Disclaimer: See previous chapter! Geez…

CHAPTER 2: TOURNAMENTS R US

Goku snapped out of a daze caused by the white flash and the first thing he saw was a child's fist charging towards his face. He dodged as a reflex, jumping over the kid, landing a good ten yards behind him and dropped his jaw in surprise when he noticed his attacker had a tail. A Saiyan tail to be exact.

'A Saiyan? But how? I thought they were all destroyed.'

He was brought out of his thoughts as he heard hundreds of voices cheering and whistling in his direction.

"Way to go Kakarot!" one shouted, "Show that kid who's boss!"

He turned his head and took in his environment, while still maintaining his defensive pose. The circular ring he was in was surrounded by a huge crowd of rowdy Saiyan children, and bright daylight shone through the glass roof, which was many stories up. In the seats on the upper levels, thousands of men and women cheered, chanted, and urged the fighters to continue. Also, the wide open space of the arena and the towering stands were reminiscent of a baseball stadium, the massive glass roof being the distinguishing factor.

'Hmmm… It looks like I'm in some sort of a tournament.'

"Hey!" Goku's opponent shouted, "Pay attention and fight me!"

The kid, who looked no older than thirteen, launched himself forward and began hurling a flurry of punches and kicks that Goku dodged effortlessly.

"Hold still!" the kid yelled.

He tried several more times to hit Goku by feinting punches and sending kicks instead or vise versa, but to no avail. Now infuriated at Goku for moving so quickly, he screamed at the top of his lungs and powered up to his max.

Goku was unimpressed and phased out of sight, causing the spectators to go silent with awe. He darted around the ring using pure speed to stay invisible and hit the kid several times in passing. When he came to a halt he hovered above his bruised and battered opponent, who stood firmly in a defensive position.

The kid, being unable to sense ki, was unaware of Goku who floated directly above him. The audience yelled for him to look up, but when he finally did it was too late, and his face became introduced to Goku's foot. The kid was sent flying out of the ring by a powerful kick and smashed into a wall at the foot of the stands.

"RING OUT!" a voice yelled through extremely powerful speakers.

The cheering and whistling resumed after a short period of shocked silence, while the announcer walked up into the ring to congratulate Goku.

"You did pretty well, for a low-level child"

"Child, what are you talking about?" Goku asked, clearly confused.

"You're joking, right kid? Take a look in a mirror."

Goku left the ring and was guided to a locker room by a small group of Saiyan kids. As he followed, a girl from the group turned to him and patted him on the back.

"Nice fight Kakarot," she said sincerely, "That guy was two years older than you and you still kicked his ass. You must be training hard."

"Uh, yeah, you could say that." 'What did she mean by that? Wait, my voice sounded weird. And why is everyone so tall...? Oh no, please don't let this be what I think it is.'

Goku's face showed worry as they came to the end of the hall where the entrance into the locker room was. He knew there would be a mirror in there and he'd see himself.

They all entered the locker room and most of them went to towel off sweat and rest on benches, while Goku walked down the aisles of lockers in the dank, filthy smelling room in search of a mirror. When he spotted one, he mentally prepared himself for the worst before stepping in front of it.

'Oh, it happened again.'

He was clad in a black jumpsuit with Saiyan armor and looked to be about eleven years old. The armor had a large black/silver striped pad on the right shoulder, a short strap of the same colors on the left shoulder, and a torso piece with a white chest and silver/black striped area over the stomach and back. On his forearms and shins he wore silver colored weighted elastic bands and black Saiyan boots on his feet.

'Okay, so I'm a kid. But I still don't know where I am or why I'm here. And how can so many Saiyans still be alive?'

Goku walked back to where the other kids were, sat down on the bench, and pondered these questions.

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Vegeta jumped up in confusion and patted his body down to make sure no limbs were missing.

'The last thing I remember is the flash of light,' Vegeta thought. 'And there was someone else with me…'

"Kakarot!" Vegeta blurted out as he remembered. 'What the hell? Why does my voice sound like that?'

"What is the matter son? Sit down and enjoy the tournament."

'What the...?' Vegeta thought as he turned to see his father sitting next to him on his throne. 'Impossible…'

"Son, what's the point of attending this tournament if you will not pay attention to the fighters. You need to learn their weaknesses so you can exploit them in the final round. I will not have my son, Prince of All Saiyans, lose to a subordinate."

Vegeta just nodded dumbly and sat back down. A million questions and possible solutions ran through his mind. He took in everything around him and began to theorize.

'Okay, there is only one place I could be. Vegeta-sei. But why, how? Frieza blew it up! And I'm in my teenage body! This doesn't make sense.'

Vegeta started to get a headache from all the thinking and decided to give his brain a rest. He leaned over and rested his elbows over the edge of their balcony. He looked down into the ring to the current match and was surprised to see Goku being declared the winner. He too was a child.

Vegeta looked at Goku's opponent who was embedded in a wall and smirked, 'Poor, unlucky bastard. He never knew what hit him.'

He watched as Goku left the ring and decided he'd talk to him later. He had no doubt that he'd fight him in the final round. After all, every warrior on the planet combined couldn't compete with his and Goku's strength.

'Yes,' Vegeta thought, 'Fun first, then business…'

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Goku sat on the bench, bored out of his mind. He couldn't fathom why he was where he was so he decided to just go along with it. He waited silently leaning his back against the wall behind the bench, while the other kids whispered about him. They whispered mostly about how surprisingly strong he was and how cute, as the girls pointed out.

A small smile crept onto his face and he felt surprisingly at ease. He never realized before how much he liked the idea of being a part of his race. What he didn't like though, was the hurtful things that they were forced to do to other planets by Frieza.

'Frieza!' he thought all of a sudden. 'He was supposed to have murdered all of the Saiyans. Yet all of the people I sense on this planet have Saiyan energy signatures. Could it really be that this planet is the Saiyan home-world? I don't understand, I never grew up on this planet. I was sent to Earth when I was less than a year old.'

Just as Goku started to piece together his thoughts a large hand rested itself on one of his shoulders, interrupting his train of thought. Goku opened his eyes from his deep contemplation and looked up at the owner of the hand.

"Y-you… look like m-me…" Goku stammered to the man in front of him.

"I should hope so. We are family you know."

Goku stood up on the bench with his serious face on and looked his older clone in the eyes.

"Who are you?"

"I'm your father" he said with a look on his face that said 'duh'.

"What's your name?"

"It's Bardock. Are you sure you didn't hit your head during that last match because you're acting pretty strange."

Goku stood there in silence for a moment, absorbing what he had just heard. He had never met his father or even heard any stories about him from Vegeta. All Vegeta had said was that his father was somewhat of a scientist, always inventing new techniques to be used in battle. He hadn't even known him his name, and now he was standing in front of him.

"Hey," Bardock waved his hand in front of Goku's face. "Snap out of it Kakarot. Don't just stand there, tell me about your match. Those were some pretty slick moves you pulled out there. You'd give me a run for my money if we fought."

"Uh… umm, oh right! Well I guess I just remembered what I learned and the rest was instinct."

"Did you use the new technique I taught you?" Bardock asked eagerly.

"Uh… could you refresh my memory?"

"You know…" Bardock whispered, "The one about sensing your opponent's ki without using a scouter. You keep dodging and let them wear themselves out. When they are sufficiently fatigued you strike."

Goku was surprised that at what his father told him. He realized just then that his father must be smart for him to have discovered how to sense ki on his own, without the aid of an experienced teacher.

"Actually, that's exactly what I did."

"I knew it! I'm proud of you son. No one ever expected you to be very strong, but I knew the truth. You are destined for greatness."

Goku almost came to tears at what his father said. He suddenly felt a surge of pride run through him about being Saiyan. Although he had never admitted it to anyone, he had always wished he could see his father and show him what he had made of himself. Now he had the chance to do what he had only dreamt of.

"Father?"

"Yes son?"

"I've waited to hear that from you all of my life."

"Son, I've always been proud of you. You just being alive is enough for me to be proud of you. You'll grow up and carry on my blood line when you have children of your own. I'll never die as long as my descendants live and thrive."

Goku could feel his pride strengthen and his respect for his father grow immensely. What his father had just said was the way that he felt for Gohan, Goten, and even Pan. His spirit would live on through them long after he was gone and that made him feel good.

"Come on Kakarot, your next match starts in a few minutes."

Goku and his father left the locker room and walked down the corridor towards the tournament area.

"I'll leave you alone for now son. I'll find you at the end of the tournament."

Bardock went down another corridor, presumably to find a seat on one of the upper levels.

Goku continued down the first corridor and out into the battle arena. When he got there the crowd of kids and teens parted for him and the announcer waved him up onto the ring.

"The final fight of the semi-finals will commence at once. Kakarot, son of Bardock, will face off against Tatalia, daughter of Korros." The announcer paused for a breath and then continued his introductions. "The winner of this match will move on along with the winner of the previous match to the final round where they will have the privilege of competing against the offspring of elites. Children, take your positions. FIGHT!"

The girl Tatalia, who looked to be about the same age as Goku, had black hair with brown highlights that was tied back in a high spiky ponytail with a few loose spikes hanging down framing her face. She had dark onyx colored eyes and fair skin that provided a nice contrast. Her features were nothing short of beautiful.

Her armor was the same as Goku's but her body suit was a blood red color and the weighted bands she wore around her forearms and shins were black.

Goku didn't have enough time to admire her form for very long because she was already closing the distance between them. His hesitation would cost him dearly. While he was staring at her he had failed to put a decent defense and was now on the receiving end of several powerful blows to the head, gut, and groin.

'Yikes' he thought, suddenly glad that he was wearing Saiyan armor. 'What just happened?'

He pulled himself off of the ground and met the gaze of the laughing girl with his famous Son grin.

'Wow, I never imagined how pretty Saiyan women could be.'

"Hey Tatalia," Goku called out, "I've never met a Saiyan girl before but I have to say you sure are the prettiest."

She stood there stunned and her face became hot with all the blushing she was doing. It quickly turned to anger and embarrassment as the other kids teased her.

"Hey Tatalia," a kid in the audience yelled, "Are you gonna go kiss your new boyfriend because you sure don't look like you want to hit him."

"Shut up!" she yelled, immediately earning silence from the audience. She then turned to Goku and launched herself at him while screaming, "You're gonna pay for that kid!"

'Oh shit. That wasn't exactly the response I was counting on' thought Goku.

"Arghh… You're dead!"

Goku regained his composure and brought his right arm up just in time to block Tatalia's left fist. Tatalia anticipated this, however, and swung her left knee into Goku's side. Goku caught her leg and started to spin around at an incredible speed. When he was satisfied that she was disoriented enough he released his grip on her leg and she flew out of the ring.

'Yep, it's over,' Goku thought.

"I'm not done yet!" Tatalia screamed as she flared her white aura. Her sudden burst of energy stopped her from hitting the wall and she charged back into the ring with her aura blazing. She landed a few feet away from Goku.

"Wow," she said, "I didn't think I'd face any real competition until the final round. Guess I'll get to test out some of my special moves."

"I'm glad I can be of some use to you," Goku said, chucking slightly.

"Don't mock me!" she yelled as she commenced attacking him with lightning quick punches and kicks that were too fast for the untrained eye. Her limbs moved so fast that she appeared to have multiple arms and legs. Her fists glowed hot with ki and singed off a few strands of Goku's hair as her hits gradually became more accurate.

"I'm not…" Goku continued while dodging her attacks, "…mocking you. I just…" She threw an energy blast that singed his behind. "OUCH! See a lot … of potential in you!"

She paused and Goku phased out of sight. He moved so fast that she could only see glimpses of his after image. He circled her at near light speed and soon she became surrounded in a black whirlwind. It took all her strength to stay on the ground. Unfortunately it wasn't enough and she was picked up by Goku's tornado. She struggled to no avail and was rocketed upward from the force of the wind where she slammed into the roof effectively shattered it and raining shards of glass down onto the ring. She fell in slow motion along with the glass shards. Goku had already stopped his display and promptly jumped up to catch Tatalia. When he caught her he descended slowly and set her on her feet so he could look her in the eyes.

"You have a lot of potential, you just need to work on your technique. I'd really like to train with you if you'll let me," Goku said.

Tatalia just blushed and stared at the floor, thinking.

"Well, you are pretty strong. And I could use a good sparring partner." 'And he is very cute.' "Okay Kakarot, I accept your offer."

"Alright!" Goku exclaimed, "I've got a whole mess of things to teach you. It'll be great!"

And with that they stepped out of the ring after Goku was declared the winner. Tatalia clung to Goku's arm for some reason he didn't understand and they went to wait in the locker room.

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Vegeta watched Goku and Tatalia leave the ring and chuckled at them from his balcony.

'You have no idea what you just did, do you, Kakarot. I guess I'll be talking to you earlier than I thought.'

"Excuse me father," Vegeta said standing up, "I have a matter that needs tending to. I'll be back in time for my match."

His father grunted in acknowledgment and Vegeta exited the balcony through the white curtains behind them.

Vegeta walked leisurely down the hall which was decorated with red drapery at every archway. The red carpet had gold lace imprints on it and the ceiling was intricately painted with battle scenes that stretched far in both direction of the hall. The hall was very wide and gold light fixtures were the only things that separated the paintings of past leaders on both sides of the walls.

After a while of walking he passed a glass case which held many tournament trophies and he didn't care to stop. He knew they all belonged to his family.

When he finally reached the end of the hall he stepped onto the lift and pressed down.

The bottom level was the very opposite of the one he had just come from. The floors and the walls were both concrete and the ceiling was low. Some water leaked from exposed piping and left a few puddles here and there. Glowing strips on the ceiling about ten feet apart were the only sources of light and the smell was unpleasant.

He continued down the twisting corridor on his way to the competitors' lockers.

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Goku once again sat on the bench in the dank locker room, this time with Tatalia at his side.

He was nervous and was curious as to why she was leaning on him, but he didn't want to make her feel uncomfortable so he decided not mention anything about that. Instead he decided that it would be a good idea to get to know his new student.

"So…" Goku said trying to strike up a conversation, "tell me about yourself."

"Who, me?" Tatalia asked.

"Yeah."

"Well, there's not much to tell. I'm twelve years old and was born into low-level status, my father being a third class warrior and all."

"Oh come on, there's got to be more to you than that."

"Like what?"

"What are your favorite foods? What is your favorite color? What do you do with your free time? These are things you can tell me."

"Okay, first one is anything sweet. Second one is silver. And when I have time off of school I train."

"See, wasn't that easy?"

"Yeah, I guess so. You know, you're not like the other boys, you're actually nice."

"Is something wrong with that?"

"No, it's just rare that's all. I must be lucky," she said, smiling and wrapping her arms around Goku in a hug.

'Now I'm really confused,'he thought. 'What's she doing?'

Just then, the door to the locker room opened up and Goku turned to see who was coming in.

A young man of about fifteen who looked a lot like Vegeta walked in. He wore a royal blue jumpsuit with armor that had gold tinted shoulder-pads and a gold tinted stomach plate. His blood red cape hung to the floor and was fastened around his neck with a silver chain. And finally, he wore white gauntlets and matching boots.

Everyone except Goku immediately took a knee and bowed to their Prince. Vegeta just continued toward Goku.

"As you were" Vegeta said for all who were bowed.

When he reached Goku he looked down on him and smirked.

"Who's taller now Kakarot?"

"Vegeta? Hey what's up man, I almost didn't recognize you. How's it going?" Goku asked casually.

Vegeta grabbed him, pulled him out of Tatalia's arms, and dragged him into a corner away from everyone else.

"Listen Kakarot," he whispered, "In this place I'm a prince and if you don't treat me as such you'll look suspicious. Do you understand?"

Goku just nodded.

"Now onto the real reason I'm here," he continued to whisper. "I'm going to do you a favor and tell you what you did so you're not totally clueless."

"What did I do Vegeta?" Goku asked confusedly.

"That little training offer you made to that girl over there was more than you think. When you beat her in a test of strength and invited her to train with you, you were basically proposing a marriage. And seeing as she accepted that means you two are now bonded."

"WHAT?" Goku yelled loudly.

"Keep it down Kakarot."

"I didn't propose to her," he said, whispering again. "That can't be all it takes."

"Saiyan ways are very different from those of humans. When a Saiyan male wishes to take a mate he must first defeat her and any nearby competition in battle. Then he takes responsibility for her, and if she does not oppose then the bond is formed. Normally, just beating her in match wouldn't have led to bonding but consider what you did at the end of your match with her. You complemented her and showed affection by catching her before she fell, thus giving her the impression that you were interested in her. Then you ask to take her under your wing and become her personal trainer. Do you see the similarities?"

"Yeah, I guess, but I can't marry her, what about Chi-Chi? I have to break it off, now!"

"Hold it Kakarot; I wouldn't do that if I were you."

"Why not?"

"Proposing a marriage and withdrawing after your mate has already accepted is considered an insult to her entire clan. If you do so, her family has the right, under Saiyan law, to execute you in any way they see fit."

"So how do I get out of this?"

"You don't. Marriages are only broken if the female releases you or one of you dies."

"Y-you mean I'm stuck with her?" Goku said with a dry throat.

Vegeta nodded and half grinned at Goku's predicament.

"Me and my big mouth. Hey Vegeta, the next time I'm about to do something stupid, please just knock me out okay."

"With pleasure."

"So what should I do about her," Goku said motioning toward Tatalia.

"Make the most of it. There's no telling how long it'll take before an opportunity to get home arises. I'm enjoying myself."

"Of course you would, you're a prince, and you've got the life."

"Whatever, Kakarot. Oh and try to keep it under Super Saiyan for now, we don't want people to start asking questions."

Having nothing more to say, Vegeta turned to leave.

"Hey Vegeta," Goku called to him, "You know I don't need that to beat all of these people."

"Indeed you don't," Vegeta said, looking over his shoulder. "But you might when you fight me in the final round."

Goku grinned and saluted as Vegeta left.

Once Vegeta was gone, Tatalia walked over to Goku with a mixed look of confusion and disbelief on her face.

"What was that all about?" she asked. "I didn't know you knew the Prince personally. He doesn't usually associate with us low-levels."

"Uh… well…" Goku scratched the back of his head nervously. "It's kind of a long story, can I tell you later?"

"Yeah, okay."

Goku breathed a sigh of relief but was cut short when Tatalia started snuggling against him.

'Damn, I almost forgot. We're married now.'

Goku's stress immediately returned full force and he sunk to the floor with his back against the wall.

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Time flew by and Goku breezed through the finals like nothing. He impressed a lot of people and angered some others, namely the parents of the children he clobbered. Tatalia, on the other hand, just stared at him love-stricken while drooling.

'Wow!' she thought. 'I can't believe how strong my husband is. I must be the luckiest girl in the universe.'

When it was all over, Goku and Vegeta were called into the ring to start their match against each other.

Goku was already there and Vegeta just jumped down from his balcony and landed opposite him.

"Okay!" the announcer yelled though the mic. "Here it is folks, the match we've all been waiting for. Never before have we seen a low-level demonstrate this kind of strength and cunning. Remember, even though he may not have a chance at winning this match he and his family will still be rewarded with an upgrade to elite status. Let the championship match BEGIN!"

Vegeta smirked and disappeared, followed immediately by Goku.

The announcer looked dumbfounded and stood in the ring frozen with shock. He and the audience looked up in the air, their eyes darting around rapidly to try and glimpse the two fighters.

Vegeta and Goku phased in and out of sight, only visible for mere fractions of a second as they exchanged earth-shattering blows. Loud thunder and crackling noises filled the arena as they fought.

All of a sudden Vegeta reappeared right in front of the announcer and kicked him out of the ring.

"You're in the way," he simply stated before disappearing again.

Vegeta flew head on towards Goku, his right arm pulled back preparing to punch. At the last second when he was about to strike he vanished.

Goku floated there with his eyes closed trying to detect Vegeta's movements.

Vegeta appeared behind him and slammed his intertwined fists down onto Goku's head sending him plummeting into the ring floor.

Goku crashed into the floor creating an impact crater that decimated half of the ring.

Vegeta hovered above the giant mess awaiting Goku's exit. After a few seconds the ground started to rumble and chunks of debris began to float a few feet above the ring. Then a Kamehameha wave shot out of the rubble surrounded in a golden aura and struck Vegeta dead on.

He caught it and struggled to hold it back, flaring his white aura. It still wasn't enough and he continued to be pushed back by the blast.

With a scream and a heave he began to push the blast away and alter its path. His aura fluctuated and became golden while his hair remained unchanged. He pushed the Kamehameha up and it shot through the hole in the roof and into the sky.

Vegeta remained floating there breathing hard with his golden-white aura, on the verge of Super Saiyan.

Goku shot out of the hole in the ground and hovered opposite Vegeta in a similar state. His hair stood on end, still black, and he had a golden-white aura surrounding him. He too was on the verge of transformation, a ninety percent Super so to speak.

"So Vegeta," Goku said half-smiling, "I thought we were going to keep it down to everyone else's level."

"I didn't say those exact words Kakarot. And need I remind you that you were the first to up the ante."

"Okay, okay. What do you say we fight like this then?"

"Fine by me, but don't cry when you lose."

So Vegeta and Goku commenced fighting on the verge just below SS1.

They battled back and forth for hours, neither giving into fatigue. Unfortunately Goku's stomach got the better of him and he collapsed on the ring floor due to extreme hunger.

"Don't tell me that last hit actually fazed you," Vegeta said, touching down on the ring floor with a light 'tp'.

"Actually, I'm just really, really hungry GROWL hhhrrrr…" Goku clutched his stomach as it continued to rumble. "Ohhhhh, it hurts… make it stop. I need food quick," he said rolling over.

"Damn you Kakarot! Why are you always getting hungry at the wrong times?"

"I forfeit!" Goku yelled as he rolled around on the floor.

"You heard it people!" said the announcer, conscious once again. "After three hours of grueling battle Prince Vegeta's endurance has proven to be too much for young Kakarot. It is my honor to present this trophy to our exceptionally talented Prince!"

The announcer handed Vegeta the polished golden ape statue, and bowed his head in respect.

"Long live the royal family!"

"Feh, whatever, just get him some food," Vegeta said, indicating Goku who was being tended to by Tatalia.

"Yes sir!" the announcer said while waving over some people to take care of Goku.