A/N: Thank you very much for your reviews, Silver Warrior,Ardonius-Servant-Of-Zeta, and Rohan777.
I do not own DBZ.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Piccolo's head snapped up. Gohan's ki was gone, as well as his constant mental presence that came from the bond they shared. A feeling of dread surfaced in the pit of his stomach as he raced towards the Son home.
He noticed Gohan's open window immediatly and began to squeeze his way through it when a certain mother burst into the room, fear spread on her face. She was wearing a nightgown while her long hair flowed freely down her back. She had obviously just woke up from sleeping.
"Gohan-chan! Where is he?" She glared up at him. "What did you do with my baby, you vile creature?"
Piccolo snorted, matching her glare. "I did nothing with him. I felt his ki disappear and decided to come and see what happened."
Chichi was about to yell at him again when Goku brushed past her, looking at his son's empty bed.
"Do you know what could have happened, Piccolo?" The saiyajin asked, his eyes shining with worry. "His ki…"
"Do not worry. Son Gohan is safe."
Goku and Piccolo immediately recognized the voice, while Chichi glanced around the room, trying to identify where it was coming from.
"Kami-sama? Do you know where Gohan went?" Goku asked.
The god paused a moment before saying, "I have sent him on a mission. You cannot feel his ki, but I assure you that he is alive and safe."
Piccolo growled. Unlike Goku, he didn't take everything Kami said as the word of God…even though Kami technically WAS God.
"Where is he, old man?"
Before Kami-sama could respond, Chichi screeched, "WHAT KIND OF MISSION! I'M NOT GOING TO LET MY BABY GO OUT AND FIGHT ANY MORE OF THOSE VILLAINS! THE JINZOUNINGEN ARE BAD ENOUGH! YOU LISTEN HERE, BUSTER, YOU'D BETTER GIVE ME MY BABY BACK RIGHT THIS INSTANT, OR ELSE I'LL COME UP THERE AND DECAPITATE YOU! MY BABY SHOULD BE HERE AT HOME STUDYING SO HE CAN GO TO A GOOD UNIVERSITY, MARRY A RICH GIRL, AND GIVE ME LOTS AND LOTS OF GRANDBABIES!"
Both Namekuseijins held their ears. Kami-sama's head hurt from the mental yelling whilst Piccolo felt like ripping his ears off from the sheer loudness of her voice.
"Ssssh, Chichi!" Goku put his hand on her shoulder. "That's Kami-sama. If he says Gohan's safe, I'm sure he is. Kami-sama knows what he's doing."
"Kami-sama?" She asked.
"Back to what I was saying. The Earth is having another threat."
"A threat besides the Jinzouningen?" Piccolo questioned.
"Yes." The God responded. "Gero has sent a Jinzouningen into the past to eliminate Goku. If he succeeds, much will change. Goku will die at the age of twelve. The lack of Goku will result in Gohan not being born and the enemies you have defeated living on. Our planet will be in havoc."
"Eh? The past?" The saiyajin blinked. "I thought the jinzouningen were supposed to show up in two and a half years?"
"That is correct."Kami-sama answered. "Those jinzouningen will still arrive. However, Gero has begun to worry that you might prove to be too much for his jinzouningen in two years."
"That doesn't explain what happened to Gohan." Piccolo added.
Chichi's shoulders slumped. It seemed as though something was always coming after one of her boys. She didn't want to imagine life without her Goku-sa or Gohan-chan.
The three heard Kami-sama sigh. "This threat must be stopped. In order to do so, I had to send someone back to the past to defeat the Jinzouningen and protect Goku's younger counterpart. I couldn't send just anyone. If that person existed in that time as well, it would create a paradox, resulting in neither versions of that person existing. I could not send you, Piccolo, because that would alter what is to come between you and Goku in that time. Gohan was my best and only choice."
"So…Gohan's in the past?" Goku cocked his head to the side. "How will we know if he's alright?"
"Do not worry, Goku. Although Gohan is there to protect your younger self, there is also someone watching over Gohan."
Piccolo crossed his arms over his chest and let out a huff. He didn't like the idea of Gohan being off in a place where he couldn't watch over and protect him. The Namekuseijin had grown protective over the boy since he'd first taken him under his wing.
"Piccolo, I know that you're worried as well." Piccolo would have slammed his counterpart into a wall if he'd been in the same room as him. He didn't like the God constantly peaking in on his relationship with Gohan, nor declaring their closeness to every single person. A great part of him still did not want to appear mushy or too caring to the rest of the warriors. Gohan was the only one allowed to see the other side of him.
"I give you my word that he will come back safely, Piccolo. He is being watched by the Guardian of Time herself."
"Hn."
Chichi, in the mean time, staggered. She didn't trust this guy. How would he know if her Gohan-chan was safe? Her Gohan-chan was so far in the past! She would have broken out crying had she not fainted at that exact moment.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gohan opened his eyes, not realizing he had even closed them. Glancing around him, he found himself in what appeared to be a gray corridor.
"Son Gohan." A voice called from behind him.
He jumped at hearing his name called. Turning around, he saw a green haired sailor-suited woman standing in front of large double-doors.
"Who are you and how do you know my name?" Gohan asked.
"I am Sailor Pluto, the Guardian of Time." She smiled. "I know of you because it was I that told Kami-sama to send you here."
The boy looked around, seeing nothing but grayness. "Where are we?"
"This is the time corridor. It is where all must come to be able to pass through time."
The boy smiled. "Did that purple-haired boy come here?"
Pluto nodded. "Yes. It is a taboo for me to allow people to travel through time, however, the situation that he had, as well as yours, are of dire importance."
"How will I be able to get to the past?" The demi-saiyajin questioned. "That boy came in a time machine."
The Sailor senshi held her staff up, focusing her powers into the garnet orb. Light began to circle the orb before she aimed it at the door. The light shot into the door's key hole, causing the door to open, revealing blue nothingness.
"You will go to the past from this door." She glanced back at him. "Do not try to fight the forces in there, or else you could end up stuck in subspace for all of eternity."
Gohan nodded. "I understand. I'll be careful."
He approached the door and looked back at Pluto once more. He smiled.
"Thank you for your help, Pluto."
"Good luck, Son Gohan."
With that, he jumped from the door into the blue abyss. He groaned as he felt himself being tugged in one way, then be slammed in the other direction. It felt as though his body was being torn apart.
He fought against the instinct to struggle against the currents pulling him. After several seconds that felt like eternity to him, the blue turned into a blinding white and he was knocked unconscious.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Son Goku was busy delivering milk for Kamesennin. Despite how much his back was hurting from the weighted turtle shell on his back, he endured on. He knew Kuririn was trying to keep up with him some distance behind him.
The two of them had been on Roshi's island for about a month now, but the old master insisted on them building up their endurance before he trained them in his unique style. Goku didn't know it, but Roshi was very impressed by the fact that Goku had been able to learn how to do a kamehameha after only watching him do it once. It had taken him years to learn that technique.
The child was about to deliver another carton of milk when something, or shall we say,someone, fell from the sky and knocked him on the back of his head.
Goku clutched his head as he muttered, "Owwie!" Whatever had hit him sure had to be hard. Bulma had once commented that his head was probably harder than diamonds.
He looked behind him to see another child, quite a bit younger than him, lying in a heap. The other boy had long, unruly black hair tied into a loose ponytail. He was wearing a purple training gi with red wrist bands, a red belt, and a white collar. The boy had a large goose egg on his head. That must have been what hit him. Goku couldn't help but be confused by the fact that the child looked oddly familiar to him.
He nudged the child, earning himself a groan. "Nnnnn."
"Hey, wake up." Goku continued nudging the child.
Gohan blinked his eyes open and jumped up, instantly getting into a fighting stance out of instinct.
"Woah! I'm not gonna hurt ya!" Goku told him, putting his hands up in front of him.
Gohan blushed and tried not to show how awkward it was to be confronting a younger version of his father, of whom he had almost attacked. He was here to protect his father, not kill him.
Goku blinked. "Hey, how'd you fall out of the sky?"
"Uuuh…" Gohan rubbed the back of his head. "Well, I must have fallen asleep in that tree over there," he pointed over to the nearest tree, "and fell out of it. I'm sorry if I disturbed you."
"It's okay." Goku chirped, a smile on his face. "I'm Goku! What's your name?"
Gohan gave a respective bow as he thought over whether he should tell his father his name. He eventually settled on just telling it to him. It would be less troublesome.
"I'm Gohan. It's nice to meet you."
Goku's face broke out into wonder. "Wow! That was my grandpa's name, too!"
"Was it?" Gohan chuckled lightly. It was very strange to be talking to this childhood version of his father. "It's not that common of a name. Not many people name their kids 'rice' or 'meal….'"
"Goku!" Someone yelled from behind him. "What's the hold up?"
"Kuririn," Goku smiled at his rival, who was quickly becoming his best friend, "this is Gohan. He was sleeping in that tree over there and fell down on my head. Isn't that cool?"
Kuririn sweat dropped at his friend. Goku could probably qualify as the most clueless person on the planet. He glanced over at the kid that Goku had been conversing with.
"This is my friend, Kuririn." Goku told Gohan, motioning towards the bald child.
"Friend?" Kuririn rolled his eyes. "We're competing for Kamesennin-san's training. We're not friends."
Goku just laughed, ticking Kuririn off even more. Was everything a game for him? He glanced over at Gohan. The kid was probably half their age. Why would such a young child be sleeping in a tree of all things?
"Hey, kid," Kuririn started, "what were you doing sleeping in a tree? Don't you have a house or something?"
Gohan fumbled over his words, trying to come up with a believable story.
"Well…I don't really have a house," he began. "My parents umm…left me on this island and told me they'd come back for me. That's been a few weeks now…"
"Your parents abandoned you?" The bald boy asked, his eyes wide. He thought, 'What kind of parent would do that to their kid?'
"I guess it looks that way…" Gohan responded, hoping that his fib wasn't too obvious. His mother and Piccolo-san had told him before that he was really bad at lying. Kuririn seemed to believe it, though. His young father was standing off to the side, blinking.
Suddenly, a loud rumble rocked through the clearing. Seconds later, another one followed.
"Kuririiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiin," Goku whined, "I'm huuuuuuungryyyyyyyy."
Gohan blushed at the growl that had come from his stomach. "I guess I'm hungry, too…"
Kuririn sweat dropped. "What do I look like, a sushi chef? If you're soooo hungry, then let's hurry up and finish this run, Goku. Lunch will probably have a meal ready for us."
"Okay!" Goku piped, suddenly very perky at the prospect of food. "Hey, Gohan, do you want to eat lunch with us?"
Gohan nodded. He needed to stay close to his father anyway. "Sure. I'll come."
The demi-saiyajin began to walk ahead of the other boys when he heard two gasps. He turned around to see the young versions of his father and Kuririn wide-eyed.
"What?" He asked.
"T-Tail?" Kuririn muttered.
Goku yelped in amazement, "Hey! You have a tail like I used to! Mine disappeared after Bulma, Yamucha, Puar, Oolong and I finished hunting for the dragonballs. I wonder where it went…"
Gohan looked behind him to confirm what the other boys said. As they had said, an auburn tail was lazily swaying behind him. A large part of him was overjoyed at seeing the appendage again. The last time he'd had a tail for longer than an hour was back before Piccolo-san trained him. Another part of him, however, groaned in discontent. That tail would connect him to his father and he was sure that it would later be questioned.
"You had a tail, Goku?" Kuririn gaped. "What's with you people? No one else has tails. It's like you aren't human or something."
Goku and Gohan both laughed, but for different reasons. Goku laughed at Kuririn's joke while Gohan laughed at thinking of how correct Kuririn was.
With that, Gohan accompanied Goku and Kuririn to their final deliveries. Within no time, the three children were at the Kame House.
"'Jiichan!" Goku yelled. "I'm hungryyy!"
"You're always hungry, Goku-chan." Lunch laughed. Roshi chose the wrong moment to grope her, as a second later, she sneezed. Kushami (1), Lunch's other personality, promptly aimed her gun at Roshi's head.
"Keep your hands to yourself, old man!" She threatened.
Gohan sweat dropped. He'd only met Lunch once before, but he'd heard plenty of stories about her split personality.
"Who's the kid, Goku?" Roshi asked as he adjusted his sunglasses. He felt a strong ki emanating from that child.
Goku grinned. "This is Gohan. He was left on the neighboring island by his parents."
The demi-saiyajin blushed as he began to twiddle his thumbs. He noticed Roshi giving him a strange look, so he suppressed his ki further than he already had. He didn't want to make anyone suspicious.
"Gohan, huh? He's got the same name as your grandfather." Roshi walked over to Gohan and kneeled down to his level. "Have you ever trained in martial arts before, Gohan? You seem to have a fighter's posture to you…"
He nodded. "I have."
"Who trained you? I might know him." The old hermit asked.
"Well…" Gohan started, "my sensei doesn't like for too many people to know about him. He's kind of secretive."
"Hmm." The old man continued to look Gohan over before saying, "How would you like to receive my training?"
Although Gohan knew he was well above Kamesennin power wise, he visibly brightened at the prospect of receiving his training. Learning Kame-ryu, his father's style, would be helpful to him. He was only familiar with Ma-ryu, Piccolo-san's style, at the present time. He knew how to do a Kamehamaha, but that was about all that he knew from his father's style.
"Really, Kamesennin-san?" Gohan piped. "I'd be really thankful to you!"
The master merely smiled at the boy before he, Goku, Kuririn, Kushami, and Gohan all sat down to have their dinner.
Their adventure was just beginning.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
A/N: I'm going to start off by telling you all that it's been a while since I've watched Dragonball. I'd say it's been about five years. Please pardon if I make a few errors. I'm going to watch it all over again not only for the heck of it, but also so I can be more accurate with this story. :) The story takes place in the arc of Dragonball right after Goku and Kuririn have arrived on Roshi's island for training. They're preparing for the World Martial Arts tournament.
(1) - Kushami is a fan-created nickname of sorts for the blonde form of Lunch. I've chosen to call her that when she's in that form as it makes less confusion as to which personality is present at the time.
Please R and R!
