Disclaimer: Dragonball Z, its characters, settings, incarnations, etc., belong to its awesome creator Akira Toriyama. All original characters, settings, etc., belong to ME!
Chapter 14: Lessons
Trying again…Anya's first lesson as the apprentice to the Kaioshin…Flying.
Yeah it was a lot harder than it sounded.
Kibito took it upon himself to be Anya's instructor on this particular skill, stating it was a very basic one that all kamis should know how to do immediately. They had found a secluded location on Earth, a forest with plenty of cover to not arouse suspicion. Shin observed on a high hill as Kibito put the female through her paces. Every so often Anya would be seen in the trees, having a hard time figuring out how to come down. Based on his observations, Shin concluded that regular humans who had no ties outside of their mortal existence were downright hard pressed to disbelieve anything that did not fit into their blissful ignorance. It was a kind of innocence, he hypothesized, that the majority of mortals took for granted. A simple, somewhat carefree life that did not involve the supernatural.
It sounded like a sort of paradise really, but he wasn't about to acknowledge that.
"Ano…Kaioshin-sama…" Of course Goku would manage to locate them. The guy couldn't help but butt in when any sort of training was involved.
"No, Goku…I cannot allow you to be here." King Kai had broken the taboo of teaching mortals kami techniques, Shin would do no such thing; it was the most sacred of barriers left.
Goku pouted. "Awe! But—"
"Can we just face the facts that there's no way I'm going to get this!?" Anya barked out from her position in a nearby tree.
"Kaioshin-sama was right, you are quite disagreeable." Kibito was unfazed by her rants.
She glared down at him. "Well you would be too if you were given this situation!"
Goku blinked. "What's goin' on?"
"Anya-san is having a difficult time understanding the art of flying." Shin wanted to roll his eyes in frustration but that would look improper his position.
"Oh! I know how ta do that!" Goku beamed. "Can I teach her!? Please!?"
Shin stared at the man incredulously. "She is my pupil, Goku! I will decide what she learns and who she learns it from!"
"Then you are very bad teacher." Vegeta came up from another end of the forest.
"Hey Vegeta!" Goku regarded his comrade at arms. "Watcha' doin' out here?"
"If you must know I come out here to get away from idiots like you." And he was sticking to that no matter what. There was no way in hell he would tell the idiot that he had become curious as well.
His thoughts did not escape Shin but the kami was at the moment a bit peeved.
"Kaioshin training takes years, centuries even…Anya-san is at a major disadvantage!" He stated matter-of-factly. "There is no way a mere mortal, including the both of you, would accumulate such information in just a mere day!"
"Humf…No wonder you're so weak…" Vegeta stated, Shin gave a glare.
"If we help could ya teach us a few things? Ne?" Goku grinned a bit at the kami, his eyes almost pleading.
Shin raised an eyebrow. "Why are you now so interested…" He paused. "I see…" He gave a frown. "Goku…though I am thankful for your help defeating Majin Buu…I cannot allow you to help in the training of a Kaioshin." He was drawing that line indefinitely. The only reason these two were here was because Anya represented a sure fire way for a mortal to become a kami. Shin had made a mistake with her situation, he would not make that mistake again.
"The only way you will be getting through to a woman like that is to be tough." Vegeta grunted. "No offense, but you do not have such qualities."
Shin knew Vegeta was trying to not insult him but Shin took it as one. Not that the Kaioshin truly cared about what the warrior thought, but to do such in front of him? Really?
"Vegeta-san." Shin added the title to build an invisible wall between them. "Kaioshin must learn to control their anger. We are kamis of creation, not destruction." He stared up at Anya who was still stuck in the tree. "Anya-san has much anger within her…it needs to be corrected before any sort of training can commence." He left the two Sayajins, floated right up to Anya who clutched to the bark. "Let go, Anya-san."
"Are you kidding!?" She glared. "I'm going to float away again!"
"If you truly believe such, you will do such." Shin explained. "Remember what I told you the first time…Will all of your energy towards the bottom of your feet. If your thoughts are of flying off into outer space, you will do such. Believe in the opposite and you will discover such will not happen." She didn't budge, Shin tried another route. "Close your eyes." Another glare. "Please trust me, Anya-san."
A pause and green eyes disappeared underneath her eyelids.
"Now imagine there is a gentle wind under your feet…Your thoughts control it. All you have to do is tell it what you want it to, and it will abide your commands to the letter. Clear your mind…and tell the wind what to do." He had already figured out why she was having so much trouble doing this…Anya had lingering thoughts of her old life…She needed to let them go, to truly accept the mantle that has been placed upon her.
"I hate this…" She muttered with her eyes closed.
"I know." He gave his gentle reply. "But you must let go."
Sighing she took a breath…
She let go of the tree.
Shin gave a smile. "Anya-san…Open your eyes."
Green eyes opened and gapped. Instead of floating towards the sky she was floating in mid air.
"You see what happens when you let go of everything, Anya-san?" Shin told her.
"Yeah…" She frowned. "But it still sucks."
He just nodded.
"Well…what's next on the list?" She asked.
Shin had an idea. It came to him the moment he noticed Goku and Vegeta were present. Who better than the strongest mortals he knew to be used to help Anya with her next task?
"Goku! Vegeta!" He floated towards them. "Perhaps you can indeed provide some assistance."
Goku's eyes brightened. "Really!? Awesome!"
"Come here, Anya-san!" Shin instructed. "I want you to fly over!"
It took her a moment but Anya managed to slowly float over towards them. When her feet hit the ground she breathed a sigh of relief.
"I hate flying."
"You will become accustomed to it eventually. Your next lesson…" Shin pointed to the two Sayajins, one nearly jumping out of his feet, while the other just stood there seemingly disinterested in everything.
"Force these two to their knees."
Shin's words had even Vegeta staring at him. Did he just—
"Ano…Kaioshin-sama—ack!" Goku suddenly found himself on the ground. It felt like a thousand times gravity was pushing him into the very Earth beneath his feet. It was so sudden that it caught him off guard completely. He gritted his teeth but before he could react the pressure was gone.
Anya actually moved away from her small teacher. She had seen first hand the damage that Shin could do but she doubt he could defend himself against both of these two guys in front of her. They seemed…Much stronger than him or something…or were they?
"Please use as much force as necessary…" Shin told the two. "It would be good training for all involved. Anya-san must learn but you two as well…"
Vegeta snorted. "And what exactly are we supposed to learn from you?"
Shin eyed him. "That kamis should not be trifled with…"
It was obvious Shin didn't rather much like Vegeta but he did tolerate him, probably because he was a strong guy. The Kaioshin knew very well the main reason as to why this particular Sayajin decided to grace the area with his presence…Vegeta wanted to be like Anya. Though Vegeta had redeemed himself before, Shin was still weary of the Sayajin getting more power than he truly needed.
"Awe come on Vegeta! It'll be fun!" Goku patted Vegeta on the back.
Shin paused, keeping the mask of the Kaioshin, he said, "I must leave now for a bit…I leave her in your capable hands."
Anya gapped. "What!? Wait-"
"Anya-san…Remember what you just learned…you must let go of your mortal thoughts." Shin felt a since of pride for a moment. "You are a kami…a higher being than any mortal on Earth, including Goku and Vegeta. You gain their respect and you will no doubt gain respect from others in the process."
"How in the HELL am I supposed to do what you just did!?" She screamed.
Shin just stared at her.
"Simply will it to happen, and it will happen." With Kibito at his side, the great Kaioshin was gone.
Anya stared dumbfounded…He just left her like that!? What the hell!?
"Yatta! Let's get to it!" Ever the eager one Goku was prepared. He braced himself, gave a smirk. "Yosh! Com'on Anya-cha…er Anya-sama! Hit me with yer best shot!"
Vegeta rolled his eyes at the stupidity of it all. Why in the HELL would he want to be apart of this madness anyway?
Still though, it was quite odd…Not but a few moments ago Kaioshin had wanted the two out of there immediately yet now he left his student in their care? Seriously?
Why suddenly leave your pupil like that? It truly didn't make any sense.
Unless there was something going on…Something that warranted the abrupt departure of the Kaioshin…
Vegeta, of all people, suddenly had a terrible feeling…Something was coming…
Something bad…
Next Time: Training
AN: A fantastic reviewer made a comment that I realized I should REALLY clear up!
"Kaioshin is NOT stronger than Goku!"
Yes, that is expressed plainly in the Maijin Buu cycle. However, when I do my research, I use both the Manga and the Anime versions of these fantastic stories because like all book-to-movie adaptations, Anime leaves a LOT of things out or makes subtle changes that only someone who has read the manga would notice. I then, in some instances, use elements from both the manga and the Anima interpretations. (for example: in the manga, Shin cannot heal because he didn't finish his training, however, in the Anime he can heal, but in only one certain arc).
For those who are only into the Anime, I can only express this: Shin has yet to partake in battle in Super thus do we really know if he is the same as he was in Majin Buu? Based on his personality, it can be assumed he was very embarrassed by the fact that he had to rely on powerful mortals to fix his mistake with Majin Buu and thus, during the time skip before Super, it can be assumed he spent that time getting stronger. How or why did I base this assumption? When he and Kibito make their debut in Super, it's very subtle, but you notice Shin has got his superiority smirk on when he greets Goku. This can be a prelude to the thinking that he has in fact gotten stronger but chooses to not display it because his self confidence is still shaky.
Also, it doesn't help the fact that I'm a Shintoist so I tend to stay away from instances when mortal characters are perceived as stronger than the gods. That is why in this instance, when Goku is briefly pushed down by Shin's power, I made it as a 'caught off guard' moment. Goku and Vegeta would still see Shin as a weaker being, thus wouldn't expect such an instance in the first place.
Until next time!