Of Two Hearts
Chapter 14: Hesitation
Three days.
Those two words brought anxiety to Chi-Chi's heart. She and the troops had left the cave the morning after, and they had resumed their journey to Edo, although that was a hard thing to do. The blizzard had done more damage than they had thought. The snow was still high, but the troops could travel through it. However, it buried or erased landmarks, paths, and other familiar hints to lead them home. They were lost.
And it had been three days since then. Three days of marching, three days of trying to find a way home, three days of praying for a ray of light and hope... It had also been three days since Chi-Chi had last found a Dragonball. That worried her.
It wasn't so much the adventure that was pleasurable. She was so anxious to find all the Dragonballs and have Goku back. That is, if Piccolo's story was true. That was another thing Chi-Chi worried of.
Piccolo had said she had seven days to find them all, and that if she didn't have them by then, he promised he would take a payment, and she wasn't going to like it.
She hadn't thought if Piccolo was serious or not. She was going to do this either way.
Chi-Chi looked up at the sky as she rode in the back of the troops' wagon. Kami, is this the right thing to do? She thought. I want Goku back more than anything, but is this the right way to go about it? Please, help me find the Dragonballs. Please. You are all I can rely on now...
"Are you well, my lady?" a voice broke through the silence.
Chi-Chi glanced over at Wakaru, who was standing guard in the middle of the open wagon. There always had to be someone guarding the princess, and it was Wakaru's turn. However, he had grown tired from guarding since dawn, and took his helmet off. He sat on a crate next to Chi-Chi's and looked at her with concern. "I'm fine, Wakaru," she answered. "I was only praying..."
"Praying, hm?" Wakaru repeated. "I respect that. I would pray as well, if I could. We need to pray that we will find a way back to Edo. I am certain the emperor is most worried of your well being, my lady. I am certain he cares about that more than anything."
"Will we even find a way to Edo?" Chi-Chi asked quietly.
"We are trying our best," Wakaru answered. "It will be a hard thing to do now that we must stop at the nearest village."
"Why?"
The sentinel rubbed the back of his head. "I am certain you remember the wolves that we lured away from the cave. While you and half the men went on ahead, some of us stayed behind to pack up. Well, those wolves returned and sought their revenge..."
"Oh no," Chi-Chi groaned. She hung her head and grabbed at her hair in frustration. "I should have said something about staying in the cave! I didn't think it was a wise thing to do, but I didn't say anything, and now..."
"No, my lady," Wakaru corrected. "No one was killed by the wolves. They only injured one of our men, but we seek medical assistance right away. He will live. That is why we are in search of the nearest village. We can ask for directions while we are there as well. I promise we will be there soon."
Contrary to Wakaru's statement, the troops had been traveling for hours and hours. They trudged through the snow that seemed to lead them nowhere. They faced the animals and vagabonds that came their way and marched on. But after a while, even more signs that they were lost had become evident. Was that their footsteps already in the snow up ahead? Hadn't they passed this marked tree before...?
"No more!" one warrior cried. "I swear that we are going in circles!"
The troops behind him stopped at the warrior's stillness. "Advance forth," they informed him. "Lord Vegeta gave no permission for this halt or your whining."
The warrior angrily undid the belt around his waist that also latched onto the heavy sheaths of his katana and wakizashi. He threw the sheaths down into the snow and marched ahead, muttering, "Then let me talk to Lord Vegeta about how we have wasted half the day mindlessly marching!"
He hiked past the other sections of the troops to the head of them, where the leader, none other than Vegeta, was still moving forward. He noticed that an angry man was walking alongside him. "What do YOU want?"
The single warrior came to a halt in front of Vegeta, who flinched and stopped as well. "You had better have a good reason for doing this," he growled. "And I do," the warrior quickly responded. "We have traveled for hours! It must be midday by now, Prince. We are hungry! We are lost! Where are we?"
Vegeta frowned as he scanned the troops. They were quiet and at attention, but the look on their faces subtly indicated they were suffering from hunger and impatience as well. Vegeta sighed and glared at the warrior. "All right, we will stop to eat. However, if you ever approach me and present your problem to me like that again, I will have you severely punished. You may leave and prepare your comrades' meals, as well as mine. And I trust you know who shall be fed first."
The warrior clenched his teeth angrily as he went to make the lunches. "Yes, Great One..."
It was pretty clear to everyone what had happened, and the single warrior continued to grumble under his breath as he got out the packages containing their food. The belongings and necessities were stored in the second to last wagon, where Wakaru and Chi-Chi rode. The warrior was so lost in his anger that he didn't notice he had yanked some bags forward, which scratched Chi-Chi's leg.
Chi-Chi reflexively moved her leg and looked down at the warrior. She cleared her throat softly, but he didn't notice. However, he did look up when he felt a hand on his shoulder. Chi-Chi smiled at him. "It's all right, Taku. I will prepare Vegeta's meal and take it to him."
Taku returned the smile and bowed his head in gratitude. "I owe you, Princess."
As everyone ate, a few of the men in charge of navigational purposes looked over a map they carried with them. They knew some of the areas well, and read the key to compare them apart from the others. But they were still trying to figure out where they were. They had argued and protested against the other's idea. Hope seemed bleak.
"We have already past there! We are stranded out here!" one declared.
"Don't talk like that! All we have to do is go back and rest somewhere until we find out where we are," another said.
"So you think we can just keep running away? We have to find a way home now."
Their arguing could be heard from several feet away, and some had grown sick of it, Chi-Chi included. She sighed and lied down on her stomach at the edge of the wagon. She blinked sleepily, and her arm reached for a stick that was lying down nearby. Playing nonchalantly with it, she wrote Goku's name in the snow. Next to it, she wrote her own name and smiled. "Forever," she whispered.
"My lady?" a voice interrupted her pleasant escape again. Why something always invaded her dreams was beyond her...
Chi-Chi glanced up at Wakaru and sat up. "Hm?" she asked, and then subtly frowned at the fact Wakaru unknowingly stepped on her and Goku's name written in the snow. He frowned himself. "We have no water left in our drinking gourds. I know we had a lot of water, but we have been out here for days and we drank... There's a river by the mountains in the east. I must accompany you as we withdraw some hopefully sanitary drinking water."
Chi-Chi nodded and began the walk. She was getting closer to the river that was adjacent to the cave they had stayed at before. It was a good thing she wasn't leading the troops to the destination, because something was wrong, and it wasn't anything anyone else could fix. That was because the problem was within her. Chi-Chi felt a sensation inside her; she wasn't fully suspicious because she had felt an awareness like this before.
She had felt this way before when she felt Vegeta and Goku's presence within her. But right now, she wasn't feeling their presence. This time, she was sensing exactly what was promised to her: She was sensing a Dragonball's location. Confusion met her for only a second, before full understanding arrived.
The Dragonball Radar broke, but before, she had received some energy from Piccolo. He had said she would have the same essence as the Dragonball Radar, but she wasn't sure if it was completely true... I suppose it is, because I know what I'm feeling, she thought. One of the Dragonballs is nearby...
When the troops arrived at the river, they scowled to find that it had frozen.
"It isn't really a bother," Vegeta said to the troops. "All you have to do is break the ice and withdraw the water into your gourds. No whining as you do it." He crossed his arms as he took the position of an overseer. He was a fast one as well, since he saw Chi-Chi walking away out of the corner of his eyes. "Where are you going?" he called out to her.
Chi-Chi stopped in her tracks. This was great. How was she supposed to look for the Dragonball if someone was watching her every move? Well, she guessed that would happen since she was a runaway. She turned back to Vegeta and pointed to the river. "I was going to get a gourd and help get some water." That was only half the truth of course, but it also would be a reason to look for the Dragonball.
Once she had the water gourd, she walked along the riverbank, searching for a fallen tree branch to crack the ice with. The bare tree looking over the river had shed its leaves; at the roots, there were raised imprints in the snow. Chi-Chi searched there, but nothing had fallen. Tearing off one of the lowest, younger branches would have to do. It was a hard thing to pull out, and she had to use both her hands to pull with all her might.
It did the trick, and she fell backwards, shooting up clouds of snow above her. When the powdery substance settled to the ground, Chi-Chi realized that the impact of her fall had cleared a path from her position to the roots of the trees. Dark soil was visible, and so was something else on the other side of the third root...
Something covered in snow didn't look right. The spherical shape was normal, but this tree wasn't a fruit-bearing tree. Chi-Chi reached for it, ignoring the pounding of her heart. She brushed the snow off it, and nearly collapsed out of joy. Here she was, looking so hard for a Dragonball for three days, and it was in one of nature's simplest spots: under a tree. She hugged the 1-star close to her chest, and then put it away inside the leather pouch with the other Dragonballs. She looked over her shoulder at the troops working at the river. She knew she had to get back before anyone got suspicious.
When she arrived back at the river, she found the troops had no luck. She also found a stranger standing beside them also had no luck. He was a short, old man carrying a long stick and a straw basket. He frowned as he saw what was going on. Nope, he couldn't go fishing in this river. "Darn," he mumbled. "Now I hafta trek back to Shinoto with none of the fish I promised them all..."
He sighed and walked away, but Vegeta ran and stopped in front of him. "Wait, wait, old man. Did you say Shinoto?"
The old man had to tilt his head nearly all the way back to look up at Vegeta. "Eh? S'did, young man."
"Is that the name of your village? Is your village around here?"
The old man nodded. "It's my home, and has been for all my life. It was the home of my parents and my grandparents and-"
"That is nice," Vegeta interrupted. "Look, I need you to tell me where your village is. We are lost travelers, and we need to cut through Shinoto to return to Edo. Do you think you can tell me where the village is, old man?"
He frowned. "My name is not 'old man'. It's Naku. My village? Uh..."
Vegeta frowned at the fact Naku was in thought. "Don't tell me you don't know where your own village is..."
Naku wore his thoughtful look for a minute before he shook his head. "Uh...S'do, young man. I think I do. Follow me."
As Vegeta ordered the troops to follow him and Naku, one of the warriors frowned at him and whispered, "Lord Vegeta, are you certain this man will lead us to Shinoto? Look at him..."
Vegeta shrugged. "The old man is all we have left... We are going to have to trust him. I'm only hoping his memory doesn't fail him..."
Thankfully, Vegeta and the troops arrived safely in Naku's village. They gave the old man some of their fish as a sign of gratitude, and he scampered away happily, glad he could feed his family now. He left the troops in the center of the village, where they could explore. Some of the warriors left to stock up on water, and some others tried to find out information on how to get back to Edo. After Vegeta divided the troops into sections and gave them their orders, he returned to a wagon and sat next to Chi-Chi. He sighed and hung his head, closing his eyes.
"Are you tired?" Chi-Chi asked.
At that question, Vegeta jumped to his feet, stretching his arms. "Not at all! I was only sitting down. Ahhh," he said as he stretched the rest of his body. Chi-Chi raised an eyebrow. Even she could tell when someone was tired. However, Vegeta was going to disprove the fact he was tired. He grabbed her hand and pointed deeper into the village. "Come with me. Let us go and see what goods there are in this place. It's better than sitting here all day and night, don't you think?"
Chi-Chi nodded, and her grip on his hand tightened as she followed him into the village. Normally she would be holding his hand only to make sure she didn't get separated from him, but there was...this nice little feeling she got from holding his hand. She didn't know why, but Vegeta certainly did. The Saiyan bond he had with her was small, but its effects were starting to finally surface...
Vegeta and Chi-Chi took a walk around the village, just looking around and went wherever the other wanted to go. Vegeta had mostly stopped at places containing things men would like, such as the weapons store and the inn for food. As they entered the inn, they saw it also served as some sort of saloon. "Stay behind me," Vegeta whispered to Chi-Chi, as he noticed some men sitting at the tables had already began to eye Chi-Chi and make comments.
"Fools," she whispered. She ignored them as she followed Vegeta. If only those idiots knew they were making passes at the princess of their country...
Chi-Chi sat down at the counter, while Vegeta talked to owner of the inn. A few minutes later, a drunken man from the tables came and sat next to Chi-Chi. He smiled at her, showing he had lost several teeth. The rest of his smile wasn't appealing...
"What is a sweet thing such as yourself doin' today? I don't remember seeing ya 'round here."
Chi-Chi ignored him and looked up at Vegeta, irritated. How long did it take to arrange business?
The drunken man was persistent, and he made his hand reach for Chi-Chi's. When they touched, Chi-Chi flinched and yanked her hand away. "Don't ever touch me again..."
The drunken man chuckled. "You're a fiery thing, aren't ya, princess?" That's EXACTLY who I am, so leave me alone, Chi-Chi felt like saying, but instead glared at the man.
"I'm being serious..."
"Aww, ya don't want to stay with us?" a new voice spoke. Chi-Chi looked up to see three more men standing behind the drunk one. She guessed they were his stupid friends. They were carrying their belongings with them, and one man pulled out some yen and waved it at Chi-Chi. "Allow me to buy you a drink. Woah, you are a pretty thing. Heh, heh..."
All of a sudden, that same man was screaming as he felt himself being picked up and thrown out the door. He flew for several feet before skiing in the ground. Everyone at the inn turned to see how that happened. Vegeta clapped the dust off his hands. "I believe the lady said she didn't want to see your ugly faces," he said to the drunken man and his now two friends. The friend on the left put down his knapsack and raised a fist at Vegeta. "Don't threaten me! I'm not 'fraid of ya!"
Vegeta rolled his eyes, and the inn's owner standing behind the counter warned, "I will not have a riot in my inn."
"Oh, you won't. I will handle this quickly," Vegeta stated, and walked up to the first friend. "I think your pal is waiting for you out these doors!"
Vegeta punched the friend in his face, and then wiped his bloody fist on the friend's shirt before grabbing it and throwing him out the door, where he landed on top of the other man. The drunk man and his first friend looked at each other in worry, and decided to get out of the inn as fast as they could, but Vegeta wouldn't have that.
"Halt, you fiends!" he called, reaching out. He grabbed the drunkard and the friend with each hand and lifted them up off the ground. The drunkard and his friend gasped for air, as Vegeta glared at them. "I can have the rest of your teeth punched out to match the rest of your smile!"
"N-No... We apologize! I beg you to let us go! P-Please!" Vegeta growled and clutched their throats tighter. "Not without a payment... I will set you free, but you must flee like you just saw the devil. Do you understand?"
The drunkard and his friend nodded, and then grunted as they were dropped to the floor. They glanced at Vegeta's dead serious face, and screamed as they ran away. They didn't even bother to pick up their knapsacks containing their belongings. Vegeta picked them up, as well as the yen, which he kept for himself. He brought the knapsacks to the counter and opened them up. "Let's see what Vegeta found himself today..."
His eyes widened as he lifted some items from the knapsack. He held a handful of yen and a silk shirt. Some jewels spilled out of the shirt's pocket. In the other pack, he found some food and an expensive-looking wine cup. The inn's owner gasped as he looked over the items. "That can't be! How did he have that much money? Where did he get those clothes and jewels? And that other fool! He took that food from poor villagers I bet! And I've seen that cup somewhere..."
Vegeta looked up at the inn's owner. "It seems we have ourselves a few thieves. We should return these items right away. The food...well... Can I have it?" The owner scratched his head. "Uh...I suppose. Let's see what else these fools stole." It didn't take long to discover the other common and rare items that the thieves stole. The items were separated into things to be returned and the things that were non-returnable were given away. One knapsack was cleared, and Vegeta was in the middle of organizing the second.
"...More bottles of sake, some money and clothes," Vegeta mumbled as he took the stuff out. He blinked in surprise when something fell out from between two shirts. A flash of bright orange dropped onto the inn's wooden floor and rolled to the darkest corner. Vegeta seemed confused. What was that? He became even more confused when he saw Chi-Chi, who had been quiet this whole time, follow the fallen item. She walked over to the jars of water in the corner and got on her hands and knees, looking for the item.
"Perhaps it was a jewel," the owner guessed. "We are dealing with bandits..."
No, it's the Dragonball!
Chi-Chi thought happily, once she retrieved the item and got a closer look at it with the light. She hid her joy as she walked back to the counter. She was going to put it away, but the owner glanced at the orb curiously. "What is that? May I see that?" Chi-Chi nodded slowly and handed him the Dragonball. It didn't hurt to let the man look.The owner examined the Dragonball carefully under the light of his paper lantern. "I have never seen anything like it. It appears to be a material ball of some sort, but it looks too dull to be glass..."
Vegeta's eyebrows shot up as he saw the Dragonball. What? One of those fools had the Dragonball? He thought. Amazing. These humans have no idea what treasures their dumb planet holds.
The owner tapped the Dragonball on the counter. "No, it certainly isn't glass. This is a strange thing. It looks like garbage to me." He shrugged and extended his hand to return it to Chi-Chi. She reached out for it, but the owner pulled his arm back. "Wait... On second thought, this thing must be of some value if thieves wanted it. It is a beauty after all. Perhaps it belongs in a jeweler's shop."
Chi-Chi internally begged that he wouldn't think of giving it to someone else. She wanted to tell him it wasn't stolen from a jeweler. Luckily for her, Vegeta saved the Dragonball. "Perhaps this thing is garbage as you said. The thieves may not have known it was garbage. It seems to be a large marble to me. It is probably a child's plaything. Here, why don't you let me have that, and I will find where this thing came from."
The owner saw no reason to refuse, and handed it to Vegeta, who secretly passed it to Chi-Chi. She was surprised to feel the smooth surface of the 5- star Dragonball in her hand, but she accepted it. She gave Vegeta a grateful look and put it away. Vegeta returned the look with a smile, but inside, he had other thoughts. I wonder if she knows what the significance and purpose of the Dragonballs are...
Later that afternoon, Vegeta and Chi-Chi were reunited with the troops, who confirmed that they had found directions on how to return to Edo. They were making a map using that information, but they found they were having difficulties, considering the fact each section of the troops had heard different things. It was decided that some of them would go to spend the night at the inn while the workers stayed up to make the map, so it would be done by morning. Traveling in the late afternoon would limit their time and leave them in an unknown area at night. So a few of the warriors, along with Chi-Chi and Vegeta, returned to the inn.
When they arrived, they found the door was open, and the owner was still running the saloon. He didn't seem to notice that Vegeta and Chi-Chi had returned. His back was turned to them as he was talking to a boy, who noticed the visitors. "'Tousan, look. You have some customers."
"And a very pretty one too," the boy added with a smile, as he walked towards Chi-Chi. He bowed deeply before her, and chuckled. "Heh, heh. It's not often we have any customers as pretty as you. I welcome you to my family's business. Might I interest you in-"
The boy's father placed a hand over his mouth and pulled him away from Chi-Chi. He laughed nervously. "Forgive my son. He says things he hears off the street. I welcome you all back. Is there something you all need?"
Vegeta nodded and gestured towards Chi-Chi and a few warriors. "We all would like a place to spend the night."
The owner let go of his son, wrote down what Vegeta requested, and then calculated the cost. "All six of you for one night? At 150 yen per person, that should be 900 yen." As the owner took the money from Vegeta, he weakly smiled. "I apologize about this. My wife and I must prepare a place for you all. So, you will have to excuse us for a moment. I will alert you when we are finished." He went into a room behind the counter.
The boy he had left behind smiled gleefully at the fact his father wasn't here, and he stood by Chi-Chi's side again. His expression changed to one of disappointment suddenly. "Are you really going to stay for only one night?"
Chi-Chi nodded. "We have to get back home."
"Darn," the boy mumbled, and then brightened up. "I know! How about I show you around the village for a while? Just until my parents are finished fixing up some rooms for you and your friends. Want to go?"
"Well-"
"No," Vegeta interrupted, as he grabbed Chi-Chi's hand and pulled her back towards him. He growled and frowned at the boy. Then he leaned towards Chi-Chi. "I don't like him. He is too friendly."
Chi-Chi rolled her eyes. "Vegeta, please," she whispered. "This is no time to be jealous. The child can't be any older than nine. Anyway, we should go just to learn something about this place. And…I am a little hungry."
"Hungry?" the boy chirped after eavesdropping. "I can take you to the bakery down a few streets. That place has the best bread in the whole world! My friend's father runs the bakery, and I want you to meet him too. Want to go now? Huh? Want to go now??"
Chi-Chi smiled. "All right." She left Vegeta's side and began to follow the child outdoors, and one of the warriors that was standing by frowned. "Lord Vegeta, are you going to just let her follow the child? She is still an unescorted princess, and can we really rely on a boy?"
"You fool," Vegeta responded as he crossed his arms. "I know better than that. We will follow her and make sure no one, especially that loudmouth brat, does anything to her. Move out."
Up ahead, Chi-Chi and the owner's son were walking along quietly. Actually, it was more like Chi-Chi was the quiet one, and the son was endlessly talking about stuff a nine-year-old boy found interesting: his hometown, his family and friends, bugs, mud and toys…
Chi-Chi occasionally nodded and smiled to assure the boy that she was still listening. But she was surprised at how open and talkative he was. Chi-Chi figured he didn't have that many friends to talk to.
"…And I didn't even know that slugs had four noses. Did you know that?"
"Um, no…"
"My friend, Hideki, told me that," the boy continued cheerfully. "He is really smart. I like to play with him a lot too because I don't have any brothers or sisters."
"I'm an only child as well," Chi-Chi told him. She wanted to say something about friendship too, but her being a sheltered princess didn't allow many friends to come into her life. But she knew Goku was her first friend as well as her first love…
"You're all alone too?" the boy asked quietly. "I figure we have something in common then… My name is Shinichi Jotaro by the way. What's your name?"
"Uh…" No way could she say 'Chi-Chi'. Following a reflex and saying the princess's name would be a dumb thing to do. Quick, think of a name…!
"Sachiko," she said calmly. "I'm Sachiko."
"Uh Sachiko," Jotaro repeated. He lifted his hand to slide it into Chi-Chi's. The contact of the hands led way to contact of the eyes. Jotaro smiled. "I like that name."
A few feet back, Vegeta growled and clenched his fists. "That brat has a lot of nerve," he grumbled. "Who does that pint think he is, becoming friendly with my woman?"
"We're almost at the bakery," Jotaro told Chi-Chi. "I would buy you somethin' to eat, but I won't be makin' any money until I work for 'Tousan."
Chi-Chi smiled at this strange boy's kindness. He was a chatterbox, but otherwise, he was quite sweet and cute. His dark hair was mussed by the wind, and his large and dark eyes shone on his scruffy face. His vest and trousers were a bit dirty, but he didn't seem to mind.
"Oh, I can't wait for you to meet Hideki," he said, remembering something. "He has such a neat toy, and he said it was a part of his marble collection. But if that is true, then it's the biggest and neatest marble I have ever seen! It's really big, Sachiko. It's so round, orange…shiny…"
Chi-Chi was alert, though her face didn't show it. Something sounded really familiar…
There were many selections to choose from the good food the bakery had. While Vegeta and the others nearly drooled at the breads, cakes and such, Jotaro was introducing Chi-Chi to his friend, Hideki. The boy was really wondering how Jotaro ever found and convinced an older, pretty girl to come along with him in the village. Then again, he knew Jotaro liked pretty things, and he could find a way to get what he liked.
Meanwhile, the baker and his assistant behind the counter were quite suspicious. The baker, Jin, was Hideki's father, and he expected Jotaro's frequent visits. But who were the rest of these people? And they were looking at the food so strangely… "May I help you all with something?" he asked.
One of the four warriors came to the counter to order some food, and while he was close, Jin took the opportunity to study some details. The warrior was dressed very nicely, complete with some armor. A sheathed katana was hanging at his waist. That meant he had come from a wealthy place, such as…
The assistant, Togashi, was also confused. The village of Shinoto was small, and everyone knew who everyone else was. So why were strangers here? He looked at the people closely. Suddenly, he realized something, and elbowed Jin in the side.
"What?" Jin hissed, rubbing his side. "I'm taking an order! I don't want to disappoint soldier boy."
But as soon as the warrior retreated, Togashi clutched Jin's arm and pulled him close. "I think we've found her," he whispered. Jin raised an eyebrow. "Who?"
Togashi retrieved a piece of paper lying on a shelf behind the counter. He slid it towards Jin and pointed to it. "A copy of the emperor's notice…?"
Togashi nodded and continued whispering. "Look at that girl with Jotaro. Look at her closely. Isn't that about the right height? Five feet high with an additional six inches. And look at that face. She is young, but she isn't a child. She must be nineteen, but I am not certain. We must ask."
"Togashi… This is risky… We could have the completely wrong woman."
Togashi shook his head. "No! Look at her! She fits exactly what the notice says. She is slender and well turned. Look at that long black hair, and her eyes are dark as well. She's Tokumei Kibou!"
Jin frowned. "I don't know… I have to start on these people's orders…"
"I don't care if you don't think that girl is Tokumei Kibou. I know she is. Operation 'Capture TK' is now underway…"
While the others waited for their food, Jotaro was practicing his martial arts stances just outside the bakery door. As he suspected, he saw the group retreat to the door, and Chi-Chi followed. When he met her outside, he was throwing fast punches to his imaginary opponents, and head-height kicks. He pretended to be concentrating on his techniques, but he secretly glanced out of the corners of his eyes to see if Chi-Chi was watching.
Again, as he suspected, she had come near him to observe. But she raised an eyebrow at one of his techniques. "Jotaro, what are you doing?"
So much for trying to impress her.
An embarrassed Jotaro blinked. "A parry back-fist."
"Well, you aren't doing it right. Let me show you," Chi-Chi said, as she lowered herself to the boy's level. She held out both hands in front of her and demonstrated as she spoke. "When you parry, you use one hand to push aside an attack to your face, but you also want to lean back a little, you know, to reassure that the attack doesn't hit your face."
As she leaned back to demonstrate, Jotaro blushed and looked down, as he felt the skin of his arm pressed against Chi-Chi's. The rest of what she said was barely audible as he reveled in the simple closeness.
"After that," Chi-Chi continued, completely unaware of the boy's fondness for her, "Your other arm comes around the first to strike the temple of your opponent. You want to twist your wrist at the last moment to unleash the power from the chamber. You want to hit with the back of your fist, hence the name 'back-fist', and with your first two knuckles, just as if you were punching someone. Do you understand?"
Jotaro blinked again and bobbed his head up and down.
"And if you want," Chi-Chi added. "You can follow up with a joint lock, a hold, or a kick."
Jotaro blinked for the third time. "Um, are you a sensei? You sound so wise. You must be a great martial artist. I… I didn't think women were allowed to fight."
Chi-Chi laughed and blushed at the praise. "Well, I wanted to do something with my life, and martial arts ran in my family. So I thought I might as well not ruin tradition and keep going. I wanted to be different anyway. I didn't want to be like other women, who are so gentle all the time. So I kept training, and I suppose I never forgot what I learned. I'm no sensei though."
"You sound like the princess," Jotaro said. "I bet if you competed in the Tenkaichi Budokai at Edo, you would win! I want to compete someday when I'm older!"
…This kid's accuracy was dangerous.
From inside the bakery, Togashi gaped at Jotaro and Chi-Chi. He shook Jin, who was preparing the warriors' orders. "What is it, Togashi? Damn it, you keep interrupting me!" Togashi gestured outside. "I saw it, Jin! I saw it with my own eyes! That girl is a martial artist, just like the princess!" Jin rolled his eyes. "You have been eyeing her for too long. Give up."
"I swear she is Tokumei Kibou. I swear it with my life, Jin, and I am going to prove it to you when she and her companions return for the food," Togashi responded.
"Well, it's time to prove it to me, because the food is done," Jin said, wrapping up the last of the baked bread. He waved at the warrior who ordered. When the warrior came to accept the food and pay, Jin asked, "Don't you think you should ask if your friends would like to eat as well?"
The warrior fell for the plan and called his friends, Vegeta, Chi-Chi and Jotaro in to eat. As they ate, Togashi and Jin were busy whispering to each other.
"Now is our chance," Togashi started. "That girl fits the notice's description, and she is a martial artist. All the evidence is clear. Honestly, how many women do you see fighting? Jin, if we turn her in to the emperor, we will be rich! I know I am not wrong. Watch me."
Togashi cleared his throat, left from behind the counter, and casually walked around the main area of the bakery. "I don't remember seeing any of you all around here, except for Jotaro. Where are you all headed to?"
"Gen," Vegeta lied, as he didn't take a liking to these strangers.
Togashi nodded and walked over to Jotaro, ruffling his hair. He looked at Chi-Chi. "He seems to take quite a liking to you. I couldn't help but notice what you showed Jotaro. How long have you been a martial artist?"
"Hm?" Chi-Chi said, not really paying attention. She was wondering why Vegeta had lied about where they were going. She was wondering why Vegeta was always so suspicious of everyone. She focused her thoughts to the man's question. "Um, just a few years. I just thought I would give him some advice."
"Jotaro says if you competed in the Budokai, you would win. Have you ever competed before?" Togashi tried again. He didn't notice that Vegeta was watching him out of the corners of his eyes. Vegeta was sensing that something wasn't right… He shook his head "no", but Chi-Chi didn't catch his look.
"Once," she said. Togashi tilted his head. "Did you win?"
"Wow, you didn't tell me you competed!" Jotaro interrupted. "I bet you had a lot of attention since you were a girl! Did you enter as Sachiko? Or did you give yourself a neat alias like Haku-Ryuu or Inazuma?"
Chi-Chi raised an eyebrow. Why the sudden interest…?
"Not really. I wanted to remain anonymous. I chose the name 'Anonymous Hope'."
Jotaro seemed thoughtful. "That's Tokumei… Tokumei something. I'm trying to remember. Tokumei, Tokumei…?"
Behind the counter, Jin widened his eyes. He glanced at Togashi, who gave him a smug look. 'Didn't I tell you so?' his face seemed to say.
"Tokumei Mikomi," Chi-Chi finished for Jotaro. She stood up to return the cloth used to wrap up the bread, but she noticed Togashi wouldn't move.
"What are you-"
Suddenly, Togashi seized Chi-Chi, pinning her arms behind her back. "It's more like Tokumei Kibou! I've found you, the runaway from the emperor's palace!"
At that second, all the warriors, Vegeta, and Jotaro jumped to their feet, fueled with rage. The four warriors unsheathed their katanas and took a fighting stance, glaring at Togashi. "Unhand her at once!" one demanded.
Jotaro jumped in front of the warriors. "Yah! You go and find your own pretty lady! Sachiko is mine!"
Vegeta picked up the boy by the collar of his vest and dropped him to the side. "Stay out this, you foolish child." But Jotaro was just as determined as the rest of them to save Chi-Chi. He stood in front of the warriors again. He assumed a fighting position as well; his fists raised and ready to fight.
"If you want to live to your tenth birthday, then step aside, Jotaro," Jin said. The subtle sound of a click was heard, and when Jotaro looked up at the sound, he looked into the bullet hole of a handgun.
To be continued…
Chapter Fifteen: Fleeting Peace
A/N:
(1) The name Shinichi comes from Shinichi Namura "Nachan" of Marmalade Boy. (Tis a fun manga. Read, read!) Jotaro's name is once again derived from a character in the book Musashi, which you may remember I made a reference to in the fourth chapter. He reminds me so much of Myojin Yahiko from Rurouni Kenshin/Samurai X, and I love him, so I knew I had to have a character like him in my story. A difference is that one has a crush on a princess and the other doesn't like girls very much.
(2) Haku-Ryuu is translated to "white dragon". Inazuma is translated to "sudden flash of lightning". A lot of aliases are fighting techniques or names with some reflective meaning.
Caryl Mc: What did I tell you? Not everything I write is bad, dark and angsty all the time. You'll go back in time to help Chi-Chi? Heh. That's the sign of a loyal fan. Lol. You don't scare me at all. ; Thanks for the compliments, but I'm not that good… Hey, you can write anything you want to. It just takes practice and dedication.
Carrie2sky: Yes, I need to update faster. I just have a lot going on right now. Yeah, Goku has a chance of coming back now. I'm glad people didn't think the deal between Chi-Chi and Piccolo wasn't weird. I honestly didn't like it, but this story was in need of another twist. Vegeta's going to stop at no cost to make Chi-Chi his.
POOPDECK: Thanks. DBZ can be a little repetitive, but there are also a lot of deep factors to the story. I don't know how to explain it, but I don't get bored with it. ;
You're right about Goku's death. This is AU, so I guess you can say the whole series is thrown off!
Lady Kouga: Yeah. Chi-Chi will stop at nothing to get the Dragonballs to wish Goku back.
Candy the Duck: You think so? Vegeta's just being a conniving jerk, but we all still love him…
Moongirl 16: I was missed? Yay. ::is happy:: Vegeta's getting a lot of heat now… He wants to eliminate Goku ASAP. He doesn't care about anyone else's feelings.
Goku-lover21: Yay. I'm glad you like my story. Thank you.
I-LOVE-VEGETA: Lol. I try to update quickly, but keeping the consistency is hard. Thus I rely on my reviewers to be patient with me… Lol, you're really happy, huh? I'm so glad people are actually liking this story. I always think my own work isn't good, but… It's reviews like yours that make me think a little better of myself. Thank you.
Lady Thundera: Yes, I have returned. ; No, you read Goku's last words right. There will be a confrontation in the next chapter. Ok, no more sneak peeks… Yay, someone else who doesn't think the P/CC arrangement wasn't weird. I needed another twist anyway. Gee, you're feeling pretty evil to want to see V/CC get married, huh? That gives me an idea… The English version SUCKS at portraying Chi-Chi. I could write an essay about that, but I won't do it here. I don't know why people think this is like Romeo and Juliet. It's not gonna happen. Thank you for your review.
Lady Athena X: Thanks. Chi-Chi and Piccolo are kinda like partners, but they each have their own ambition. You can guess who's going to make everything go wrong… Lol. The number one way everyone recognizes Veggie is his pride.
Gogirl: It's ok. I've been busy too. ::looks at the last time she updated:: Yeah… You know, one of these days Chi-Chi WILL make us authors suffer for putting her husband (or in this case, fiance) through a lot of hell. But for now, she's working to bring Goku back. Yay! Another YYH fan! Lol, yes! Yusuke is a cutie… I LOVE Y/K and "Yusuke's Return" was the first episode I saw. My favorite as well.
Nisha: Thanks. Positive reviews encourage me to write more.
Noname: What will Chi-Chi do? Only Sadako knows.
Ghettofabgurl3: It's always good to see new reviewers. I'm really glad you like my story. I had no idea you like it this much… ::grins:: Oh, I'll be sure to look out for your story too.