Training

"No, no, NO!"

Trunks flinched at the roar coming from the doorway to the backyard. Goten took the rare opportunity to land a punch on his friend's defenseless cheek. Trunks barely registered the weak attack as he watched his irate father storm across the lawn, an angry red aura surrounding his body.

"Wha-what's wrong?" Trunks asked with a gulp. He thought his dad was going to be out all day or Goten wouldn't have agreed to come over to play.

Vegeta ignored him and went straight to Goten. "Who the hell taught you to fight?"

Goten visibly cowered before the powerful man. He looked over to his friend, but Trunks didn't know how to help. He was nearly as afraid of the mighty Saiyan Prince as Goten.

"N-nobody," he answered, tears brimming in his eyes. His cheeks burned red, and Trunks knew he'd be too embarrassed to admit his only fighting teacher was his mother. The only reason they were play fighting today was so Goten could practice the latest moves he'd learned.

"Figures," Vegeta mumbled, crossing arms over his enormous chest. "The savior of the earth doesn't even train his own brother."

The Saiyan stared down at the boys with a frown. Trunks knew that look and inwardly groaned. When his father found something that didn't measure up to his high standards, he wouldn't rest until it did. Especially when it came to training.

With a grumbled sigh, Vegeta picked the two boys up by the back of their shirts and carried them to his gravity chamber. "I've been training Trunks myself, but he's not qualified to teach the likes of Kakarrot's son. You have the breeding and gene potential to be a great fighter, but without the basics, you're liable to hurt someone."

"But, Dad!" Trunks complained. "Why do I have to train with Goten? I already had my lesson today."

"So, you're having it again!" his father snapped as he reset the gravity to accommodate the boys' inexperienced muscles. Trunks was used to the extra pressure, but Goten was flattened to the floor. Vegeta sneered down his nose at the boy until he struggled to his feet. "We'll start with an easy warm up. Give me 100 pushups and 100 squats."

"But...I can't count that high," Goten wailed.

Vegeta covered his eyes and took a deep breath to control his temper. "This is going to be a lot harder than I thought!