are Bunny and Tsuru's character profiles. Knock yourself out!
Bunny Roshi:
Bunny is Cell and Kameko's sixteen year old daughter, though she only knows her father as 'Seru' and has no clue about his true nature. Bunny doesn't remember why, but she has a crippling fear of heights, even though she's perfectly able to fly.
Just as Kameko sees Bulma as a mother figure, Bunny sees the woman as her grandma, a position the scientist is happy to fulfill. Bunny was named after her great-grandmother, who unfortunately died of old age a few years after she was born. Her maternal grandfather is Master Roshi, who adores his granddaughter, but can't help perving on her female friends, much to Bunny's embarrassment. Technically, Dr. Gero is her paternal grandfather, but needless to say Cell and Kameko have wisely decided not to include his name in their family tree.
Bunny has been trained by her mother and grandpa in the style of the Turtle School. But without a looming threat and wanting her to live a normal life, they haven't pushed the girl very hard. Bunny is still far stronger than the average Earthling, but her powerlevel is only about equal to that of Captain Ginyu; much lower than Kameko's when she was her age. Cell encourages his daughter to develop her abilities, but refuses to train her himself, afraid that he'll lose control and demonstrate powers far too great to belong to an ordinary human…
Tsuru Tao:
Tsuru is the teenage son of General Tao and was named after his uncle, the Crane Hermit. He's only one week older than Bunny, and the two of them have been at each other's throats since kindergarten. Tsuru is very proud of his crane heritage, and aims to take his father's place as the world's greatest assassin. He often mocks Bunny for her acrophobia, and never passes up an opportunity to let her know she will, one day, die at his hands.
General Tao may have aged (though turning into a cyborg greatly prolonged his lifespan), but he has still managed to pass plenty of tricks on to his son. Tsuru inherited his father's talent for martial arts, and spends every free minute training non-stop so he may one day reclaim the honor of the Crane clan. This ruthless, self-inflicted regime, fueled by the desire to wipe out all students of the Turtle School, has allowed him to reach a level his own father couldn't even dream of. Tsuru is slightly weaker than Bunny in the area of brute strength, but far more skilled in the art of strategy. Combined with his merciless take-no-prisoners style of fighting and willingness to win at any cost, the Turtle Hermit's granddaughter often finds herself backed into a corner and relying on her parents to bail her out.