Chapter Twenty-Four
Goten VS Trunks
xxxx
"ARE YOU READY?!"
The buzz of excitement around the arena hadn't worn thin by any means, as thirty-five children ranging from ages six to fifteen lined up on the edge of the platform.
Gohan could hear his mother and Bulma cheering loudly as they could sight of the young halfling's. Goten waved a little sheepishly to the audience, whilst Trunks stayed cool and collected, sizing up his opponents out of the corner of his eye.
"The same rules apply here as in the Adult Division folks, so if a competitor gives up, lands outside of the ring, is knocked down for ten counts or looses consciousness will loose it all! Similarly, if another fighter enters the ring while a match is taking place, they will be disqualified!"
"Ah, same old same old," said Tien, "it hasn't changed that much."
"The rings a lot bigger than last time though," Gohan heard his father pipe up.
Piccolo's lips twitched, "Good, we'll need it."
The tournament began just as Gohan had expected it to, boring as balls.
Most of the young fighter's gave up after ten seconds, one even cried loudly when his opponent hit him in the face, and Gohan guessed him to have been at least twelve. The teenager glanced down at Gokuto, who was poking his messy head through the gap in the barriers, still confined by his safety straps, he couldn't help but think the toddler could hold his own better than most of the older kids. And that was just by his temper alone.
Fortunately for the halfling, his boredom was short lived as the announcer called, "Next up we have eight year old Trunks, verses fifteen year old Idasa!"
"Yeah go Trunks!" Gohan called, cupping his hands over his mouth as the lavender haired boy came into view.
"Twunks! Twunks!" Gokuto mimicked jumping around in his buggy as soon as he spotted his older friend.
Trunks' opponent was a tall lanky teen, with his bright blonde hair chopped into an unflattering mullet. He wore bandages around his wrists and calves, with a dirty brown pair of shorts hanging to his knees. His scowling features were a sharp contrast to Trunks' calm ones. The little prince's cool blue eyes all but scanned the arena, not even bothering to look at the other boy.
"Yay! Show him what you've got Trunks!" Bulma cried, waving her arms in the air almost frantically.
"Do your best!" Krillin called, before grimacing slightly, "Er actually, Trunks' best might hurt someone… I mean uh, do alright mate!"
Gohan shook his head in amusement, before his ears were promptly offended by a short stocky woman standing a few feet away.
"GO IDASA! KNOCK THAT LITTLE PUNK OUT! YEAHHH!"
The woman had awful permed hair, which was dyed to a most unnatural shade of red. Her tight crimson dress clung to her bulging hips and waist, a pearl neckless protruding from underneath her many chins.
The gang looked at her curiously, as she gave them a smug look, "Your kid's got nothing on my big strong Idasa, he ain't got no chance."
"Ugh, karate mums," Chi-Chi shook her head in disapproval, before shouting her own appreciation for Trunks.
Gohan instinctively moved a little closer to Gokuto, pre-empting a cat fight that he did not want to get in the middle of.
DONG.
"LET'S GOOOOO!" Mr Alonso's voice carried over the stands, as Idasa slipped into fighting stance.
Though Trunks did not move.
Gohan caught the flicker of the boy's pupils as he stared at his opponent. The young saiyan smirked, he was checking for any openings in his stance, of which Gohan could see several.
"Oh, I wish they would have paired Idasa up with someone bigger," Idasa's mother cooed, "This won't even warm my boy up!"
The teenager frowned, good Kami this women was annoying, and he could tell that Bulma was just about ready to wallop her, of which he wouldn't have the heart to stop her from doing so.
Gohan looked back towards the arena, where Idasa was saying something to Trunks, leering right over his head. The eight year old barely squared up to the boy's waist, yet looked unfazed by the teen's jests.
"Huh? You gonna come at me or what you little shrimp?!" Gohan heard Idasa shout angrily.
Trunks all but raised an eyebrow, before he slunk to the floor, pushing out his leg so that it swung underneath the boy's ankles, causing him to drop to the ground with an audible thud. Not a second more did the halfling raise the offending leg again, kicking Idasa forcefully in the ribcage and sending him flying high into the air.
The audience gasped in shock, as Trunks began to walk away, and no sooner did the young saiyan step off the platform did Idasa come crashing back down on the titles - unconscious.
"This boy is out cold!" Alonso confirmed, motioning some nearby tournament officials to bring over a stretcher, "Trunks wins!"
"Yay! Twunks! Twunks!" Gokuto squealed happily as the crowd erupted into cheers for the winner.
The teenager grinned, before glancing over to Idasa's mother, who looked as though she was about ready to pull her hair out. Bulma and Chi-Chi sat looking incredibly smug, whilst the rest of the gang looked rather bored.
"I guess we won't see much action until Goten and Trunks fight," his father said in disappointment, coming up to lean against the railings beside him.
"Oh you'll see action alright," smirked Vegeta, "The action of my son pummelling your's into the ground."
After a few more rounds of sitting watching children ineffectively cry at each other, with only a few actually landing a punch, Gokuto was getting increasingly frustrated, something that Gohan did not want to deal with right now.
"'Kuto sit still," he said gently, as the toddler continued to fidget.
"No!" Gokuto whined, struggling against the belt that held him, causing the teen to sigh. He couldn't help but feel sorry for him, even he was getting annoyed sitting in the summer heat with nothing to do.
"Gokuto, come on," the teenager cooed, "It won't be long now, Goten's going to be fighting soon."
This seemed to settle the boy for a while, as he stopped wiggling, his emerald eyes suddenly fixed towards the podium, although he still pouted.
Gohan sighed in relief, as the announcer called his brother's name.
"And next up we have six year old Goten, against fourteen year old Ekosa!"
"WOO! GO EKOSA! RIP THAT TINY KID LIMB FROM LIMB!"
Gohan rolled his eyes, just how many children did this obnoxious woman have?
"Come on Goten!" his father called happily as the young boy emerged along with his opponent.
Goten looked incredibly nervous, his obsidian eyes darting quickly around the stadium as the brown haired Ekosa smirked down at him.
"You can do it Goten!" Gohan yelled as loudly as he could, hoping the boy could hear him.
"Pfft, I doubt it," the woman next to them remarked snidely, "My boy's going to squash that half-pint like a little flea."
"Say, wasn't that my little boy that knocked out your big strong son with one tiny kick?" Bulma retorted, smirking as the woman fumed.
"Your kid just got lucky lady!" she growled back.
The halfling snorted as the match began, yet all Ekosa managed to do was tire himself out by running circles around Goten, lashing out now and again with a badly aimed jab, which the six year old was able to block effortlessly with his finger.
In less than a minute, it was over.
Goten shrugged in dismay before striking the older boy in the chin. Ekosa was stunned, his eyes glazing over as he joined his brother in a similar state of unconsciousness.
"Woohoo! Yeah alright Goten!" Goku cheered loudly, as Goten bowed respectfully towards the crowd, before skipping off to join Trunks behind the arena.
"What was that you were saying?" Bulma grinned wickedly, as Ekosa's mother screamed in anguish.
"That's it! You're going to get it! I'm going to -"
WAM.
Gohan blinked, as the large woman toppled to the floor, curtesy of his mother's fist.
"Come on, who do you think taught him?" Chi-Chi said smugly, dusting off her palms as the gang looked towards her in awe.
"What?" asked Gohan, tearing his eyes away from the scene as he felt his father's eyes upon him.
"I just thought you might have taught him, mostly, " said Goku awkwardly, glancing between his triumphant wife and the arena, "Huh, I thought I recognised that right hook."
xxxx
"And here we have it folks, the final round!"
Gohan quickly stood up from where he was sitting, he had spent the last half an hour having his tail being chewed on by a restless Gokuto. He couldn't help but zone out himself as Goten and Trunks effortlessly won their own respective matches, securing their place against each other in the final bout.
"'Kuto no," said Gohan, pulling his tail away from the boy as he made a grab for it again.
The fur was already sodden enough as it was. The toddler's eyes watered as the furry appendage moved out of reach and tucked itself around Gohan's waist.
"Don't be sad kiddo. Look, Goten and Trunks are up!" he offered, pointing towards the arena, where they we're already standing opposite one another on the platform.
Both of them had a fierce look in their eyes as Mr Alonso introduced them, and it scarily reminded Gohan of his father and Vegeta's face off when the Saiyan's first came to Earth.
"These two young warriors have worked their way up to the final round, and that's not surprising seen as they're best friends!" Alonso informed, "They usually train together in the woods, but now they've moved to a different stage, The World Martial Arts Stadium! Wow! Amazing! Let's hear it for Trunks and Goten!"
The Z-gang erupted into cheers, his mother and Bulma going crazy. But they weren't the only ones that were cheering them on.
"Yeah lay it on him Trunks!" came a voice from the crowd.
"Goten! Goten!" came another.
Gohan grinned, looks like they had some fan's already.
"Fighters please take your positions!"
At the announcers voice, the young halfling's slipped into their respective stances.
Trunks', Gohan could tell, was mostly reminiscent of Vegeta's, strong, offensive and pointed as his eyes bore into his opponents. Goten, on the other hand, had a rather unusual style, their mother's regal posture with Gohan's low defence shining through. Both halfling's looked serious, the tension radiated from the arena and into the stands. They were both going for the win.
DONG.
No sooner had the bell rung, did Goten and Trunks leap at each other. A sonic boom cut through the stadium as they blocked one another's attack. Their forearms were locked together, their teeth gritted as they struggled to push the other backwards.
Gohan was glad to see that they had kept their power levels low, although it wasn't suppressed by any means. He could feel that Trunks' was a little higher than his brother's, although with Goten's strength they looked to be evenly matched.
With a low grunt, Trunks broke through the hold, pushing his friend back on his heels as he aimed a series of punches and kicks to Goten's upper body. The younger boy blocked each attack, crouching his knees in order to aim a jab at his elder's stomach.
Trunks parried the punch, spinning fluidly in the air to create a distance between them. It seemed Goten had caught onto what the young prince was up to, and flipped backwards to the edge of the ring, where both of them used their toes to push off from the tiles and careen towards each other with the speed and agility of a sparrow.
They met in midair, trading blows immediately. Their speed increased as their knuckles brushed together, Gohan could see his brother stick his tongue to the side of his mouth in concentration.
Trunks span, a kick awaiting Goten's head which the younger saiyan quickly dodged, the bangs of his hair flying upwards as he swooped underneath Trunks. But the little prince didn't let the boy get away that easily, and quickly matched his drop in the air before continuing his barrage of punches, pushing him back.
"Come on Goten!" Gohan cried, "Don't get distracted, find an opening!"
At his brother's words, Goten's eyes hardened, grasping Trunks by the elbow and pulling the boy closer, bringing up his knee and embedding it sharply in his gut.
Trunks quickly recovered from the hit, using Goten's knee for momentum as he spun to his side, a well aimed kick suddenly catching the younger boy off guard as it came crashing into his ribs.
Goten growled, his obsidian eyes focussed as he flung himself towards his opponent once more. Yet the boy's following punch hit nothing but air, as Trunks swiftly phased out, appearing above Goten before his boot connected with the boy's jaw.
Goten's head jolted from the force, but he soon regained his composure, a loud crack echoing over the stadium as Trunk's cheekbone met his outstretched fist. The younger boy phased out, as Trunks' retaliated, his elbow missing Goten's nose by a millisecond.
A shocked cry escaped the crowd, frozen in awe, when Goten reappeared, striking Trunks' in the back and causing him to fall forwards. But the older boy didn't let up, instead swiftly backflipped over his younger and knocked him out of the sky with a hammer fist to the skull.
Goten cried out, as he was sent toppling to the ground, but managed to bring himself to a halt mere inches off the grass. The young halfling gritted his teeth, elevating his ki to fire himself towards his best friend, only for his attack to be blocked by his elder.
To the untrained eye, the halfling's were moving incredibly fast. But Gohan could see that they were holding back a little. They were trying to be technical, using their minds as well as their strength.
The two boy's knew each other like the back of their hand, and that included their moves. They had to be clever in order to gain the upper hand, and the teenager was actually getting excited watching them, the familiar thrill of the fight causing his blood to pump a little quicker around his veins.
BOOM.
The stadium shuddered by the force of the hit, as the two halfling's met each other in the air once more, their fists cracking one another simultaneously across the jaw. The small warriors backed off, landing effortlessly at opposite ends of the podium, their deep frowns dissipating as identical, cheerful grins replaced them.
"Wow they're really something aren't they?" he heard his father chuckle, "Just look at them go!"
Vegeta grunted in approval from behind them, as the stunned silence from the arena was soon broken by an all out cheer.
The audience were loving every second, it had been a long time since they had seen fighting of this standard.
"HA!" Trunks shouted suddenly, aiming a small ball of ki into his opponents face.
Distracted for a second, Goten coughed and spluttered, allowing the purple haired prince to deliver a crushing blow to his ribcage.
He span wildly in the air, before managing to catch himself, glaring daggers at his friend.
"No fair!" Gohan heard the boy shout, "Gohan said we had to be careful!"
"He was referring to us transforming," Trunks smirked, "He didn't say anything about Ki blasts."
Gohan's eyes widened. He was right, he hadn't, and all of a sudden wished he had have done.
"Ah cool!" chimed Goten, an enormous grin spreading across his features, "Then you won't mind if I do this!"
Goten crouched into a deep stance, cupping his hands to his side in one fluid motion.
Trunks laughed, "Let me guess, Gohan taught you that?"
The boy nodded before reciting a familiar chant; "Ka…meh…ha…meh…"
"Wait," Trunks quirked, "Did he teach you how to control it?"
"HAAAAAAA!"
"Goten no!" Gohan yelped, as blue energy erupted from his brother's palms, thrusting them outwards towards his opponent.
Trunks side stepped the blast easily, as it fired past him, missing the roof of the temple by inches. Yet the heat from the Kamehameha had singed the thatched roof, causing a small torrent of smoke to rise from it.
The teenager face-palmed as he heard his brother let out a burst of nervous laughter.
"Whoops," said Goku, "Looks like he needs a little more practice on his control."
"I'm working on it!" Gohan snarled.
"Pwetty!" Gokuto laughed, as the crowd erupted into aghast whispers about using fireworks and disqualifications.
"Incredible!" The announcer called, once he had recovered from his shock, "This looks to be our most exciting Junior Final yet! What a match!"
"Well then," Trunks grinned, slipping into a flawless stance, "Looks like we can step it up a notch."
Goten's eyes glinted playfully, as he replicated Trunks' move, the crowd going wild once more.
xxxx
Son Gokuto was not unlike any other two year old boy.
He beheld the world he lived in with a curious disposition that more often than not got him into trouble. Having a quarter of saiyan blood running through his veins only exemplified his inquisitive outlook, and of course drew forward his primal instinct to join in on a fun looking fight.
He could feel the energies of Goten and Trunks dancing rhythmically around the stadium, his fluffy brown tail swishing side to side as his emerald eyes easily followed the young hybrids. He could sense Trunks' life force jump and dart over to the other side of the arena, his gaze already finding the halfling before his uncle did, resulting in Goten getting flung through the air from a sharp uppercut to the chin.
"Wow, I can barely keep up!" he heard Mister Krillin call from behind him.
Gokuto tried to look around him, but found that he could barely see over the sides of his pushchair. The belts that were holding him in his seat were starting to agitate the little boy, and although he could still feel the two fighters, he couldn't see them anymore as they sought to continue their fight above the clouds.
Bright flashes of light cascaded over the stadium, creating yellow and blue cracks of lightening in the sky. The crowd 'ooo'ed and 'ahhhh'd, as the energies moved swiftly across the sky.
With nothing to watch in front of him, Gokuto was getting increasingly bored. The toddler had never had to sit still for so long.
Slowly, he started to kick the barrier in front of him, the resounding noise echoing from the metal against his shoe.
Clang. Clang. Clang. Clang.
Clang. Clang.
Clang. Clang. Clang.
Clang. Clang. Clang.
This went on for about a minute, until his foot was firmly grabbed by his father.
"'Kuto, stop it," scolded Gohan, the young man's onyx eyes boring into his.
Gokuto pouted, bringing back his foot to rest upon the foot holds.
Satisfied, his father turned back around, casting his gaze up towards the sky.
Gokuto swished his tail in annoyance. He leaned forwards with difficulty, wondering if his father would let him play with Bulla or Marron, but the girl's were quite far down the barriers, clinging to their mother's as they watched the fight.
"Ice-cream! Get your ice-cream here!"
Gokuto's eyes lit up suddenly, as the vender shuffled through the stands. The youngest saiyan drooled, what better way to satisfy his boredom?
"Daddy? Daddy! Daddy!" he cried, as Gohan looked towards him, catching the greedy look in his eyes.
"No Gokuto, you just ate twelve hotdogs."
"But-But-" he pined, the vender passing right by.
"No kiddo, you'll spoil your dinner," his father replied gently, "Now be a good boy and watch Uncle Goten, okay?"
Gokuto let out an exasperated whine, flopping back in his pushchair in defeat.
"What's up with him son?" he heard his grandfather call.
Gohan sighed, "He gets like this sometimes, it's a long time for him to sit still for."
Understatement of the century.
Gokuto's eyes flickered over to the rest of the gang. Papa Ox was standing near Grandma, both of them cheering Goten on. Grandpa was stood next to Daddy and Mister Piccolo, all of whom were fixated on the fight.
Paying no attention to him.
"BAA BAA BLACK SHEEP HAVE YOU ANY WOOL?!" Gokuto sang loudly, several people seated in the row in front of him turning to look at him, "YES SIR, YES SIR, THREE BAGS FULL-"
"Someone shut that kid up!"
"I can't concentrate enough as it is!"
"-ONE FOR THE MASTER AND ONE FOR THE DAME, AND ONE FOR THE LITTLE BOY-"
"Gokuto be quiet!" his father hissed, kneeling down to his level as the small crowd shot daggers at the pair of them.
"I'm BORED Daddy," Gokuto whined, his volume level not subsiding, "Play with me!"
The teenager sighed heavily, "Daddy will play with you later, but only if you behave."
The toddler was silent, as his father began to rummage underneath the pram, gathering a few building blocks and placing them on his lap.
"Play with those for now."
Gokuto responded by chucking one at his father's head.
"Ow! Bloody hell 'Kuto!" Gohan swore, rubbing the red mark that was rapidly forming on his forehead.
A couple of women tutted in front of them, muttering something about 'teenage parents'.
Gohan frowned, eyeing his young son, "If you're going to throw them then I'll take them away."
Gokuto considered his options, before clutching the blocks protectively to his chest.
"Good," the young saiyan breathed, standing up and taking his place.
It took all of thirty seconds for the building blocks to be confiscated, when the boy had successfully knocked Piccolo's turban off his head.
Although Gohan was rather impressed with his aim, he wasn't so much so with the toddler himself. And after kicking down a metal railing, an ice-cream cone that 'mysteriously' landed on a bald man's head four rows in front, three badly pitched renditions of 'Let it go' from Disney's 'Frozen' and a thorough tongue lashing from his father later - Gokuto was still sat in his pushchair, his arms hugging himself as he silently fumed, and a dummy lodged in his mouth.
Gokuto looked sideways towards his father, whose hair was now even messier from the amount of times he had ran his hands through it out of frustration.
Trunks and Goten were back centre stage, beams of energy firing from their palms and they dived and dodged around one another. The crowd were more riled up than ever. The boy's were evenly matched, competing neck and neck for the title.
Gokuto's green orbs glistened as the light reflected in his eyes, Goten and Trunks looked like they were having a lot more fun than he was in the stuffy old stands.
Maybe they would let him join in if he pestered them enough?
Biting the teat of his dummy, he quickly made his decision, and started to wiggle frantically in his buggy, making tiny grunts as he struggled beneath his restraints.
"Oh Gokuto, what now?" His father sighed, reaching over and trying to get him to sit back up straight.
Gokuto's tail viciously hit him on the nose, as the young man attempted to control him. The toddler cried out in protest, kicking out his arms and legs in a mini tantrum.
"Ugh fine!" Gohan said in defeat, unbuckling the child swiftly from the chair and plonking him down beside him. "Just behave for Daddy, alright?"
Gokuto grinned in triumph behind his dummy, as his father let him go and turned his attention back to the stage. The little hybrid stayed put for a while, his emerald eyes darting around him trying to figure out the best escape route.
He raised an eyebrow, there were a set of stairs near the edge of the platform they stood on, but it looked like a very, very long way down. Someone would be sure to spot him.
But if he ran quickly enough, would they notice?
A loud crackle of energy rippled from the arena below as the crowd erupted into cheers, many spectators standing up on their feet and blocking his view.
"Woohoo! Alright boys! That's the way you do it!" Mister Yamcha cried.
Gokuto stared, everyone was distracted. This was his chance.
The little saiyan slowly backed away from his father, whose long tail was wagging in appreciation of the fight at hand. Instinctively, Gokuto dropped his energy to the pit of his stomach, something he always did when he tried to sneak extra of Grandma's cookies.
With one last glance at the Z-fighter's, who all had their backs turned towards him, he scurried off, jumping swiftly from the platform to the steps and making a dash for it.
If the Z-fighter's weren't so transfixed by the halfling's match, they may have noticed the small commotion coming from the stands below. But to the spectator's that were practically knocked flying by the sudden gust of wind that shot through the stands, they couldn't put a cause to it.
Banners and papers flew out their grasps as they were flung forwards by the sudden force, one unfortunate soul even lost his hotdog in the fray.
Gokuto stumbled a little as he reached the bottom step, using his tail to balance himself whilst he popped the rest of the hotdog into his mouth. He chewed loudly, letting out an almighty belch as he looked back towards the stands.
His eyes widened, he hadn't realised he had been so high up. He couldn't even see his father in amongst the sea of spectators now.
The youngest saiyan stuck his dummy back into his mouth with a loud pop, before he looked wildly around him to see if he had been caught. But only a few men dressed in orange and purple tournament robes lined the barricades surrounding the platform.
Gokuto grinned, they wouldn't be so hard to get past.
Speaking of the platform, Gokuto averted his gaze to Goten and Trunks and let out an excitable gasp. He had never seen them play fight like this before! Their gi's were soiled with dirt and were torn in places, Goten was even sporting a nasty looking purple bruise on his cheek, whilst Trunks' lip was swollen and bloodied.
Their eyes were wild and feral, their limbs blurring in motion as they lifted off the ground once more.
Gokuto's tail wagged in anticipation, a funny feeling stirring at the pit of his stomach. His heart pounded a little faster, the metallic smell of blood mixed with a hint of sweat tickled his nostrils.
"Go'en! Twun's!" he called from behind his dummy, waving frantically from the sidelines.
But his two friends couldn't hear him, too immersed in their match, their senses already flooded by the constant roar of the crowd.
Gokuto frowned, he would have to get closer for them to notice him.
As he was about to make his way to the platform, a soft, warm hand was placed on his shoulder. Gokuto whirled around quickly, thinking he had been caught by his grandmother.
"Little boy, are you lost?" A young woman asked, who was certainly not Grandma Chi-Chi. She had a pretty, heart-shaped face that was framed with long raven hair. Her large sapphire eyes were narrowed in concern as she knelt beside him. "What's your name kid?"
Gokuto took out his dummy slowly, and bit his lip, "My Daddy says I'm not supposed to talk to strangers."
She laughed softly, smiling at him, "Well your Daddy is right there. But I'm trying to help, my name's Videl," she said, offering an outstretched hand.
Gokuto shook it awkwardly, "Hi."
"Hi," she grinned, releasing him, "So what do you say I help you find your Dad huh? I bet he's worried about you."
The toddler vigorously shook his head, causing the girl to frown, "Nuh uh, I'm bored, I'm going to play!"
Videl broke out into another smile, "Well you can't play here kiddo, there's a very important match going on with those big kids there, see?"
Gokuto looked to where she was pointing, and let out an impatient huff, "I know that. Goten and Twunks won't mind though, they let me play with them all the time!"
Videl gave him a curious stare, "You know those boys?"
"Yep!" He replied, his tail wagging behind him happily, "They're my bestest best fwiends in the whole wide world! Well, Bulla and Mawon too but they're girls and Twunks says that girl's are smelly and doesn't ask them to play wit' us…"
The young woman's eyes suddenly widened, as the boy babbled away, her gaze fixated on his extra limb.
"… I've gotsta go now lady, but I can ask Twunks if you can come and play wit' us later!" Gokuto exclaimed, before slipping out of her grasp and making a break for it across the grass.
"Wait!" Videl cried in panic, "Kid, come back!"
The fight was even more spectacular up close. Gokuto could feel the pulsating waves of energy wash over him as shock wave after shock wave rippled across the grass. His fringe blew back from the force, although he remained upright, the wind brushing through his ebony locks.
Trunks suddenly appeared above Goten, delivering a sharp elbow to his spine and sending him crashing to the tiles. But the six year old only dropped to one knee, his one hand outstretched to steady himself, leaving small cracks in the marble tiles.
Gokuto bounded up to the side of the ring in awe, as Goten pushed off from the ground, cutting through the air like a speeding bullet.
THWACK.
His head collided with his opponents, causing Trunks to let out a growl of pain. His eyes shut together tightly, as Goten continued in his onslaught, pounding him in the abdomen so that he coughed up a wad of mucous.
Trunks cried out in frustration, raising his Ki and blowing the younger boy away from him in an explosive wave.
"That's it!" yelled Trunks, "Have some of this Goten!"
A bright golden light lit up Gokuto's freckled features, as the older boy outstretched his arms to his sides, a glowing ball of energy growing rapidly in each palm.
Goten's eyes widened, quickly jumping into position, a blue orb erupting in his cupped hands.
Gokuto could feel their energies skyrocket from the amount of Ki they poured into their awaiting blasts.
With excitement running through his veins he jumped up, scrambling with some difficulty up onto the platform, "Goten! Twunks! Can I play?"
"HAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!"
The toddler's words were lost on them as they released their attacks. Gold met blue in a blazing swirl of wild energy. A series of desperate shouts reached Gokuto's ears, but he was too transfixed by the power that tingled his senses. It seemed to resonate with every fibre of his being, his dark pupils drinking in the shower of light, the explosion of power warming his insides.
He felt as though something was calling to him, urging him to walk forwards, but it was mixed up with a strangled cry from behind.
He suddenly felt his father's Ki spike from the stands above, as Goten and Trunks continued to overpower each other. Sharp, hot beams started to escape the main blast, heading towards the toddler as it collapsed inwards on itself.
It was raining down like hot fire, scorching the tiles and parts of the grass surrounding the stage. Gokuto could feel the heat prickling his skin, but he couldn't move.
A sharp pain rippled across his skull as the tournament arena started to fade and the delighted cheers of the crowd gradually turned into screams.
Fuchsia beams of energy rained from the atmosphere of a long dead planet. How many years he had been fighting, he didn't know, but it felt like an eternity.
He suddenly stepped aside as a crackling beam of energy shot past him.
Ha, the monster would have to try better than that.
He was used to the screams, anguished, frightened and bloodcurdling. They never stopped. Yet he couldn't tell if he was really hearing them, or whether he had finally gone mad.
He was told long ago that he would become a legend. All he had to to was find his muse, his reason, his trigger.
The wind created from another explosion ruffled past his unruly hair. He spat viciously on the ground, his tail thrashing wildly as he felt more of them die.
Raising his head, he could feel the monster coming. The unmistakable sound of his manic laughter rushing through the ever darkening skies and resonating through his ear drums.
This time he was prepared, his race were behind him. Slowly, he drew up his palms as the beast opened his mouth, sending another great sphere of energy hurtling towards him.
xxxx
"Gohan?"
"Yeah?"
"Where's Gokuto?"
Gohan looked up from where he was watching his brother fight to meet his father's confused eyes.
"What do you mean?" the teenager frowned, "He's right-"
Gohan stopped short, staring at the spot where his son had been no more than a minute earlier. Blinking rapidly, the halfling looked around him; behind the pram, in front of him, down the barricade - but nothing.
Shit.
The teenager's stomach plummeted, he couldn't sense him anywhere.
How could a little boy just vanish? He had literally just looked down to see Gokuto grinning at him, his little tail wagging as his temper tantrum quickly diminished.
Panic started to rise in his chest, as his father gave him a dumbfounded expression - he couldn't sense him either.
"Gohan, calm down," Goku assured, "He can't have gotten far."
Calm down?! Calm down?! Gohan thought, his onyx eyes darting around the arena. How could he possibly calm down when his son was effectively missing? He had never wanted to hit his father so hard in his life. And that was saying something.
"Kid, what's wrong?" came Piccolo's concerned tone, catching onto his pupil's distraught demeanour.
"Gokuto's gone!" exclaimed Gohan, causing several of the gang to look at him in alarm.
The teenager started to pull at his hair, pacing behind the barricade, "I just saw him! I took him out the pushchair because he was playing up, and now- I can't sense him Piccolo!"
The Namekian's eyes hardened, and Gohan instantly knew what he was thinking. With shifty characters like Shin and Kibito hanging around, there's no telling what might have happened.
The young saiyan shook his head, no, it wouldn't do well to think about the possibilities. But how did the toddler manage to slip under their grasp when he was standing right next to the most powerful fighter's in the world? Gohan gritted his teeth in anger, who would dare to even attempt to steal a child that well protected?
"We'll go look for him," Krillin shouted over the cheers of the crowd, the news spreading rapidly between the gang.
He nodded, as he watched Krillin and Yamcha disappear to the other side of the arena. Puar and Oolong had already shape shifted, and were currently swooping over the stands disguised as a couple of seagulls.
"I told your mum to stay here incase he finds his way back," said his father, hurrying back over to him, "Come on, let's look this way."
The teenager followed quickly, running in between the stands as fast as he could, stretching out his senses now and again to try and pick up Gokuto's Ki.
"Watch it punk!" a gruff man called, as he was almost knocked flying by the hybrid.
Gohan ignored him as he jumped in between benches, but still found no sign of his missing son.
He felt sick, the fact that he had spent the last half an hour scolding the boy, only then to have him run off - or worse, made his heart ache. What he wouldn't give to see those bright emerald green eyes again.
Luckily for Gohan he didn't have to wait long.
"HAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!"
The young saiyan looked up, as Trunks and Goten illuminated the stands with their energy attacks.
Gohan sighed, he really should have told them to be more careful. It wasn't that pressing seen as there was a good gap between them and the spectators, the worst that could happen is that they accidentally singe the top of the roof again.
They were lucky that they had changed the distance from the audience to the stage, as judging from his mother's accounts from the old tournaments; anyone standing within five metres of an attack like that would be fried.
"Put on your sunglasses folks, this looks like it's going be a - Oh! My word!" The announcer's tone suddenly drew into one of panic, his voice echoing around the stadium, "There's a little boy standing on the platform! Move kid! You'll get hit! Where are his parents?!"
Gohan's heart began to race, his head snapping to the centre of the arena.
Sure enough, there Gokuto stood, his eyes alight with the glow of the attack that created a fierce wind around him. Tournament officials standing a good distance away were blown off their feet by the force, whereas Gokuto stood still, his hair and tail whipping around behind him.
The teenager swore loudly, as the connected beams quivered, sending loose particles of energy streaming to the ground.
But to his surprise, and utter horror, Gokuto didn't budge. Instead, the boy walked towards the destructive waves, his palms outstretched as if he was trying to catch a hold of them.
He didn't care that he was more than a hundred feet up into the stands, nor that there were a lot of people that would surely see him fly into the stadium. His power spiked, as a white aura built around him and he shot from the benches towards the tournament stage, leaving more than a dozen bewildered spectators in his wake.
It seemed his father and Piccolo had a similar idea, as he could see their tiny specks grow bigger as they hurtled towards the boy.
But suddenly, a sharp cry escaped the oblivious Trunks and Goten as they stopped in their struggle, and let go of the blast.
Gohan's blood ran cold.
The boys were trained well enough to know that if they dispersed a stream of Ki at that distance, then it would simply crash into the ground, creating minimal damage.
That is, if there was no one else standing in it's path.
"GOKUTOOOOO!" Gohan roared, racing towards the small child as fast as he could.
But sadly, it was too late.
The blast connected, illuminating the entire stadium in a greenish hue as the colours of the attacks mingled into one. The teen's boots barely scraped the marble tiles of the platform before he was pushed backwards by the force.
Screams surrounded him, and tournament officials with stretchers and medical bags raced forwards as the light began to die down. He could feel his father, Piccolo and Vegeta arrive behind him. And he was positive they were thinking the same thing he was - where was the explosion?
When his vision began to recover from the brightness, his eyes widened to the size of saucers.
As where he expected to see the badly burned and critically injured form of his son, was Trunks and Goten's combined attack, still swirling with colour and pulsating with the halfling's energy. It was being held, suspended in mid-air by a very uninjured Gokuto, his green eyes glinting in the brilliant light.
Slowly, his stoic features contorted into ones of confusion, and small tears started to escape his eyes, cascading down his cheeks.
Gohan was frozen to the spot, as were Trunks and Goten, who had suddenly caught sight of the child.
His father was able to move his feet before anyone else, waving off the paramedics and picking up the sobbing boy, hugging him tightly to his chest before jumping lightly from the platform.
Immediately, the blast dropped to the ground, exploding in a shower of light.