Chapter 21: Fighting and Cooties

Disclaimer: I don't own DBZ

Chichi continued watching Goten and Trunks play their game. Gohan and Eighteen had flown off elsewhere a while ago. She furrowed her brow, shaking her head,

"I need to go check on them!" she said, standing suddenly.

Bulma shook her head, loosing a breath, "Sit down, Chichi," she said, casually turning a page in her book. Chichi looked at her blue-haired friend, biting her thumb,

"But Bulma! Who knows what they could be doing off on their own?! What if it's something inappropriate! They're not even married yet!"

"Do you really think Gohan would do something like that? He's a good kid, Chichi. There's nothing to worry about," Bulma assured. She licked her finger before turning another page, "Besides, they're probably just training or something. Gohan came to me a while ago asking for ideas on increasing an android's strength. It seems my idea worked, since he hasn't brought it up since."

"Hold on a second! Does that mean you've known about their relationship for a while now? How come you didn't tell me!? Don't you think I have a right to know what's going on in my son's life?"

Bulma sighed, closing her book, "Chichi, if I gave away his secrets every time he came to me for advice, he wouldn't trust me anymore. Would you rather he look for advice elsewhere? With someone you don't know or trust?"

Chichi looked unsure, chewing on her nails nervously, "Well, perhaps not," she admitted, "Even so, you should have told me!" she thought, then took a second to actually consider it. She shook her head, "I can't keep being unreasonable like this! Bulma's right; he needs someone trustworthy to confide in. No matter how I wish he could just confide in ME! Though, I guess it makes sense; it's not like I told daddy everything when I was younger, either."

Chichi sighed, defeated, "I guess you're right," she said. Then she straightened, regaining the usual fire in her eyes, "But that doesn't mean I have to like it!"

Bulma smiled, "Of course not!"

"Show me!"

"I'm not sure I can!"

"Why not?"

Gohan rubbed his neck nervously, "Well… it's not something I can use whenever I want. I used it a few days ago, so I may not be able to use it again for another few; maybe even a week."

Eighteen frowned, crossing her arms, "As soon as you're able you're going to show me, understand?" she insisted, "Seriously, is there some kind of trick to gaining new forms? How is it that Saiyans seem to have so many?"

Gohan nodded amiably, "Sure thing! I wanted to show you anyway! It's pretty cool, after all!"

"Good! It's a win-win, then."

Gohan laughed, "Yeah, I guess so!"

They stared at each other a while, awkwardly, not knowing what else to say. Gohan looked away first, blushing inexplicably. The silence stretched. Suddenly, Gohan gasped; looking at Eighteen in a panic,

"I wasn't supposed to tell you about divine ki! I wasn't supposed to tell Dende about divine ki! I promised Grand Kai not to tell anyone!" he panicked, pulling at his hair.

Eighteen looked at him, shocked at his outburst, "Calm down!" she demanded, "What's the big deal? I'm not going to tell anyone else. I doubt your green friend will either," she reminded him.

Gohan slowly calmed down, "Right! That's a good point. Dende already knew about divine ki, anyway! He shouldn't be a problem… I suppose the problem is that I told you," he sighed. He rubbed the bridge of his nose, "Still, it's not like I could have hid it from you for long. You were bound to find out!"

"You could have told me it was 'mystic ki' like you thought before," Eighteen shrugged.

Gohan grimaced at the thought, "That would mean lying to you," he said.

Eighteen raised a brow, "What? You've never lied before?"

Gohan shook his head, "That's not it. I just don't want to lie to you."

"Aww, that's sweet," she teased. Though she seemed sarcastic, her smile was genuine. Gohan chuckled nervously, rubbing the back of his head,

"Well… it just doesn't feel right. Lying to you, that is."

Eighteen approached him, placing a hand on his chest, "For what it's worth… I don't like the idea of lying to you, either."

Gohan flushed and took a quick step back, breaking their contact, "Uh… thanks… ," he said, not sure how he should respond to that. His heart was suddenly beating very fast; it was kind of uncomfortable. Eighteen frowned, but didn't complain.

She placed her hands on her hips, "Now, wasn't there some talk of me beating up a little kid, earlier? Are we still planning on doing that?"

Gohan smiled, though it was strained, "Do you have to put it like that? You make us sound like thugs or something!" he complained.

"Who cares?" she huffed. She took to the air, heading back to Capsule Corp.

"Ah! Wait for me!"

Goten noticed them first, getting ready to throw the ball. His distraction ruined his aim, and he ended up decimating a bush.

"Gohan's back!" he exclaimed, ignoring the damage he had just caused. He waved energetically as his brother and the strange lady descended, landing on the grass.

"Oh! Hey, Gohan!" Trunks greeted, giving a nonchalant wave.

"Hey, you two! Having fun?" Gohan asked. Goten and Trunks nodded. Gohan grinned, "Want to have more fun?"

Goten jumped up and down excitedly, "Yeah! What're we gonna do?"

Trunks calmly examined a hand, "Well, I suppose that'd be fine," he said haughtily.

Gohan chuckled, "I was thinking of having a little sparring session. Do you guys wanna join?"

Trunks' eyes widened and he tried to suppress a grin, "Sparring with Gohan? Yes!" he rejoiced. He had only sparred with Gohan once before, but it was easily one of his favorites. Gohan was really helpful, and he didn't hit too hard! Of course, Trunks loved his dad, but sparring with him was more like a survival exercise.

"Really, Gohan?! Really really?" Goten asked excitedly. Gohan grinned and nodded,

"Yeah, really."

Trunks couldn't suppress his excitement anymore, grabbing Gohan's hand and dragging him along, "Come on, let's go to the gravity chamber! Dad's not here right now, so we can use it!"

"Alright, alright! I can walk you know!" Gohan said.

"Well, walk faster!" Trunks demanded. Goten and Eighteen followed them to the semi-spherical building that housed the gravity chamber.

"Hey, Trunks, where is your dad anyway?" Gohan asked.

Trunks shrugged, "Dunno."

Gohan rolled his eyes, "Well, that's helpful!"

The group of four entered the chamber. The floor was covered in red tiles, and the rounded walls were made of some kind of metal. In the center was a control console that extended to the ceiling of the dome-like room. There were lines in the wall, indicating panels that could open to release training bots.

Trunks marched up to the console, reaching for the gravity controls by habit.

"Hold on, Trunks," Gohan called. Trunks' hand stopped in the action of turning the dial. He turned his head back to look at Gohan, brow raised questioningly, "Let's leave the gravity alone. Eighteen isn't used to fighting under increased gravity," Gohan said.

Eighteen huffed indignantly, "I'd do just fine! It can't be that hard."

"Oh! OK, then," Trunks acquiesced. He looked at Eighteen scrutinizingly, "Her name is Eighteen? What kind of name is that?" he wondered. Eighteen noticed his stare and returned one of her own. Trunks quickly looked away from her intimidating gaze.

"I'm not scared or anything! It's just… mom said it's rude to stare at people!" He defended himself. He smirked and nodded, arms crossed, convinced by his own excuse.

Gohan clapped his hands together, gaining everyone's attention, "Alright! First up: Trunks and Eighteen!" he announced. Eighteen shrugged and walked to an open area, waiting with her hands on her hips.

"Hold on! I thought I was gonna fight you!" Trunks objected, pointing an accusing finger at Gohan, "I don't wanna fight a girl! They have cooties!"

"Ahahaha!" Gohan laughed merrily, holding his stomach.

Eighteen frowned sulkily, "This brat is really asking for it."

Goten suddenly ran away, hiding behind Gohan's leg, "Trunks! What are cooties?" he asked warily, peeking out from his cover. Trunks curled his hands into fists, placing them on his hips. He closed his eyes and lowered his head solemnly,

"I should have known you'd be ignorant to the unparalleled terror that is 'the cootie'," he spoke seriously. He raised his head and opened his eyes, staring down his younger friend,

"Cooties are like tiny bugs that live on girls. If you come into contact with them too often, you might be infected with them. Before long you'll be wearing pink and playing with dolls, and then… ," he paused suspensefully.

"What! What happens then," Goten asked, eyes wide with fear; clutching Gohan's pants tightly.

Trunks shuddered dramatically, "Then… then… YOU TURN INTO A GIRL!" he shouted. Goten screamed in horror,

"I don't wanna be a girl! Gohan, what do I do? I don't want cooties!" he blabbered, pulling on Gohan's pants frantically.

Eighteen stifled laughter with a hand, feeling bad for the little guy but amused at the same time. Gohan smiled when he saw her mirth, before kneeling next to Goten to calm him down,

"Don't worry, Goten. I know a secret way to keep the cooties away forever!" he assured the frantic child. Goten stood still and stared at him,

"Really? You gotta tell me, Gohan! Please! Pleasepleasepleaseplease… ," Goten begged. Gohan smiled indulgently,

"Alright, alright! Quiet down so I can tell you."

"Oh! OK!"

"Have you ever wondered why mom makes you read so much?" Gohan asked.

"Yeah! All the time!"

"That's because cooties hate books!" Gohan explained. Goten looked at him in wonder, "So if you read every day, you'll never have to worry about being infected!"

Goten's eyes widened in realization, "That's why you study everyday!"

Gohan nodded encouragingly, "Exactly right! It seems you finally understand. But… you have to promise not to tell anyone else, okay? This is a super secret method, after all!"

Goten nodded rapidly, "I got it! I won't tell!" he agreed.

Trunks held his forehead in one hand, watching Goten jump around happily, "How gullible can you be?"

Eighteen cleared her throat, "That was cute and all, but do you think we can get to the fight now?" she asked.

Piccolo clutched the stump of his arm, sitting in an empty lava tube. His breath came in heavy bursts, rattling through his windpipe. He distracted himself from the pain by thinking about the nonsensical floating island he currently inhabited,

"Honestly, how can a floating rock be volcanically active? Volcanoes occur as a result of pressure build-up beneath the earth's crust. This stupid island shouldn't have a comparable molten core, so where does the magma come from? It's not large enough to have it's own gravity, so what would cause the pressure?"

A sudden spark of pain ended that line of thought, and he was reminded of how he had lost his arm.

"Not one of my best ideas, but I didn't have many options," he thought. Vegeta had set an admirable trap, and Piccolo fell right into it. His arm had been caught and he had a vision of being beaten senseless by the pompous ass. So, Piccolo did the first thing that came to mind; cut off his arm. Vegeta was so shocked he didn't even try to stop Piccolo's escape.

"Hehehe… the face he made... almost made it worth it," he gasped, grinning through the pain. He winced at another spark of pain, " ...almost."

Eighteen blocked and weaved through a flurry of punches, careful not to take any on directly. Instead, she skillfully diverted the force away; nullifying most of the damage.

"I'd rather not admit it, but this brat it stronger than me; at least, physically. His fighting style is too simple, though. A straightforward assault is only feasible when you have the power to overwhelm your enemy. He's not that much stronger than me."

She thought back to the handful of training sessions with Gohan, wondering if he always analyzed their fights the way she was right now.

Trunks suddenly fell back, one hand holding his other wrist.

"Some kind of special attack?" Eighteen wondered. Trunks began gathering ki into his hand. Eighteen observed critically, "It's taking him far too long. Is he bad at controlling ki?" she thought. She shrugged dismissively, "Doesn't matter. He's not finishing whatever it is he started."

She shot forward, sweeping his legs out from under him before he knew what was happening. He yelped in surprise, trying to catch himself. The back of Eighteen's hand swung around, catching him in the cheek. He was sent a meter into the air before Eighteen grabbed his arm, swinging him around then sending him hurdling into the metal wall.

"Auugh!" he grunted, bouncing off the wall and falling to the floor. He slowly got up, rubbing a new bump on the back of his head. He looked at Eighteen and growled in frustration. He pulled his arms next to his torso, gritting his teeth,

"Haaah!" he shouted, flaring a white aura. The tiles beneath his feet shook, and a wind picked up around him. A few seconds later, his shouting stopped; aura disappearing. Then he disappeared.

Eighteen quickly braced herself. A foot to the back sent her reeling across the tiled floor. Her face tightened from the pain, but she shrugged it off. She searched for her adversary, before remembering she could sense ki. She managed to locate him before his fist could reach her face, deflecting his attack and countering with a punch to his gut.

"Buhh!" Trunks gasped, air escaping his lungs. He clenched his eyes for a second before remembering to protect himself. Eighteen sent a knee towards his torso, but impacted his arms instead; crossed in front of his stomach. Trunks was sent sliding back until he managed to stop himself.

They both paused, catching their breath. Trunks wiped some spittle from his chin, grateful that it wasn't blood instead. Eighteen absently noted a tear in her sleeve, "Maybe I should have worn an outfit more suited for fighting?" she wondered.

She started when Trunks began gathering ki in his hand, the other hand holding his wrist, "This again? He seems determined to do it. I'll admit… I'm a bit curious about what he'll do."

She decided not to attack, instead taking the time to raise her ki internally, "I suppose this does take longer compared to raising it externally," she thought. Gohan had mentioned that every fighter he knew used the external method, "I've always had near perfect control over my 'other' energy, so there wasn't a need to raise it externally."

It seemed Trunks was nearly done charging his attack. His fist was surrounded by a flaming blue aura, flickering violently. He appeared to be struggling, lips pulled back in a grimace. Sweat rolled down his face as he worked to keep the intense ki stable.

Gohan's eyes widened in fear, "Trunks! NO!" he yelled. His thoughts flashed back to one of his fights with Piccolo. He had attempted to use this move but Piccolo had countered it, throwing him into the ground. He had lost concentration, and the volatile ki exploded; injuring his hand.

"There's no way Trunks can handle that attack! Eighteen won't be able to block it; there's too much energy! Where did he even learn that?!"

He shook his head, "No time to worry about that! I have to do something before someone gets hurt!"

Trunks kicked off, hard. He flew towards Eighteen, ready to win the fight.

Gohan was about to step in when he saw Eighteen's stance. She had one hand positioned over the other in front of her. Each hand was shrouded in a membrane of serene violet ki. Her face was set with determination.

"She's won't even try to dodge. Can she really handle it?" he wondered. He agonized over whether he should interfere or not. On the one hand, the situation was very dangerous; someone could die. On the other… well, he trusted Eighteen. She seemed confident she could deal with it. Maybe he should leave it to her?

The decision wasn't his to make anymore. He had spent too much time thinking and lost the chance to take action.

Trunks sent forward his blazing fist, colliding with Eighteen's hands. A wave of force spread out between them, kicking up a storm of dust. Eighteen was pushed back slowly, shoes squeaking against tiles. Eighteen clenched her teeth, pushing back as hard as she could.

Trunks bared his teeth, "There's no way I'm gonna lose! I train every day with my dad, and he's way stronger than you!"

Eighteen smirked mischievously. She twisted her hands until they were wrapped around his fist. Then she side-stepped and sent it right into the ground! There was a great boom at the collision and the tiles easily shattered. The ground underneath buckled then cratered from the force of his ki.

Trunks used his other arm to shield himself from the flying debris. Suddenly, he realized Eighteen was not holding his arm anymore, "Where'd she go?!" he panicked. He looked around but the dust was too thick to see anything. He felt an arm wrap around his neck, a hand covered in sharp ki near his jaw.

"I'd say this is my win," Eighteen said. Trunks nodded tersely, careful not to touch the sharp ki. Eighteen smiled, "This was pretty fun. Nice fight, kid."

Trunks smiled, despite his frustration at losing. Eighteen released him. Gohan approached them, worry on his face,

"Are you two alright?" he asked. He kneeled to examine Trunks, looking for any serious injuries. They both nodded. After he had ascertained for himself that Trunks was healthy the worry faded from his face, replaced by a stern expression,

"Trunks, where did you learn that technique?" he asked, grasping the boy's shoulders. Trunks looked away, avoiding Gohan's eyes. Gohan frowned, "Trunks, tell me."

"Uh, well… I saw you use it once," Trunks admitted, fiddling with his hands guiltily, "I thought it was cool, so I tried to copy it."

Gohan closed his eyes in resignation, "Do you understand how dangerous that was? That technique is very difficult to control. You could have destroyed your hand!" he scolded.

Trunks looked down, face red in shame, "I- I'm sorry, Gohan. I didn't know," he apologized, rubbing away a stray tear from his eye.

Gohan sighed wearily, "I'm not angry Trunks, I'm just worried that you might hurt yourself," he said, "Promise you won't use that technique again until I've made sure you have the proper control to use it, OK?"

Trunks nodded, sniffing, "OK, Gohan," he agreed. Gohan smiled and stood.

"Good. Now, how about we all go get some ice cream?" he suggested. Trunks grinned and Goten whooped in joy. Eighteen shrugged,

"Sure, why not?"

Gohan opened a drawer, shuffling through it's contents, "Hmm… not here."

He opened the one beneath it, then the one beneath it, "Nope," he sighed. He kneeled and reached an arm under his bed, shoving aside shoe-boxes full of old homework, "Nuh-uh."

He stood and placed a hand on his chin, deep in thought, "Where could it be?" he asked himself. There was a knock on his door,

"Gohan! It's almost time for bed!" Chichi called.

"Alright, mom!" he called back, "Oh, wait! I should ask mom," he thought. He opened the door quickly, "Hey, mom? Have you seen the four-star ball?" he asked.

Chichi paused, hefting a laundry basket full of clothes under one arm. She placed a finger on her lips, "Didn't you leave it with Dende when we went to otherworld? Did you remember to retrieve it?"

Gohan snapped his fingers, "No, I totally forgot! No wonder I couldn't find it!"

He smiled at his mother, "Thanks for the help, mom!"

Chichi returned the smile, "You're welcome, sweetie! Now go to bed," she commanded.

Gohan nodded, "Goodnight, mom."

Gohan landed on the lookout, quickly heading inside, "Hey, Dende! Are you here?" he called.

Before long his Namekian friend appeared, staff clicking on the floor, "Ah, Gohan! What brings you here so early?"

"I kinda forgot to grab the four-star ball yesterday, so I came to pick it up."

"Oh! Now that you mention it, I forgot about that too. Well, just follow me; we'll go get it."

Dende turned and left the main chamber. Gohan followed. They traveled down a long hallway, passing doors and openings to other hallways. Morning light shone through the windows in bright shafts, illuminating the hall.

Eventually they stopped before a door, appearing exactly the same as all the others, "How does Dende navigate this place?" Gohan wondered. Dende looked at him from the corner of his eye, smiling knowingly.

He opened the door, revealing a small room. The walls were white, and the floor made of marble. There were seven raised pedestals with deep red cushions atop them. A large tapestry of Shenlong decorated the wall furthest from them. Below the tapestry sat a table covered in white cloth. A stone statue of Shenlong sat on it, within a glass case.

Dende's smile faded, replaced by shock. Gohan looked around curiously, not noticing Dende's expression.

"It's gone!" Dende shouted. Gohan looked at him curiously,

"What's gone?"

Dende was still staring straight at one of the empty cushions, "The four-star dragonball! I placed it on this pedestal, but now it's not here!"

Gohan looked at the pedestal Dende indicated. He noticed it had four stars carved onto the front in the same orientation as the dragonball.

"What do you think happened to it?" Gohan asked.

Dende held his forehead in one hand, "Stolen! That's the only explanation."

Gohan scratched his head, "How?"

"I don't know. Nobody should be able to enter the lookout without my knowledge!"

"Well, obviously someone did."

"I can see that!" Dende scathed. Gohan took a step back, hands held up in defence,

"Hey, calm down, Dende! It's not a big deal! Somebody probably wants to make a wish or something. I can just wait until the dragonballs scatter again."

Dende took a deep breath and released it, "Yeah, you're right. Sorry, Gohan. I didn't mean to snap at you like that," Dende apologized.

"Don't worry about it, Dende," Gohan replied. Dende nodded in appreciation. Gohan closed his eyes for a second, "I guess if the dragonball isn't here I should go ahead and find Krillin. I need to tell him about the 'premier' thingy."

"Alright, Dende, I'll see you later. I have to go take care of something," Gohan said, waving as he jogged back down the hall.

"Oh, OK. See you later, Gohan," Dende waved back.

A/N: Here's this weeks chapter. The chapter released earlier this week doesn't count, since it was supposed to be done the week before.