Turtles Compete
Chi-Chi raced for the door the moment she heard a plane landing outside. Master Roshi had been pensive ever since she'd brought up Bulma's Golden Saviour. "We're back!" Krillin said. He grinned as he leapt out of the plane. Chi-Chi slid to a stop in front of him as Goku and Yamcha stepped out. Seeing that they were smiling too she doubted they failed the task, though Yamcha was very pale. She couldn't hold it against them anymore, she wasn't sure she wanted all Master Roshi's attention if he was going to be so intense every day! "Welcome back! Did you get your task done?" Chi-Chi said. "I guess so. They were pretty convinced this girl was what Master Roshi wanted." Goku said. Chi-Chi cocked her head to the side, wondering why a girl was involved. She spotted the woman out of the stepping out of the plane. "Is it really alright if I stay here?" The woman said. Chi-Chi felt even more confused. "Boys you're back." Roshi said. He walked out of the house, face still drawn tight. "We did it Master!" Krillin said. "I'm Master Roshi; it's nice to meet you Miss." Roshi said. "This is Lunch; we saved her from some men who were chasing her. Since she didn't have anywhere to live we invited her to stay with us!" Krillin said. "It's a pleasure to meet you." Lunch said. She bowed her head to Master Roshi. He turned a light pink and rubbed his head. Chi-Chi was glad to see some of his tension disappear. "Right back at you..." Roshi said. "Very well, Krillin and Yamcha you pass. I will teach you." Roshi said. "Yes!" Yamcha said. He pumped his fists as Krillin cheered. Lunch tilted her head to the side, catching Chi-Chi's eye. Chi-Chi shrugged and Lunch blinked. "Well I don't really get it, but congratulations boys." Lunch said. As Yamcha and Krillin continued to celebrate Roshi put Kame House in its capsule. He tucked the capsule into his pocket, pulling out another one. "Alright boys, settle down. We'll take a boat to our training location." Roshi said. He threw the capsule into the water, revealing the boat inside. As everyone scrambled into the boat Chi-Chi realised it was too small for six people. Lunch smiled at her and picked her up. She settled Chi-Chi into her lap. "There now we all fit." Lunch said. Chi-Chi blushed; ignoring Krillin's giggles as Roshi started the boat. They hadn't been cruising through the island long when another island came into view. Goku grinned as he pointed to the island. "Is that it?" Goku said. "That's it. Welcome to your new home!" Roshi said. Lunch hugged Chi-Chi closer to her chest. "It's lovely." Lunch said. After brining the boat to shore and putting it away, they made their way up to a vacant meadow. "This place looks good." Roshi said. He brought out Kame House's capsule. The house reappeared in a puff of smoke. "Alright, let's start training-! Goku get down from there!" Roshi said. Goku laughed from atop a palm tree. "But Master Roshi, I can see other people on this Island!" Goku said. Roshi waved his staff at Goku. "Of course, there are about 300 people living here!" Roshi said. Yamcha face palmed. "Man, what rock did that kid crawl out from under?" Yamcha said. Chi-Chi looked away. She wasn't going to admit why Goku was so uneducated to that bandit. Goku slid down the palm tree and ran up to Roshi. "So we're going to start training? I'm so excited!" Goku said. Chi-Chi, Krillin and Yamcha stood at attention waiting for Roshi to speak. Roshi turned to Lunch, an eyebrow raised. "Would you like to train too? It would be a shame if Chi-Chi was the only girl." Roshi said. Lunch rubbed her arm. "I don't know... I like exercising but I don't like hurting people." Lunch said. "This isn't about fighting people, it's about bettering yourself." Chi-Chi said. She flushed, realising she had spoken out of turn. "Well, I guess I could give it a try." Lunch said. She gave Chi-Chi a smile, which was returned, and fell into line. Master Roshi cleared his throat. "We'll start by seeing where you're all at. What's your previous experience, if any, in Martial Arts? You go first Krillin." Roshi said. Krillin puffed out his chest with pride. "Yes! I've studied for eight years at Oorin Temple." Krillin said. Master Roshi turned to look at Yamcha, he winced. "I'm self-taught. I picked up what I know living in Area 476." Yamcha said. Chi-Chi and Krillin's eyebrows rose. While Area 476 wasn't far from where Goku and Chi-Chi lived, it was a notorious area for crime. Roshi nodded and turned to Lunch. She rubbed the back of her head, poking out her tongue. "I learnt a bit in Military Academy, but I left about two years ago." Lunch said. Chi-Chi gaped at her. She couldn't imagine sweet Lunch in a Military Academy. Yamcha and Krillin choked, so she figured they couldn't believe it either. Master Roshi coughed, clearing his throat. "Alright, since I know Chi-Chi and Goku trained with my students you've all got some experience. Since you have the basics show them to me." Roshi said.
Master Roshi led them to a boulder, they all looked at it bemused. "How long do you think it would take you to run to that tree?" Roshi said. He pointed at a tree about 100 meters away. "Being fast isn't a guarantee you're a great Martial Artist, but it proves you legs are solid." Roshi said. Krillin smirked and walked forward. "I'll go first; my legs are swift enough to be in the Olympics." Krillin said. Master Roshi walked over to the tree with a stopwatch in hand as Krillin dropped into a running position. "Okay, let's see it! Go!" Roshi said. Krillin started running, dust kicking up in his wake. He slid to a stop panting as he passed Roshi. "10.4 seconds that is really amazing!" Roshi said. Krillin smirked, wiping sweat from his brow. "Let's see you guys do better than that!" Krillin said. Chi-Chi narrowed her eyes at him. She wouldn't be outdone. Goku waved his arms at Master Roshi. "Okay, can I go next?" Goku said. "Go for it!" Roshi said. Goku grinned and ran towards Master Roshi. Chi-Chi's eyes widened at how fast he was running. Roshi's eyes were wide too as Goku flew passed him. Roshi was staring down at the watch."8.5 seconds..." Roshi said. Krillin gapied at Goku. "T-that kid's got some legs!" Yamcha said. He gulped but stepped forward. "I won't be outdone! Master Roshi I'll go next." Yamcha said. Master Roshi blinked but signalled Yamcha to start after a moment. Yamcha darted forward; Chi-Chi could tell he was not as quick as the boys. She figured he may be faster if she hadn't of injured him so badly when they met as he must have been in hospital until now. "11 seconds, not bad at all." Roshi said. Yamcha panted with hands on knees at the finish line. Chi-Chi looked to Lunch who waved her forward. "Guess I'll go next?" Chi-Chi said. Chi-Chi leaned forward, balancing on the balls of her feet. At Master Roshi's signal she charged forward as fast as she could, her legs burning from the weight of her armour. "9 seconds! I'm surprised Chi-Chi, Ox-King never cared much about speed." Roshi said. Chi-Chi exhaled; she was a bit annoyed she was behind Goku. She thought she'd beat him considering her strength was so much higher than his. "Lunch, it's just you now!" Roshi said. Lunch waved in acknowledgement and fell into a runner's crouch. "Go!" Roshi said. Lunch started running, her stride wide and steady as she ran towards them. Lunch passed Roshi with a smile that made Chi-Chi smile back. Lunch didn't move as quickly, but she didn't lose her breath like Krillin and Yamcha. "12 seconds, good but you could do better if you wanted too." Roshi said. "I guess, but I don't like to get winded when I don't have too." Lunch said. Master Roshi passed the Stopwatch to Krillin. "Right, guess I'll go now." Roshi said. He slung his shell off his shoulders and walked back to the boulder. They watched as Master Roshi stretched before getting into position. "Start!" Krillin said. Master Roshi became a blur, passing Krillin in mere moments. He had kicked up a breeze, blowing their hair into their faces as he passed. Krillin looked down at the watch in his shaking hands. "5.6 s-seconds," Krillin said. Lunch clapped while Yamcha and Krillin looked at the watch in surprise. Chi-Chi nodded, expecting such an amazing feat from Roshi. "5.6 seconds isn't good enough... I'll train harder to make up for slacking." Roshi said. He slung the shell onto his back, revealing the indent in the earth it had made. Chi-Chi flinched at the serious tone, reminded of Roshi's reaction to the Demon School. Just how strong was this mysterious rival? "Do you see now? Turtle School emphasises breaking the limits of human abilities. This is achieved through rigorous training and enhancing our bodies through Ki. I expect you'll all be able to run this in 5 seconds, without Ki mind you, sooner than you think." Roshi said.
Lunch turned to look up as the sky turned red. "It looks like the sun is setting. It's getting kind of late isn't it?" Lunch said. "Don't be stupid, Master Roshi's training doesn't care what time it is!" Yamcha said. Master Roshi hummed, running his fingers through his beard. "Don't be so hasty. Rest is important for the body. I will give you one last task before dinner. We'll begin training at the crack of dawn tomorrow." Roshi said. They looked on as he picked up a rock. "More running?" Goku said. "Probably a bit, but that's not the point." Roshi said. He scribbled on the rock with a marker and showed it to them. The rock now had Turtle scribbled on it. "You see this rock?" Roshi said. Everyone nodded. "Good, go get it!" Roshi said. He threw the rock; it sailed over the cliff into the jungle. Chi-Chi clamoured over to the edge, trying to calculate where it was going. It looked like he'd throw it into the middle of the jungle below. "This test will be for your stamina and metal prowess. Find and return the stone to me. No stone means you don't get to eat dinner tonight!" Roshi said. Lunch gasped while the boys gaped at Roshi. He pulled up his sleeve, revealing a watch. "But you've only got 30 minutes before none of you get dinner!" Roshi said. Chi-Chi felt queasy thinking about whether she could even reach the stone in that time. "Get out of the way!" Yamcha said. He pushed passed the boys and ran to the cliff. He started climbing down. "I-I won't lose dinner!" Goku said. He ran to the edge, Krillin on his heels. Goku leapt off the cliff, falling towards the jungle. "T-that guy is insane!" Krillin said. He shook himself and started running across the edge, looking for a path. "Guess I'll look for a way down." Lunch said. She jogged after Krillin. Chi-Chi sighed, pinching her nose. She took a deep breath before standing up. "It can't be helped." Chi-Chi said. She leapt off the cliff, her hand snapping out to grab the Cliffside. Her hands dug into the rock, making her slide as gravity pushed her down. Once she was low enough Chi-Chi kicked free of the cliff, freeing her hands. She flipped in the air, landing on her feet. "Right, it should be straight ahead!" Chi-Chi said. She ran into the jungle, praying to Kami Goku was running blind. It took 25 minutes to search for the rock and return, but Chi-Chi arrived at the top of the cliff with rock in hand. She felt triumphant despite the layers of dirt and foliage stuck in her hair. Chi-Chi grinned up at Master Roshi as she presented him the stone. "I-I got it!" Chi-Chi said. Her breath was coming out in pants. Despite calculating where the rock should land she'd still run there and back at full speed. Roshi raised an eyebrow, turning the stone over. "This is the real deal. Congratulations Chi-Chi, you get dinner tonight." Roshi said. "Great! Thank you Master Roshi." Chi-Chi said. She bowed to him but couldn't keep the smile from her face as everyone else returned minutes later. Even Goku's frown couldn't bring her down. She might be every bit as tired and worn, but Chi-Chi had won! She was going to savour her meal tonight.