"Kakashi." Yamato whispered, not wanting to break Sakura's concentration. "My wood clone reports that Orochimaru and Kabuto are retreating back to their hideout. My wood clone is pursuing but…"
"But?" Kakashi whispered back, his patience long since spent.
"He believes that Videl has been kidnapped by them. No idea what they plan on doing with her." The wood user reported.
"Shit…" Kakashi whispered. His gaze fell upon his two former Genin students. Unknown to him, Sakura had heard them but continued to focus on healing Naruto.
'One crisis at a time…'
Elsewhere, Gohan was flying to the cloud village. He knew that Videl would be able to handle whatever mission they were going on, but little did he know that shit had just hit the fan and Videl is in a great deal of danger. That is, until he sensed a very sinister energy miles away from where he is currently.
'What in the world is-' Gohan stopped in mid air as he concentrated on the energy source and immediately knew who it belonged to. 'That's Naruto. I've felt that power before, only this time its much stronger and far more evil.'
Gohan then focused his senses around the area where Team 7 was. That's when his blood ran cold. 'No.. I can't sense Videl's energy...'
It was true, Videl's energy had plummeted to barely noticeable levels, and with a raging Jinchuriki in the way, Gohan couldn't pick out Videl's signal. Of course at the time, Gohan knew nothing about what happened to her, but that didn't stop him from panicking. Gohan tried using the bond link but Videl didn't answer and from that point, Gohan knew that Videl was in trouble.
'I'll look for recruits later, I need to find Videl!' Gohan shouted in his head. He swiftly changed course and flew as fast as he could to Tenchi bridge to figure out what was going on. His mind flashed back tot he events that led up to this point as he sighed sadly.
-AGE: 774- Mt. Pouzu East District 439. Two months ago.
Chichi, the mother of Gohan had put out a spread of food for a light afternoon lunch. That is, light for the two demi-Saiyan's. Goten, Gohan's younger brother, was being extra careful not to down all of the food on the table at once. Gohan was also eating at a more human like pace. Why? Because Videl Satan was among them and she knew nothing about Saiyan's and their eating habits.
"Lunch looks wonderful, Chichi." Videl said politely. Despite their earlier encounter, Chichi had warmed up to Videl, over the thought that she may be the one Gohan would settle down with.
"Why, thank you Videl. You know, its nice that Gohan is meeting some nice lady friends. You know, it's never too early to settle down." Chichi practically sang.
"Mom..." Gohan groaned in protest.
Videl took a bite of rice that Chichi had made and was overwhelmed by the amount of flavor it had.
"Delicious! I should give this recipe to our cook." Videl said joyfully.
"Your cook? Is your family in the restaurant business?" Chichi asked.
"Oh no. I mean the cook we have at our house."
"You have your own cook? You must be pretty loaded. Just how many rooms does your house have? 10? 20?" Chichi asked hurriedly, bombarding Videl with questions.
"Hmm... That's a good question." Videl said as she paused to think exactly how many rooms were in her father's mansion. After a few moments, she came up with an estimated guess. "I'd say around...50."
"50?!" Chichi exclaimed in shock. "That's like a small village! I can hardly imagine it..."
Gohan paid no mind to the conversation the women were having, until-
"And you plan to marry this girl?" Chichi said to Gohan.
Gohan spat out a mouthful of food that hit Goten in the face from a cross the table. Goten protested for a moment but then put on a smile almost exactly like Goku's
"So, does this mean that Videl will be my older sister?" Goten asked innocently.
"I have no idea what you guys are talking about!" Gohan all but screamed.
'What the hell does he mean by that?' Videl thought. During her time fighting crime with Gohan as he dressed up as Saiyaman, she had started developing a mild crush on the boy, not that she would ever admit to it. But then she remembered the events that lead up to this point. Videl hounding Gohan for information and constantly prying into his personal life. 'I guess my attitude towards him may be the reason. I have been too much of a bitch to him and he probably doesn't want to have anything to do with me in that area.' Videl thought sadly.
Just then the phone started ringing and Chichi got up from the picnic table to go answer the phone.
"So, Gohan." Videl started.
"Please, excuse my mom.. She gets like this anytime I bring a girl home." Gohan said.
'Wait, does this mean I'm not the first? No, Videl. Stop it. You're here to fly, not to pry into Gohan's life again. If he doesn't want to tell me he doesn't have to.' Videl thought to herself.
"Don't worry about it." Videl said, waving off Gohan's attempt to apologize. "I was just wondering what all this flying stuff entails."
"Oh, uh... well mostly what we'll be doing is getting you to learn how to use your Ki, or latent energy. It's how you can fly without any sort of devices." Gohan explained.
"Latent energy, huh? I have heard stories about people who could conjure up latent energy in the form of Chi or Chakra. Most of them were fictitious stories and my dad says they're a cheap trick." Videl said.
"Well, let me be the first to tell you that its not a trick. I really don't know what Chakra is, but Ki and Chi are one in the same. Every living being has this energy inside of them but it normally takes years of training to find it." Gohan explained further.
"Well, I certainly hope it doesn't take me years to find mine so I can fly." Videl said in protest.
"No it shouldn't take that long for you. Another ability that you can do with your energy is use it to sense other people's energy. I can teach you how to do that if you want." Gohan offered.
"mmm... Lets stick with flying for now and then I'll go for that. It does sound very useful, though. But where are you going with that explanation?"
"I can sense your energy, Videl. It is way higher than most peoples energy. You can have this down in no time." Gohan said.
"D-do you really think so?" Videl asked. A hint of a blush was forming on her face. She didn't know it, but she was really starting to fall for the Demi-Saiyan.
"I know so." Gohan replied back. Just then, Chichi walked out of the house.
"Gohan, that was Bulma. She wants you to head over to her lab. She says she has a new invention she wants you to check out." Chichi said.
Gohan nodded and got up from the table. He then looked over and saw that Videl started to look sad. The a light-bulb light up in his head.
"Come on Videl. You can go too, if you want." Gohan offered.
Videl looked at Gohan like a deer caught in the headlights. "A-are you sure? I don't want to impose upon someone as great as Bulma Briefs."
Gohan just laughed. "She wont care. She has been a friend of the family since my dad was a kid. It'll be fine."
Videl nodded and she got up as well. She began to take out her jet copter, when Gohan stopped her.
"I can fly you there if you want." Gohan offered.
Videl was taken aback by Gohan's sudden and rather bold offer. She thought about it for a moment, before she nodded with a slight blush. In an instant, Gohan picked her up bridal style and held her close and rather firm. Her face became beet red and her heart started racing. Before she could dwell on the many emotions and thoughts that ran through her mind, Gohan blasted off at the speed of light.
Videl was stunned at how fast they were going. The speed Gohan was flying at was enough to peel the paint off her jet copter and here she was, in Gohan's arms, going several times faster than the speed of sound.
After a bit, Videl's mind wandered and came to the subject as to how she got here. She thought about how she had constantly been on Gohan's ass getting information out of him, only to nearly by accident discover that he was Great Saiyaman. Then she blackmails him into entering the tournament and teaching her how to fly.
'I don't deserve Gohan's kindness.' Videl thought to herself. 'I have been nothing but a straight up bitch to him since the start. He has been nothing but kind and caring to me, all the while keeping the city and myself safe. He never thought of himself, always others and I took advantage of that. I feel like I'm no better than my father, except for hanging around loose women or in my case, men.'
Videl was constantly kicking herself in the butt over the shit she pulled to get to where she is now. She absolutely resented the fact that she blindly took advantage of someone's kindness just to get what she wanted. Then a light bulb went off in her head. To make it up to Gohan, she was going to tell her one of her most sensitive secrets.
'I just hope I can keep it together when I tell him. It's not by any means a happy memory.' Videl made up her mind as she began to get Gohan's attention.
"H-hey Gohan?"
Gohan looked down at Videl. "What's up? Want me to slow down?"
"Actually, could we stop and land somewhere? I need to talk to you about something. It's pretty sensitive as well and I don't want to you lose concentration and letting us both fall."
Gohan nodded and found a clearing in a nearby wooded area. He landed in the middle of the clearing and set Videl on her feet. Videl fixed her hair and played with her fingers as she tried to find the courage to tell Gohan what she wanted to tell him. Finally, she decided to wing it.
"Gohan.. First off, I want to say thank you for all you are doing for me and what you have done for not only me, but all of Satan City." Videl said nervously.
"Of course, but what brought this on?"
"I'm getting to that. I realized that I was acting like a huge bitch towards you, prying into your personal life to find out who you are and then blackmail you into teaching me how to fly when I found out about your Saiyaman identity. For that I'm really sorry.."
"Don't sweat it, I had already forgiven you for it."
"Yea, I doubt you were that quick to forgive me, but whatever. I want to make it up to you by telling you a secret that only a small handful of people know, and it isn't a very pleasant memory for me." Videl said as her hands began to shake as she recalled her memory.
"You don't have to-"
"I'm going to... It's only fair to you that you know. Plus it will give you a better idea about why I am how I am. So, please. Do me a favor and be quiet while I tell this story." Videl said as her whole body began to shudder. She was beyond nervous as she never told anyone outside of the people who already knew.
Gohan nodded and Videl continued with a deep sigh. "almost 2 years ago, I was just finishing up my Sophomore year and I had elected to partake in a study hall to finish up some last minute work. I was a week away from turning 16 at the time. I had stayed late after everyone else had left. During the entire time in the classroom, the teacher there kept staring at me and it really creeped me out. As I was leaving, he asked me to stay a little bit so he could talk to me about a few things. Trying to be a model student, I agreed, but it was the worst mistake I ever made." Videl said as she started tensing up and tears welled up in her eyes.
Gohan had sensed Videl's sudden change in emotional awareness and grew concerned. He was about to say something when Videl raised a hand to stop him.
"I... waited for him to ask me what it was he had on his mind, when he suddenly grabbed onto me... He pinned me on top of his desk.. and...H-he... He.." Videl suddenly released the flood gate that kept her tears in and she started sobbing uncontrollable.
"Videl? What did he do.." Gohan said with a very worried tone as he grew closer to Videl. He put a hand on her shoulder and she immediately latched onto him and cried in his chest.
"The fucker RAPED ME!" Videl cried as she broke down into Gohan's chest.
Gohan was taken aback. He was completely shocked to see Videl crying out like this and the reason for that angered him. But he decided to focus on Videl and comfort her. He noticed that she was trying very hard to regain control, but her emotions were starting to overpower her.
"It's okay, Videl. Just let it all out. It's just you and me here." Gohan said.
Those words are what broke Videl as she cried louder and harder. She lost the feeling in her legs and sank to the ground while Gohan slid down with her until they were both sitting on the grass. Videl continued to cry into Gohan's chest for all she was worth and Gohan began rubbing her back to make her feel better. after a few moments, Videl's cries were turned into muffled sobs as she began to speak again.
"He took away my innocence before I could be with any potential boyfriend. It felt like forever, but it really only lasted about 10 minutes when Sharpner came back. He saw what that bastard was doing to me and he pulled that creep off of me and beat him into the ground. If Sharpner hadn't of saved me then, I would have been a mother to a child produced by a rapist. Erasa was there to get me cleaned up and salvage what little there was of my clothes. Sharpner called the police and EMS to get me checked out and Erasa called my dad. My dad was about to kill the asshole that dare touched his daughter, but the Police held him back. Mr. Candola is currently serving a 10 year sentence in prison for second degree assault on a minor and 3rd degree rape on a minor. He mentally scared me for life, Gohan. I began to fear men and to keep them away, even the nice ones like you. I put up the best 'I'll kick your ass if you come near me' act and it worked for a long time." Videl finished, her sobs now slowing down.
"Videl..."
"Now you know why I am always so bossy and pushy and pretty much a down right bitch. My dad made me train hard in order to protect myself from this happening ever again and he also said that the only way I could ever have a boyfriend was if he was stronger than my dad. Needless to say, no boy dared to even look at me, save for Sharpner. My dad even said that if I wanted to date Sharpner he would allow it because he saved me. My dad owes him a great deal for that action, but I just don't feel that way about him. Yea, I can never thank him enough for what he did, but my feelings for him are nothing more than just friendly, almost family like. He's more of a brother to me than a potential boyfriend."
Gohan nodded and stroked Videl's hair trying to keep her calm. Videl felt completely safe in Gohan's arms as she opened up to him with gusto.
"I'm so sorry this happened to you, Videl. I wish I could have been there to put that sicko in his place. No man should ever treat a woman like that and it sickens me that he took pride in something like that." Gohan said, anger slowly welling up inside of him. Videl looked up at Gohan, only to see that he looked past Videl. She noticed that his eyes were flashing from black to teal and she could've sworn she saw his hair flash from black to gold briefly. She was going to shake it off until she saw it happen again and it happened long enough to get a good look at it.
"G-Gohan..? Your hair is flashing..." Videl said in shock.
Gohan snapped out of his angered state and calmed down in an attempt to hide his other secret, but it was too late. Videl had already seen enough of it to put everything together.
"So you are the Gold fighter as well... But how did you make your hair do that?"
Gohan sighed in defeat. "Yes, I'm him as well." Gohan confessed as he pulled away from Videl and stood up. He flashed completely into super Saiyan in front of Videl, his golden aura surrounding him like a golden flame.
"Oh my god... How is such a thing even possible?"
"Only those of my race can do this. This is a secret I had hoped not to tell you for some time, but it seems now is as good of a time as any." Gohan started. "You see, Videl. I'm not completely human. My dad was born on a different planet called Vegeta. He is what is known as a Saiyan. They look very similar to humans, except their strength and durability is far higher than a humans, plus they have a natural affinity to use Ki. This form you see me in know was once a legend among the Saiyan's. It's called Super Saiyan." Gohan explained.
"Not very original if you ask me." Videl said, she was still shocked, but it made sense to her as to how Gohan was so strong now.
Gohan chuckled. "Yea I agree. But anyway, Saiyan's were once known as very proud and very powerful warriors. They were bred to fight, it was in their blood. My dad was sent here as an infant to take over this world, but something happened to him that changed his heart and eventually became one of its defenders. We protected the world from all kinds of threats that would come."
"Even Cell?" Videl asked.
Gohan smiled. "You really are very quick to put things together. Yes, we were the group of mysterious fighters that showed up at the Cell games. Your dad made us look like we were nothing more than 'tricksters' as he put it. But as you have seen for yourself, this is no trick."
Videl nodded. "I can see that. Wait, so you were that little boy that was there, weren't you?" Gohan nodded. "That means it was you who really defeated Cell, not my dad..."
Gohan nodded again. "Yea.. I killed Cell."
"So, then my dad lied to the whole world just to gain fame and fortune at your expense.." Videl said as anger started rising within her.
"To be honest, I'm glad he did. My family would never have a moments peace what with the reporters and what not surrounding us day and night. We may not have a lot, bit we don't need much to be happy. You got to get anything you wanted or needed and I'm happy for that." Gohan said with complete honesty.
"You really are a selfless soul, aren't you.." Videl said in amazement.
"Thank my mom and dad for that." Gohan chuckled. "We should be getting back on track to capsule Corp now. Bulma is probably wondering what's taking us so long."
Videl nodded and Gohan picked her back up in his arms and they flew off at high speed again. The rest of the trip was spent in silence as Gohan continued to fly to Bulma's, but now he had a newfound sense of duty. He mentally decided that he was going to protect Videl so long as they both drew breath.
'I will make it my job to make sure this doesn't happen again. I may have not known about that incident, but anymore that come up I will protect her from. I care for her far too much to let her handle something like that again, alone.' Gohan thought.
"Did you say something?" Videl asked.
"Huh? No, I didn't say anything."
Videl cocked an eyebrow and then shrugged it off, thinking it was the wind that constantly pelted her ears.
'Did she just hear my thoughts?' Gohan said to himself, but quickly shook that idea off as they landed in front of Capsule Corp. They both walked through the double glass sliding doors and were greeted by the receptionist.
"Ah, Mr. Son! Always a pleasure to see you. I'll let Miss Bulma know you're here." The woman said as she walked down the hall to talk to Bulma.
"So, Gohan. This Super Saiyan ability. Are you the only one who can do it?" Videl asked.
Gohan shook his head. "My dad was the first in a very long time that could do it. Then the other full blooded Saiyan, Vegeta, You'll meet him while we're here."
"Why would he be here?"
"He's Bulma's husband." Gohan said and Videl nodded. "I was the third to transform. My little brother and Vegeta's son, Trunks, can do it as well."
Videl nodded. "Wish I could do that. Sounds and looks like an awesome ability."
It was then that a light-bulb went off in Gohan's head and he grabbed Videl by the hand and led her to the arboretum. it was a wide open space full of trees, bushes and various other forms of foliage.
"Why did you bring me here?" Videl asked.
Gohan transformed into a Super Saiyan and grabbed Videl's other hand.
"I'm going to let you experience the power of a Super Saiyan. Close your eyes and I will transfer my power to you. This should give you the feeling of being one and also the appearance for a brief moment." Gohan explained.
Videl was starting to feel giddy over this sudden proclamation and she quickly nodded her head and closed her eyes. She then felt a warm sensation travel up her arms and it soon engulfed her entire body. She could feel her hair moving about and the hair ties that kept her hair in pigtails broke away as her heir spiked completely up in a similar fashion to Goku's, save for a few strands of hair that remained on her forehead and in front of her ears. The feeling of this new power made her feel unstoppable. She felt strong, confident and just overall, safe. It was the best feeling in the world.
"You can open your eyes now." She heard Gohan say. Videl slowly opened her eyes and looked at Gohan. Gohan saw Videl's eyes and was shocked at what he saw. Videl's eyes went from cerulean blue to completely teal. He had done this with his mother and Bulma in the past and this never happened. It did with Goten but that was because he is a half Saiyan. He put it on the back burner for now and focused on the task at hand.
"I'm going to let go now. You got the feeling of a Super Saiyan now. It will linger for a few more moments as the energy starts to deplete." Gohan explained.
Once Gohan pulled away, Videl immediately pulled out her phone and had Gohan take a picture. Gohan did as was instructed and handed it back to Videl. She looked at it and gasped.
"Wooow..." Videl whispered out. Videl then finally felt the energy she absorbed from Gohan flee her body and her hair and eyes went back to normal. Videl would always keep that picture as a reminder to what she could have been if she was a Saiyan. Little did she know that she is half Saiyan but she had no way of knowing for certain at the time.
Videl continued to look at the picture and smiled. "I make a damn fine blonde if I do say so myself."
"Hey brat. What's going on in here?" A loud, deep and raspy voice sounded. Gohan and Videl turned to the source of it and noticed Vegeta standing in the doorway.
"Oh, hey Vegeta." Gohan greeted, receiving a grunt from the prince.
Vegeta noticed that Gohan was transformed and he senses some remaining energy fleeing Videl's body and he put everything together.
"Letting your mate experience a taste of the power we have, huh?" Vegeta said with a smirk.
"Shes not my mate, Vegeta. But yes. She wanted to know what it was like to be a super Saiyan." Gohan replied back, then via mental link, Gohan continued. 'Her eyes changed color.' Gohan thought to Vegeta.
Vegeta was shocked at what he just heard. 'You lie... When the woman and your mother experienced it, their eyes never changed, just their hair.'
'I know that, Vegeta. I was there. But I saw it with my own eyes and Videl's phone has a picture of it. You can clearly see her eyes have changed.' Gohan replied.
"Videl, let Vegeta see your picture." Gohan said out loud. Videl nodded and handed her phone to Vegeta. The prince examined the photo and sure enough, it captured her teal eyes. Vegeta looked back up at Videl, who was putting her hair back into pigtails and noticed that her eyes were blue.
'So, she's a Saiyan then.' Vegeta concluded.
'I thought about that too, but there is no way of knowing for sure. Don't tell her yet in case it isn't true. I don't want her to panic.'
Vegeta grunted but nodded in agreement and handed Videl back her phone. "You would make a decent Super Saiyan." Vegeta said.
Videl smirked. "I know. I just wish I could become one on my own."
Vegeta smirked. "This one is a keeper, Gohan. Don't let this one slip away." Vegeta said as he left the room.
Gohan and Videl blushed. "Why do all my friends try to get dates for me..." Gohan sighed.
'Honestly, I wouldn't mind at all.' Videl thought.
"Huh? What did you say?" Gohan asked.
"What? I didn't say anything." Videl said
Gohan shrugged it off and he and Videl left the arboretum and met Bulma in the foyer.
"Great of you to come by, Gohan. This new invention of mine will definitely be the best one I have made yet." Bulma proudly proclaimed. That was when she noticed Videl and an evil smirk came to her face. "So, little Gohan found himself a girlfriend finally." Bulma said.
Gohan blushed madly while Videl tried to hide hers. "NO! It's not like that. Shes just a friend from school that I'm training."
"'Training,' huh? I may not be a Saiyan but I'm not stupid." Bulma said, then she just shrugged. "Well, whatever. Come on, lets go test this baby out." Bulma finally said.
After a few minutes of walking, they came to Bulma's lab and walked inside. There stood a massive machine that looked like some sort of gateway.
"This is my Dimensional Gate. It can send an object or a person to another dimension and bring them back unharmed." Bulma said.
"You based it off of Stargate didn't you?" Videl inquired.
Bulma was taken aback by the statement. "You watch that show?" Bulma asked and Videl nodded.
"I watch it sometimes. Usually when my dad is watching his Cell games tapes over and over, which is almost always." Videl stated.
"Her dad is Hercule, Bulma." Gohan said.
Bulma nodded. "I thought you looked familiar. You're Videl Satan aren't you?" Videl nodded. "Well that's cool, I guess.."
"You don't have to pretend around me. Gohan told me it was him who really beat Cell. I know he can be insufferable at times, but he's all I have." Videl said calmly.
Bulma nodded and walked over to the control panel and started pushing buttons. "I'm going to send some containers through and bring them back. This its first trial run so this will be interesting." Bulma said. She locked the scanner onto number 24, the number that determined the universe to where it was going.
The machine started whirring to life as a portal started forming. The gateway glowed brightly in a multitude of colors and soon a large, white portal appeared. Bulma started operating a overhead crane to put the boxes through, when suddenly an alarm started sounding and red lights were flashing.
"SHIT!" Bulma shouted. "The portal has become unstable and I can't shut it down!"
Suddenly, a scream made Bulma look up as Videl was sucked into the Portal.
"GOHAN!" Videl screamed as she was sucked through the portal, followed by the two containers.
"VIDEL!" Gohan yelled as he charged after her.
"NO GOHAN! NOT YOU TOO!" Bulma shouted but it was too late. Gohan was gone and then the portal stability went critical and the machine exploded.
Back to present events.
'I never should have brought Videl with me that day. I could kick myself for that ever happening. Now she's in trouble again and I have to save her!' Gohan thought as he quickly approached what was left of Tenchi Bridge.
At the remnants of the Tenchi bridge…
Too much time had passed for Sakura's liking. How much time had passed exactly, she didn't know. An hour? A few minutes? It didn't matter because she was still in the process of healing Naruto.
'Why is this taking so long? Why isn't the Kyuubi helping to speed up Naruto's healing?' She thought. For once, her Inner self was at a loss for words.
'Naruto…' Inner Sakura thought.
If there was one thing the Demon Fox was good for it was the enhanced healing he provided for his vessel. Sakura had spent more than enough time in the burn ward to know that the rate of Naruto's recovery was taking a lot longer than it normally would even if he was a normal human.
'Woah there girl, are you trying to suggest that our Baka is a demon?' Inner Sakura berated Sakura.
'I meant that he isn't normal, he's Naruto. And I never meant that in a bad way. Where did that come from anyway?'
'We don't know, I-I'm just nervous…I've never seen Naruto so…'
'It's fine Inner. His recovery might be slow, but it is consistent. His life isn't in any danger.'
'Good, that's good…I think I'll just pop over to Master Control and get our emotions straightened away. No doubt those girls are going crazy with everything that…yeah…' Inner said while scampering off to who knows where.
Sakura sighed. It was a weird change up that she would have to consult her Inner self when usually it was the other way around. Maybe it was because on the inside she wanted to freak out and demand answers while the higher part of her brain knew enough to maintain her focus on the situation at hand.
Once Sakura returned to the Leaf she would have to thank Lady Tsunade for all those stress tests she put the young medic through. To be able to stay calm and collected even while you wanted to tear your own hair out was an invaluable skill.
"Sakura…" Came a voice back in reality.
Sakura looked up for just long enough to realize that it was Kakashi who had spoken to her. Immediately she returned to her work. "What is it Kakashi-sensei? In case you haven't realized I am trying to concentrate." She said with an annoyed tone.
"I just wanted to get our bearings. What can you tell me about Naruto's status?" Kakashi asked. Typical of him to be the one to remind Sakura that they were still on a mission and that there was more to the world than healing Naruto.
"…Right. I applied a sedative jutsu to ease the patient's pain and lower his BP. Once his breathing and pulse became regular I gave him a quick chakra scan, which revealed no broken bones or severed arteries, so his life isn't in any immediate danger. The main problem is the patient's multiple 2nd and 3rd degree burns all over his body. To combat his skin from drying up and restricting his lungs from expanding I applied a water based jutsu that moistens the patients skin. With that in place I am in the process of using the Mystic Palm technique to excel cell growth to replace the patient's dead cells." Sakura listed off her medical report. It was just like she was back with Tsunade practicing on patients in the burn ward and was asked to explain her step by step process.
"In English, Sakura." Her squad leader asked.
Sakura looked back up, offended that Kakashi would use that tone with her during this situation.
"The patient is not combat ready, Sir." She reported, not willing to bring herself to think of the man beneath her as anything other than her patient. It was something else that Tsunade had taught her, perhaps the most crucial thing. In the most critical moments, you must never think of a patient as your friend. Treating loved ones leads to emotional decisions and emotional decisions lead to bad calls.
'Hello? Can you guys here me?' A voice in Team 7's collective heads asked.
'Gohan? Kakashi thought. Is that you?'
'Yeah, it's me. I sensed a massive power fluctuation coming from your team's direction and now I can't sense Videl's energy. What happened?'
'The mission encountered a massive hiccup. Orochimaru showed up, Naruto went ballistic and is out cold now, and Videl was captured by Orochimaru.'
'Shit, Videl…' Gohan thought.
'Gohan I hate to ask this, but do you have any more senzu beans on you? Naruto could sure use the pick-me-up right now.'
'Yeah sure, I've got a few beans left. I'm already on route to your location. I'll be there in a few moments and we can rescue Videl together.'
'Understood.' Kakashi breathed a sigh of relief, finally some good news.
While both Kakashi and Yamato were overjoyed at the thought of some back up, Sakura felt dejected. All her frantic struggles and worry over the last few minutes were now wasted. Soon Gohan would arrive with his magic bean and Naruto would be good as new. Rendering what meager help Sakura could provide to Naruto who already had accelerated healing even more pointless.
"What's wrong, Sakura?" Kakashi asked.
"Captain Yamato." Sakura said. The ANBU captain perked up at the sound of his code-name.
"That jutsu you used to seal Naruto. Could you teach it to me?" The girl asked.
"I'm afraid that is impossible. That jutsu I used uses wood style kekkei genkai, unique only to the 1st Hokage. I am just lucky enough to have his cells implanted into my DNA and survive. Thanks entirely to our very own snake friend." Sakura frowned. Just how far did that bastard's influence go to ruin other people's lives?
"It's part of the reason he was chosen to join us on this mission Sakura." Kakashi commented.
"It's always like this, huh?" Sakura asked. The two jounin raised confused eyebrows.
"The only things I can do for Naruto…are so small and insignificant…" A single tear ran down the girl's face, finally let loose.
"Sakura, no. Don't you think that, don't you ever think that." Yamato stated, much to the surprise of Kakashi. "What you did today, what you are doing now, is invaluable not only to Naruto, but to all of us on the team." Sakura looked up, a glimmer of hope ready to show itself on her face.
"We never would have stopped Naruto if it wasn't for you. And we sure as Hell wouldn't be able to provide the medical care for him that you are doing now." Yamato pointed out.
"Besides, it's not about the size of what you can do for Naruto, but your feelings behind it." Yamato wisely stated.
"Sakura, even I can tell that you truly care for Naruto."
'Yeah, no shit Woody. He's only our boyfriend and the love of our life.' Inner Sakura stated.
'Nice to hear that you are back to normal.' Sakura thought.
'Yup, good as new.' Inner Sakura pounded her chest the way Naruto would to show that she was ready for action.
"Thank you, Captain Yamato." Sakura sighed in relief. Just then Naruto began to stir and Kakashi could see a flying silhouette on the horizon.
The moment Gohan arrived he saw Naruto, Sakura, Kakashi and Yamato standing at one end of the bridge trying to come up with a plan to rescue Videl when Gohan descended and landed in front of them.
"It's a good thing you showed up" Kakashi said.
"What happened." Gohan stated seriously.
"Videl was taken by Kabuto and Orochimaru. Who knows why. Naruto is out of commission for the moment and Videl has the senzu beans." Yamato explained
Gohan nodded. "Glad I brought my own." Gohan pulled a bean from his pouch. He walked over to Sakura and handed it to her. "That should fix him up." Gohan said.
Sakura nodded as she looked upon Gohan's Headband. "Never saw a headband like that." She stated as she turned her attention back to Naruto and fed him the bean. After a brief moment, all of Naruto's injuries were healed and we woke up to see a near crying Sakura and Gohan with an odd headband he had never seen before.
"Hey Gohan. Hey Sakura-chan." Naruto said weakly.
Sakura sobbed softly. "You idiot! Do you know how worried I was?!"
"How much do you remember, Naruto?" Kakashi asked.
Naruto, after sitting up, tilted his head downward. "All of it.." He stated quietly. "I'm so sorry if I hurt you, Sakura-chan."
"Forget about it. I was worth it to save your dumb ass. But we got more pressing matters to tend to." Sakura said, calming down.
Naruto looked up. He still hated himself for letting himself be consumed with so much hatred, but he knew that Videl had been taken and that She was top priority.
"Which way did those creeps take her?" Gohan stated seriously.
Kakashi pointed to the direction they went. "They went that way a little while ago, no doubt to Orochimaru's hideout."
Gohan focused his senses and found 3 power levels. one was faint, but the other two were good size compared to the average person on this planet. It was some distance away, but he was confident that he could make it there in no time.
"They seem to be about 20 miles from here. A short trip for me. I'm gonna go on ahead and take care of things."
"Are you nuts?! Orochimaru is-"
"Sakura, that's enough. Gohan is in charge of this mission now." Kakashi ordered.
"What?" Sakura said confused.
"My headband signifies that I am a member of the newly formed Neo Z Fighters. I am going to lead a new group of fighters who protect the world form serious disasters and other incidents that would require mine or my teams attention." Gohan explained.
"That's really cool." Naruto and Sakura said at the same time.
"Glad you think so, because I want to add you two to my team. But we'll talk about that later." Gohan said.
With a mighty yell, Gohan transformed into Super Saiyan 2 and blasted off in the direction where he sensed those power levels, leaving the 4 shinobi in the dust. As Gohan flew towards the spot where Videl could be, he sensed a massive spike in energy that completely dwarfed his normal state. He recognized that source as Videl. Somehow, Videl was finally able to ascend, but it didn't feel like a true super Saiyan transformation. Something was off about it yet, it felt familiar.
Sometime later, five miles east of the Tenchi bridge…
The remnants of Team 7 were sprinting around the mile wide crater created by Orochimaru and Kyuubi Naruto's battle. At least 640 acres of forest were wiped off the map like a giant finger had descended from on high to smudge the spot of land into dirt. To the initiated, such as Kakashi and Yamato, it was just another battle scar upon the land, seen a million times over during the course of the last war. For Naruto, it was a sobering reminder of the terribly awesome power he possessed deep within himself, and that was not a flattering thought. Such destruction happened because he let the seal slip, just a single crack in the barrier was all the Fox needed to erode Naruto's thoughts and send him on a rampage. That wasn't the worst of it though…
Naruto looked to his Sakura-chan who was also looking at the destruction he had caused. Her face held a kind of frightened awe. But even that wasn't what troubled Naruto the most. It was her back, or at least what was on her back before Gohan had given her the senzu bean. The back of Sakura's vest was torn to shreds, even now Naruto could still see the outline of claw marks. Not even Naruto was so dim to not put two and two together.
"Sakura-chan...I think we should stop seeing one another."
"If this is about the 9 tailed fox I already told you its fine."
"No Sakura! It's not fine!" Sakura looked back at her boyfriend. He never called her just Sakura of wasn't being serious. Kakashi and Yamato looked back at the couple, wondering if they should intervene now and delay their talk or waste time now sorting it out and have the whole team be focused.
Sakura decided for them. "Kakashi-sensei, Captain Yamato, could you give us a minute?"
"We'll scout ahead. Wrap this up quick you two." Kakashi warned. He and Yamato poured on the speed, giving the couple some privacy.
Sakura wanted to keep talking while they kept sprinting, but Naruto had different ideas. He leapt down to the ground and waited for Sakura who had to sprint back towards him.
"It's over Sakura…" Naruto looked at his feet.
"No Baka, it isn't." Sakura walked up to her idiot boyfriend to give him a hug but he stepped back.
"Sakura! I can't! I hurt you!" He frantically shouted, on the verge of pulling his hair out.
"You didn't mean to Naruto, it was an accident." She softly said.
"It was a mistake! No, not a mistake, it was bigger than that! I almost got you killed!" He sputtered out.
"Naruto…" Sakura felt tears running down her cheeks.
"I was angry! So angry, at Orochimaru that I wanted to hurt him. And I tapped into the Fox's chakra, and I let him in, and I lost control! And Sakura, I hurt you!"
"Naruto, you didn't-
"The claw marks on your back. Don't you DARE tell me I didn't do that to you!" Naruto's own tears streaked down his face.
"You didn't mean to-
"I'm the Jinchuriki to the Nine Tailed Fox! It's my responsibility to keep the Demon Fox at bay and prevent stuff like this from happening! If you're around me…the Fox might hurt you again…" He choked.
Sakura stepped closer but Naruto grabbed her shoulders and held her at arm's length.
"I couldn't bare it, I couldn't bare it if I ended up hurting you like that again. I can barely bare it now after it's happened. And if next time I ki…I kil…" He couldn't even say it. He was hyperventilating. His knees were weak. Sakura took this opportunity to step closer and wrap her boyfriend in a hug. This time he didn't pull back from her. Naruto felt his cheek pressed close against the back of Sakura's head, a part of him felt bad for getting tears and snot in her hair, but the rest just wanted to relish the feeling of her soft hair pressed against his face and the feeling of her arms drapped around him in a gentle-wait now the hug felt tight…TOO TIGHT!
Sakura had brought the blond idiot in as close as possible with her chakra enhanced hug. The two of them could actually here Naruto's spine cracking.
"Sakura-chan, too tight! Too tight! It hurts!" He wheezed out.
"GOOD! It should hurt! You stupid, stupid, lame brained, dimwitted, dumbass, idiot, Baka of a dunce!" She sobbed. Her own tears and dripping down Naruto's backside. All at once her grip loosened to a much gentler hug with just enough iron grip to ensure that the clueless boy wasn't going anywhere.
"You're always pushing yourself too hard, making me worry about you, and then you say you think it would be better if I wasn't around you anymore? How do you think that makes me feel?"
Naruto couldn't respond. Leave it to Sakura to be the brains of the relationship.
"It hurt worse than when I crushed your ribs just now. I said I was going to stand by your side through thick and thin until the end. Did you think I was just saying that? That was my promise of a lifetime to you." Sakura cradled her head in the crook of Naruto's neck.
"Sakura-chan."
"You are not the Demon Fox. You are Naruto Uzumaki. Say it!"
"I'm Naruto Uzumaki."
"Louder!"
"I'M NARUTO UZUMAKI, YA KNOW!"
"Damn right you are, shannaro. And I know for a fact that Naruto Uzumaki would never hurt me. So if I have to wrestle with the Kyuubi every time he gets past your seal in order to be with you, well you tell that damn Fox that I'll take him on anytime, anywhere. Neither of you are getting rid of me that easily."
Naruto was crying even louder now. He couldn't help it, God damn he did not deserve someone so amazing to be so devoted to him.
"You remember when Iruka gave us that speech at the end of the 2nd exam of the chunin exam? He said you needed to improve your heaven or your brains and I needed to improve my earth or body."
Naruto chuckled. "How could I forget? I guess that makes us earth and heaven right?" He smiled for the first time since waking up to see Sakura kneeling over him.
"Yeah, it does. I consider you to be my sunshine, Naruto. And if you're my heaven, then I'll be your earth. I'll be the thing that keeps you grounded and lets you rest your weary body." At this statement Naruto laughed out loud.
"What's so funny?"
"Nothing its just…you certainly put a lot of thought into this. No wonder you're the brains of this operation, Sakura-chan. It's what I love about you. Well, one of the things anyway."
"Baka, I'm the brains because you are such an idiot."
"Yeah I am, I'm sorry."
"I'm sorry too."
The tenchi lovers just stood there in each others embrace for a few minutes more. Either of them would give anything to let this moment go on forever. As always, they were needed elsewhere.
"We really need to go save Videl now…" Naruto said.
"Yeah we do…" Sakura replied.
"Even though Gohan has probably got everything all under control?" The blond asked.
"It would be rude if we didn't make the effort to show up…" The pinkette replied.
"Right…are we good?"
"Of course we are…"
"So does that mean you'll heal my broken ribs now?"
"No, my heart still kinda hurts because you suggested that we break up over something so stupid." Sakura teased.
"Sakura…"
"I know, I know…It just seemed stupid to me that you would ever give up on something…"
"Huh…yeah you're right, that doesn't sound like me at all."
"Course I'm right, I'm the brains remember?"
"Which makes me the beauty." He smirked.
"Baka, I'm the beauty."
"No fair, you're already the brains."
"Shut up, you're the muscles and you'll like it."
"Don't hate me because I'm beautiful, Sakura-chan." She slugged him in the gut for that one.
"Idiot, the moment's ruined." Sakura sighed and untangled herself from her idiot boyfriend's embrace. Time to get serious. "Ok Beauty Queen, we still have a rookie teammate to save. Let's go!" Sakura ordered.
"Yes Ma'am!" The two of them sprinted off into the trees with a renewed vigor, each feeling lighter than ever before.
Just to clarify some things, I have little to no influence on the NaruSaku scenes. That is all done by samuraipanda85. He's the Naruto expert and I'm the DBZ expert, granted I am having Videl a little OOC in this chapter, but for good reason.
Today, 10/28/2015 is the 2 year anniversary that I lost the love of my life to a horrific car accident. What was worse is that be being a first responder, I can the extremely difficult task of pronouncing her dead on arrival. An 18 wheeler rolled on top of her car, killing her instantly. One of the horrible memories she told me about which only made us closer was similar to what I described Videl to have gone through. We were both avid fans of DBZ and she would always call me her Gohan while I called her my Videl. I was days away from proposing to her when this happened. I nearly quit my profession right then and there, but she always loved me being a firefighter and EMT. Being a first responder, you learn after a while that you can't save them all, I just wish she wasn't one of the ones I couldn't save. This chapter is dedicated to her and the memories I have of her.
Aside from that, you now know how Gohan and Videl ended up in the Narutoverse. Next chapter is the conclusion of the Tenchi Bridge arc. The next arc is completely non-canon from the Naruto story.
Also some have stated that I killed Sasuke just so I could do this pairing. That is not true. The pairing would have happened whether he was alive or dead. The purpose for him being dead is for the next Arc.
In loving memory and dedication to Melissa Thomas, RN for O'Conner Hospital in Delhi NY.
4-8-1990 / 10-28-2013
