DING DONG
Kat's ears perked and she put down her book. "I'll get it, Bulma!" she called as she jumped off the living room couch. She ran to the front door and opened it up, and when she did she was met with a huge surprise. Of course, the person on the other side didn't seem to understand what was going on, either. So for a while the two just stared at each other in silence, trying to figure out something to say.
"Hey Kat, who's there-" Bulma stopped and stared at the visitor, almost dropping her can of soda in the process. "F-Future Trunks? Is that really you?"
The older version of her son raised his head to look at her and smiled. "Hi, Mom, it's nice to see you again," he greeted.
Bulma grinned brightly and ran up to the young man, and Kat had to move out of the way so she could hug him. "Oh, I'm so glad you're here!" she squealed. Future Trunks looked a bit sheepish but still kept his smile. "You look like you're doing well. How have things been going?"
"Great," the time traveler revealed. "I actually came back because I wanted to tell you guys something."
"Nothing bad, I hope."
Future Trunks chuckled. "No, don't worry." Bulma grinned again and parted from him, letting him come inside and close the door. "So, who is she?"
"I-I'm Kat," the girl introduced, still a little surprised. "It's nice to meet you."
"Likewise," he said with a gentle, polite smile. "Where's Dad?"
"Upstairs," Bulma answered. "Poor man. I forced him to try and put Trunks down for his nap. It's probably not going so well." Kat snickered and Future Trunks blushed. "I'll go relieve him. He'd most likely want to talk with you rather than try to make his son sleep." With a wink, the woman ran off.
"I do have to ask," Kat began when she was gone, "were you fussy when you were a baby?"
Her question made him blush redder. "I-I don't know," he stated, and Kat laughed.
"Hey, I'm just messing with you." Then she gave him a wink as well. "I mess with Vegeta all the time." He relaxed a bit and even let out a soft chuckle. "Would you like anything to drink? I wouldn't mind getting you something, and you know Bulma; she would pretty much demand you have whatever you want."
Now he relaxed completely as he laughed. "Milk, if they have it," he decided. "It's still kind of rare in the future, so I've been craving it for a while."
"Coming right up! Just go sit on the couch and I'll have it in a sec." Future Trunks nodded and made his way over while Kat went to the walk-in fridge. She hadn't wanted to be rude - besides, how would he know - but she really wanted to cry out, "Of course they have milk!" Seriously, it was a miracle if she and Vegeta didn't go through a gallon within less than a week.
Well, that's what the Brief household got for trying to feed two Saiyans after training.
Kat came back with a tall glass of milk and remembered her homework had been on the coffee table. Luckily, Future Trunks had moved it out of the way, but she still felt bad. "Sorry about the mess," she said as she reached the couch. "I was doing my homework, and I didn't expect anyone to be sharing it with me."
"I'm not distracting you from anything, am I?" he asked as he took the glass.
"Nah, this crap isn't due for another week," she brushed off. She jumped onto the couch and went for the remote. "So, is it okay if I rename you?"
He stopped his sip and stared at her. "What?"
"Well it's just going to be really confusing calling you Trunks, because I've known this Trunks since he was 10 months old, and I'd rather not call you Future Trunks all the time. It's a mouthful." He still seemed unsure. "Think of it like Vegeta calling Goku 'Kakarot'."
Still kind of unsure, he shrugged. "Sure, I guess."
"Okay!"
Kat began to think of what to call him, and for whatever reason, while she was, her mind sidetracked to all of the Saiyago Vegeta had been teaching her lately. She did have to admit that learning about her ancestor tongue was pretty interesting, especially when she cursed Shigeru out the other day and he had no idea-
"That's it!" she suddenly exclaimed, making him jump a little. "How about Mirai!"
"Um... What? That's not a word I've ever heard before."
"See, Vegeta's been teaching me Saiyago - that's the native Saiyan language, fyi - lately, and mirai means future," she explained. "True, at that point I could call you 'Future', but that doesn't sound all that cool."
The young man smiled. "Guess so," he agreed. "Okay, that's fine."
"Great! That's going to make things easier on me big time!"
Mirai chuckled. "Why do I have the feeling you're the type who's a handful?" he teased.
"Because she can be," Vegeta grumbled, grumpily entering the living room.
Kat snickered lightly as she faced him. "Had fun?" she inquired.
Vegeta narrowed his eyes. "You're doing it next time," he demanded. "And don't think your homework will save you again. I knew I was right in suspecting it wasn't due tomorrow."
"Fool you once, shame on you," Kat laughed.
"The shame goes to you."
"Nice to see you haven't changed much, Dad," Mirai butt in.
In response, Vegeta grunted a hello. "Jeez, Vegeta, be ruder to our guest," Kat sarcastically remarked.
He rolled his eyes and went to the fridge, disappearing inside. "What the- where's the rest of the milk?" he questioned as he popped his head back out.
"Mirai wanted some, so I gave it to him," the girl replied. Mirai held up his glass to back her up.
His alternate timeline father wasn't pleased. "Fantastic," he mumbled.
"What? I told you he's a guest, so he gets special treatment. Think of him as royalty." Then she thought about something. "Well, technically..."
"I already am," Mirai realized, laughing lightly.
Again, Vegeta grunted and went to find something else to drink. He came back out with a glass of orange juice, and then he walked over to the cushioned chair. That's when he noticed another glass on the coffee table, and he glared at Kat.
"First, I poured myself that glass before he got here," Kat defended. Then she smirked. "And second, you snooze you lose. Besides, you had more than me last week."
With a low growl, Vegeta crossed his arms and slightly pouted, looking like a child. "Meiwakuna gaki," he cursed.
"Hey!"
Deciding it wasn't worth knowing, Mirai changed the subject. "So how have you been, Dad?" he asked.
"Fine," he answered. Then he smirked. "I just find myself babysitting this gaki every now and then."
"Stop it!"
No, still wasn't worth knowing. "Why?"
"Because she pestered me enough."
"If by 'pester' you mean 'made a convincing argument that you agreed to', then yes," Kat countered, annoyed by his Saiyago taunts.
"And what would that be?" Mirai wondered.
"That Goku wouldn't want him giving up what Vegeta likes just because he's gone," she stated.
That caught Mirai off guard. "Oh. So you two train together?" Kat nodded. "Wow, that's amazing." Then the young man thought of an idea. "Hey, do you want to spar with me?"
Kat immediately jumped up, stars in her eyes. "You really want to?" she squealed.
Mirai laughed. "Guess I don't have a choice now," he pointed out.
"You'll lose, Kat," Vegeta decided.
She whipped around. "You don't know that!" she shot back.
He smirked with a challenging look in his eyes. "Sure I do. He's older, and he has more experience."
"I can win!" Kat declared, her tail unconsciously uncoiling from around her waist to whip in determination. Mirai barely dodged the appendage, and then he stared at it in bewilderment.
"You... You have a tail?" he observed, his eyes wide.
The younger half-breed turned her head to look at him, and then she smiled. "Yeah," she said. "I guess I forgot to tell you. I'm a half Saiyan, too."
"I...see," he muttered in surprise. A few seconds later he sat up straight, his surprise replaced with curiosity. "Wait, then where were you? I mean, Goku was the only full blooded Saiyan who lived on Earth, and only Dad and those other two ever touched down here... At least, that's how history went, right?"
"It is," Kat confirmed. "But who my parents are is the million zeni question."
"O-oh!" Mirai exclaimed. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean-"
But Kat shook her head, interrupting him. "It's okay, you didn't know," she brushed off. "Besides, I'll find them."
Mirai smiled in relief and encouragement. "Yeah, one day you'll find them," he agreed. "So, do you want to spar right now?"
"Yeah!" Kat responded enthusiastically. "Before we do, though, I'm going to ask Bulma if she can get everyone to come over. I bet you'd like to see them again."
"I would," he replied.
Luckily, Bulma had the same idea, and when Kat and Mirai went to ask, she told them it had already been taken care of. "Great, company," Vegeta grunted.
"Oh hush, you," Bulma scolded teasingly. "Let Future Trunks say hi to everyone; I don't see how that's a crime." Her husband huffed. "Though I don't know if you two should spar right now," she continued, looking at the two hybrids. "I know you want to - especially you, Kat - but everyone is probably going to be here soon. I predict you two would barely get a minute in."
Kat groaned, disappointed, but she understood. "Alright," she reluctantly agreed.
"Hey, don't worry, I'll spar with you before I leave," Mirai brought up.
"Really?" Kat asked.
"Really," he promised. The girl smiled.
They went back downstairs and flipped through a few channels to find one to put on as background noise for when everyone showed up. It didn't take the others very long to do so; hell, the two hybrids felt Gohan jump to Super Saiyan just to see his old friend faster.
"Trunks!" he shouted happily as he burst into Capsule Corp. The boy looked to the couch and beamed before launching for the time traveler and hugging him, which almost sent both of them to the floor. "It's so great to see you!"
Mirai laughed. "Same to you, Gohan," he replied.
"What are you doing back here?" the black haired boy questioned.
"We have to wait for everyone else," Kat informed.
Gohan turned to her, blushing apologetically when he realized, in his haste to greet Mirai, he had knocked Kat onto the floor. Thankfully, she wasn't hurt and she didn't look angry. "He hasn't told you guys yet?" he inquired, deciding to glance over his foolishness.
"All we know is that it's not bad news," the girl stated. "We just have to wait, but at the rate everyone's coming, it shouldn't take long."
Sure enough, a few seconds after she said that, Krillin and Yamcha ran in, with 18 and Puar calmly following behind them (well, 18 was calm; Puar had a big grin on her face). "Trunks!" the men called out. Mirai decided to get off the couch this time.
"How's it been goin', man?" Yamcha greeted with a grin and a quick pat to the teen's back.
"Everything's going pretty well," Mirai reported.
"That's good to hear!" Krillin chuckled. "So, what brings you back?"
"Well, I-" He finally noticed 18, and he immediately dropped into a defensive position. "What are you-"
"Whoa, hey, it's cool!" Kat soothed. "18's really nice. Would we be alive if she wasn't?"
Mirai looked at the girl and opened his mouth before closing it and looking back at 18, who smirked just a tad. The teen relaxed and sighed. "I guess not," he replied. "Sorry. Force of habit." The cyborg shrugged.
Then Chiaotzu suddenly floated in, with Tien right behind him. The two friends noticed Mirai and smiled.
"Hey, you're back!" Chiaotzu cried happily.
"It's great to see you again," Tien commented.
"Likewise," the teen stated.
"Okay, okay, everyone's here, so tell us!" Gohan pleaded, his eyes shining in excitement.
The time traveler chuckled at his enthusiasm. "But what about Piccolo?" he pointed out.
"He's up at the Lookout, like always," Kat told him. "He probably knows you're here, but of course he has to be the spoilsport like Vegeta."
No one stopped the Saiyan Prince when he shoved Kat to the floor; she was kind of asking for that one.
"Anyway," Mirai began after Kat picked herself up and grumbled out a few harsh words, "like I said, everything's been going really well. You see, after I got home, I took care of the androids." Immediately he looked at 18 and smiled nervously. "Um, no offense, but you and 17 weren't good people in my future."
"So I've heard," she nonchalantly responded. "Don't worry, kid, it's another me, not actually me."
"And by the way, 17 and 18 are cyborgs, not androids," Kat interjected.
"Semantics," Gohan muttered. "But then what happened? What about Cell? Did he ever show up?"
He nodded. "We've been rebuilding for the last three years," Mirai explained. "I asked Mom if I could take a break to come back and tell you guys about 17 and 18. Before I got into the time machine, though, Cell showed up. Luckily, after all of that training with Dad in the Hyperbolic Time Chamber, it was really easy to beat him." There was a round of cheers and applause, and Mirai blushed at the attention. "So really, right now, the world's at peace." The smile on his face turned sad, and his eyes grew somber. "And I'm its sole protector."
"Hey, hold on, what about me?" Kat asked. "I mean, maybe I survived. Sure, you'd have to train me...a lot, but it wouldn't hurt to try."
"Well... I guess it wouldn't," Mirai agreed. "You'd be hard to find, though."
"How many other Kats could there possibly be, especially with lapis lazuli eyes?"
Mirai opened his mouth, wanting to say that her eyes were just like any other blue eyes - even his own - but then he closed it and studied them quickly. "Huh, what do you know, they are," he realized. "It still might be a challenge, but I think you have a point." Kat beamed.
Suddenly 18 started laughing...hard. Not even Krillin had seen her laugh this hard. "Oh, oh my- g-guys, you h-have to see the TV!" she instructed through her random fit.
Confused, the group looked to the TV, and they instantly found out what she was laughing about.
Four burly men in ridiculously flashy outfits and covered in body paint came out of what was supposed to be a spaceship, with the announcer on the TV claiming they were from four different galaxies. Even if there were aliens out there who looked like the four men (it wasn't totally impossible, they figured), there was a high chance the Z Warriors would be able to sense out their ki - something that just wasn't possible. Then suddenly Vegeta started laughing hard, and everyone looked at him.
"I'll give you Earthlings this," he laughed, "you certainly have impressive imagination!"
Kat gave out a long, exasperated sigh. "I thought he was over that," she mumbled under her breath.
The news changed from the space station to Central City Plaza. "Joining us now is the sponsor of this unprecedented event," a male reporter continued. "World famous millionaire, X.S Cash."
"Get it? It's cause he's rich," Krillin dully stated.
"Maybe he should trade it in for excess brain cells instead," Yamcha sighed.
"Actually, the credit should go to my son, Monty," the millionaire humbled. Just then the little kid next to him, wanting attention, held out a dragon and Mr. Satan doll, and the Z Warriors heard a groan and a THUNK as Kat slammed her head onto the coffee table.
"It's for his birthday," Monty's mother explained. "Our psychiatrist loved the idea."
"Get a new one," everyone in the living room commented.
Mr. Cash promised his son he was getting the strongest aliens money could buy, and while the actual aliens (and the two half aliens) rolled their eyes, the producer explained. "Monty's birthday present is going to be something the whole world can enjoy! The richest man in the world is about to produce the biggest martial arts tournament in history!" he proclaimed.
"Wait, this is all for a tournament?" Mirai questioned.
"That's it!" Krillin declared. "How about we show the world those guys are nothing but frauds?"
"But you're human, Krillin," Gohan pointed out. "That's not exactly going to prove anything."
"True, but if you, Trunks, Kat, and Vegeta participate, then we will be!" the bald man countered.
"Well, I've always wanted to participate in a tournament," Kat voiced, her excitement overshadowing her annoyance. "Why not? I agree, Krillin, let's bust those clowns!"
"Count me in as well," Tien jumped in. "It's been a while since I've had a good fight." Chiaotzu immediately shook his head, saying he wouldn't enter.
Yamcha chuckled. "Maybe I'll go, too," he said. Puar cheered for him.
"Hey, maybe you and I will get that spar in, Kat," Mirai piped up. The girl's eyes began to shine, while Yamcha's face paled.
"It depends on when it is, but maybe I can convince Mom if I can join!" Gohan added. "Especially if there's prize money, and there's no doubt there will be." Yamcha paled even more, and even Krillin began to falter (Even though I'm the one who brought it up, me and my big mouth, he thought), but after a while the former monk agreed with a grin.
Throughout all of the planning, Vegeta watched the group interact with curiosity and calculation, his eyes mostly on the half Saiyan girl. "Then I guess we keep watching," 18 stated, bringing the Prince's attention away from his thoughts. "No doubt they'll tell us a date, and when they do you know I'll sign up to take that money for myself."
"We'll see about that!" Kat challenged.
The report went on, and they learned the prize money was going to be 100 million zeni, which pretty much secured Gohan's place in the tournament if the date was good. But before it got to the date of the tournament, the news got...
Well, it was good and bad.
"He, she, or it will get a chance to challenge the most revered champion fighter to ever step into the ring," Mr. Cash reported.
"Gee, we're all holding our breath in suspense," Krillin commented, going back to his unamused and sarcastic attitude as the "world's hero" did his usual, flashy, and dumbass routine.
Suddenly there was a dark aura in the room, and everyone looked to Kat, who was grinning and chuckling darkly.
"Forget the fraud aliens, I want to expose that fraud," she vowed, and then there was an evil twinkle in her eye.
Mirai walked over to Vegeta. "So... I see she's learned a lot more than fighting from you," he whispered. Normally, Vegeta would have smirked or made some sound of amusement, but instead he just continued to stare at the girl. The future version of his son caught on to it and gave him a curious look. "Dad, is something wrong?"
He didn't answer, and then he stood up. "Kat." Everyone looked at him. "Mind if I talk to you for a second?" She was confused but nodded and followed him down the hallway. The group was just as confused but decided to ignore it and wait for the announcement of the date.
"What is it, Vegeta?" Kat asked when they were in the second floor living room.
He stared her down, and Kat raised an eyebrow to it, feeling slightly uncomfortable. "Kat, I don't think you should enter," he finally said.
"What?!" Kat yelled. "Why?"
"I think you'll get yourself-"
"Oh no, we are not going over this again," she grumbled. "Vegeta, it's been more than a year, I'll be fine. It's just a bunch of humans, what could possibly happen?"
Again he stared her down in silence, and then he huffed. "I suppose you're right," he reluctantly agreed.
"Just 'suppose'?" Kat grumbled. "Do you seriously not believe in me, in the thousands and thousands of hours you've put in to help me?"
"No," he answered, not changing his blank expression.
"Then what don't you have faith in?"
"Nothing."
Kat grunted. "You're lying."
The man didn't answer for a while, and then he stood up from the couch. "I won't be going," he told her.
That surprised her. "Why?"
"I don't see the point," he replied.
Well, I guess that makes sense, Kat thought with a tad bit of sadness. I was the one who said it's just a bunch of humans. Of course he wouldn't see the point in fighting weak opponents. She decided to brighten her mood. "Guess you'll just have to cheer Mirai and I on," she stated with a bright smile.
"Did you not hear me?"
Her smile dropped completely. "Wait...then..."
Vegeta didn't let her finish her thought as he walked away. Kat watched him go in shock, and then she looked at the ground, disheartened.
"Hey Kat, what did Vegeta want to talk to you about?" Krillin asked when she got back to the first floor.
"Oh, he was just saying how Mirai and Gohan are going to wipe the floor with me," Kat quickly lied. "I told him that won't happen, and then he walked off, saying he didn't want to enter cause almost everyone is weaker than him."
Krillin laughed. "That sounds like him alright," he noted. "Um, by the way, who's Mirai?"
"That's the name she gave me because she didn't want to confuse me and this time's Trunks," Mirai revealed. "And I guess Future Trunks is a mouthful." Krillin laughed again.
"Back on topic, you lucked out, Kiddo," 18 grunted. "The tournament's on March 18th, and I'm at my brother's helping him out at the reservation."
"Awesome!" Kat exclaimed. "That's the weekend Spring Break begins! Don't worry about it, 18, I'm sure you'll get another chance to break my arms."
The group hoped that was a joke.
Days passed, and the tournament was upon them. Bulma had a huge fit when she realized Vegeta didn't want to come, even just to spectate, but she decided it wasn't worth the energy to fight it. She, Mirai, and Kat piled into the capsule plane, with the three-year-old Trunks holding Kat's hand.
"Kat's going to do great!" the little boy proclaimed.
Kat smiled at him, and behind her she heard Mirai grumble, "I can't believe I'm not rooting for myself." She giggled lightly.
They flew towards the tournament, and all three half Saiyans stared at Battle Island in awe when they approached. "That's so cool!" Kat breathed.
"Where do you think all of the fighting is going to take place?" Mirai wondered.
"We'll find out soon, don't worry," Bulma replied with a smile as she watched the eager kids.
Bulma landed her plane, and once they were outside it, she capsulized it and put it in her purse before following the three kids. Both Kat and Trunks had taken off, with Mirai after them, calling after them to slow down and wait for the blue haired woman. Thankfully, she caught up with them at a map showing them where registration was.
"I can't wait!" Kat exclaimed as they walked to the booth. "I'm totally winning today!"
"What exactly are you going to do with 100 million zeni?" Bulma chuckled.
"Give some of it to 18 and Chi-Chi, and maybe 17 as well," she stated. "It's not like I have any actual use for it."
"Maybe we can go on vacation if you win, Trunks!" Bulma squealed. Mirai sighed.
They registered and learned the rules of the tournament: on each of the eight stages, fighters had to fight each other in a free style battle royal, and participants were disqualified if they fainted, surrendered, or fell into the water below; of course, killing and the use of weapons were prohibited. The last one on each stage moved to the quarter finals.
"Hey guys!" Gohan called out. The group of four looked towards him, Goten, and Chi-Chi, who was also with Krillin, Master Roshi, and Oolong. They smiled at the other group and met up with them. "Good to see you got here. Did you register?"
"Yep!" Kat reported. "Do you know if Tien and Yamcha registered?"
"Yeah. I don't know where they went, though. Oh, and Piccolo's here, too!"
Krillin jumped. "Wait, you never said you'd invite Piccolo!" he cried. Everyone laughed.
"Hey Kat, wanna make a bet?" Gohan offered.
"Gohan, you can't do that! That's delinquent behavior!" Chi-Chi scolded.
"Sure! Name the stakes!" Kat accepted, ignoring her friend's mom.
"Don't encourage him, Kat! Why are you setting a bad example for my son?!"
Chi-Chi continued to be ignored. "It can't be how many we beat, since we all have to fight the same amount of people," Kat reminded.
He grinned. "True, which is why it'll be how fast we can beat them," he explained.
"Okay, you're on!" the girl accepted. "When it comes to quickness, there's no one who can beat me! And no transformations, either."
"I wouldn't need to be Super Saiyan to beat you," Gohan promised. "And winner decides the prize." He grinned even wider. "I already have something in mind."
Kat smirked. "Too bad you won't be winning," she replied.
"Are you two even listening to me?!" Chi-Chi shrieked.
Once again, the preteens ignored her.
Soon the participants - all 200 of them - were called to the rings, and Chiaotzu scrambled the order so that the Z Warriors didn't have to fight each other. As soon as she stepped into her ring, Kat was met with snickers and taunts for being young and a girl, and she sighed.
"Men," she muttered in annoyance. The bell rang for the tournament to start, and she immediately punched one of her opponents so far he instantly fell into the water below. The other fighters stared at her, and she grinned evilly. "So..." She cracked her knuckles. "Who's next?"
Gohan, having seen his friend's stunt, sighed but chuckled. "Shouldn't be surprised," he told himself. He ducked out of the way of a kick before returning one of his own and knocking the man unconscious. Gohan chuckled nervously. "Uh, whoops, didn't mean to kick that hard."
All of the Z Warriors passed the preliminaries with flying colors... Well, all expect Yamcha. The poor man had given up because of the difference in power between him and his friends and ended up falling off the tower he had been lying on and into the ocean. It was pretty close to who was faster, but Gohan ended up winning by mere seconds. Kat pouted.
"Man, and I really wanted some takoyaki," she grumbled when they met up at an overlook after Gohan easily won his quarter final match.
"Well, you can still get some," Gohan pointed out with a grin.
"The point was for you to buy them," Kat replied. "As if it isn't bad enough that I have to fight some lame sumo guy, now I have to do what you want." She sighed. "Alright, what do you want?"
"After the tournament," he revealed. The half-breed poked her nose, making her frown and glare in annoyance. "Don't want you distracted while you fight that lame sumo guy and the semifinals." He chuckled childishly. "You're going to need all the concentration you can get with me and Trunks there."
Kat stuck out her tongue. "You're a terrible friend." Gohan just laughed. To distract herself, Kat looked around and noticed the stage was all set. "Hey look, it's Tien and Mirai!"
"Come on, Trunks, you can do it!" Gohan cheered.
They watched the short but exciting match between the triclops and the half Saiyan, and predictably Mirai won. Right after them was Piccolo and Krillin, and there was no real doubt Piccolo would win. But, being bored with the tournament, Piccolo gave Krillin the win and left, leaving everyone speechless. "See? He and Vegeta are killjoys," Kat repeated. "I don't see why Vegeta was so offended by that."
"I still can't believe he didn't come at all," her friend commented.
The half-breed female slumped her shoulders. "Maybe I didn't do as good of a job convincing him as I thought," she muttered.
"Hey, it's not like he lost all spirit," Gohan assured. "He's training you, right? Don't beat yourself up."
"It's just... For whatever reason, I feel like he's going easier on me now," Kat stated. "I mean, when we trained my tail he was strict, but once I got comfortable it's like he just stopped putting in the effort. It was the same before we discovered my tail, too."
"Maybe something's on his mind," the black haired boy hypothesized. "I wouldn't worry about it, alright?"
She nodded, and then she noticed the announcer was saying her match was up. "Well, I'm off to get my spot in the top 4," she said.
"Good luck!" Gohan called out as she left, even though they both knew she wouldn't need it.
...
Weuce blinked as she watched the TV, and then she looked back at her fellow card players. "Hey Goku, there's a girl who's pretty much like your friends," she noted.
Goku peeked out from behind his hand. "Really?" he questioned.
"Yeah, apparently she lifted the heaviest sumo wrestler in the world with just one hand with ease and then threw him into the ocean," she informed. "I don't know how she did it, but she's strong like all of those guys. They all moved on to the semifinals, by the way."
"Yep, it's Trunks, Krillin, Gohan, and that girl all in the semifinals," King Kai stated.
"Really?!" Now Goku was excited. "That's my boy!" He looked at the screen while he reached for Bubbles' hand, not paying attention to which card he was choosing. "Kat, huh? You know, she looks really familiar."
The woman watched Bubbles' sly face as Goku took one of the cards with a sly grin of her own. "How so?" Weuce asked.
"Dunno, I'd probably have to look a- ah! No, not the Joker!" the Saiyan cried. Weuce and Bubbles snickered. "Weuce, you jerk, you knew I was going to pull that card, didn't you?"
"Hehe, maybe~," she sang.
"Why didn't you tell me?!"
"And ruin any chance I have to win? No way, Mr. Hero! Although too bad you spilled out your secret; no one's gonna pull from your hand now!" Goku pouted as Bubbles and Gregory cheered.
Then there was a sudden chill that ran down Goku's spine. He looked out into the yellow and pink clouds. "What... What is this?" he muttered.
"Goku? Is something wrong?" his dead companion inquired.
"I don't know, it's just this-"
"Ugh, again with the feeling," Weuce complained. "What is it already?"
He frowned. "If I say I don't know, I don't know," he pointed out. Weuce sighed.
"Hey guys, the semifinals are going to start against those 'aliens'," King Kai announced with a little chuckle. "Wanna watch?"
"Tell me when something interesting happens," the woman replied in a bored and annoyed tone, still miffed about Goku's undecided feelings.
The man himself, meanwhile, wasn't really paying attention anymore, wondering exactly what made him feel the way he was.