Arc VII: The World Martial Arts Tournament

Chapter 36: Everyone's Here

Sunday 17th July Age 797

After months and months of arduous training, and solid commitment, Noca and friends were finally making their way to Papaya Island, down south. They were prepared to participate in the 30th World Martial Arts Tournament. An exciting competition that the whole world would witness. There were a lot of people travelling down to the south this time, so there were plans to use one of the Capsule houses to make sure everyone could fit. There would be a headcount upon arrival to make sure everyone was there.

Upon arrival at the island the group immediately headed to the Capsule house and put a message out to the rest of their friends to let them know where they would be. Everyone who had signed up for this tournament would get a chance to fight thanks to the new rules. The preliminary round coming back was a good idea. This meant that fighters who hadn't competed for a while had found the time and effort to train and come back for this event.

Noca, Pan, and Holline were all competing this time, again. Gohan, Goten and Trunks would all be competing. Of course, Vegeta was there. The big surprise from the main group was that Krillin was planning to fight. The whole thing with Freeza had given him some new confidence and he thought he would at least show up for the preliminaries.

While everyone was setting up at the Capsule house and choosing their rooms Noca, Pan and co. decided to hang out together up in one of the larger rooms. It was here that Noca made a decision.

"Pan, I think we should stay in separate rooms during the tournament," Noca suggested. Pan was surprised, as were their friends, but she smirked and nodded.

"Of course, we don't want any distractions, especially if we have to fight each other," Pan agreed. Noca looked up at her and smirked back. "So, I'll share with Bra."

Bra turned and looked to Pan with a pout.

"I can't even share with my boyfriend?" She questioned, in a little bit of a huff, but it was all in good fun. Noca looked to Dom and noticed he was going a little red.

"Dom and I will share a room," Noca suggested, patting his friend on the shoulder.

The group continued to hang out together, mainly because there wasn't anything that actually needed to be done for the rest of the day, the preliminaries didn't start until the following day. So, this was actually a rest day. Nobody wanted to be travelling and fighting on the same day. It was about Two in the afternoon when Holline received a phone-call. It was from her Mother. Her family had come to Papaya island to see her compete and wanted to meet up with her that afternoon.

"I didn't expect them to come along," Holline seemed to be quite nervous about it, but she shakes it off and looks to Noca. "You're coming with me, right?"

"Um…" Noca was taken by surprise, "I'm sure they want to spend some time with you, but if you don't want to go alone, I would suggest taking Kiera."

"Yeah," Pan agreed, "They haven't met her yet, right?"

Holline went a little red, as did Kiera. It didn't take long for the rest to realise why the two would be nervous about doing this together.

"You said your family knew, right?" Noca said, trying to get a read on Holline as she looked to the ground.

"They do… it's just, I don't really know what they think," Holline replied, she looked up at Kiera and smiled weakly. "It's not that I'm worried they'll be disappointed or anything, you guys understand, right?"

Noca smirked and sat next to Holline. He put his arm around her.

"I know your family, I'm basically a part of it," Noca said with a chuckle, "So, I know they're not going to judge any decision you make in life."

Holline nodded and stood up. She walked over to Kiera and put her hand out for the blonde to take.

"Come on, Kiera. I want you to meet my family," Holline stated, in a serious and formal manner.

"And hey, if you want, Pan and I can come along too," Noca said, standing up again. "I'm sure they'll be happy to see I'm still alive."

"Cool, that'll be good," the red-head said with a smile.

Noca, Holline and their significant others would go to meet with Holline's family while Bra and Dom would stay behind. They decided it would be best not to all go to what would really be a family thing for Holline. Noca was just there for moral support really, and he may as well take Pan with him so they can spend some time together too.

The group of four headed into the town, which was bubbling with anticipation. This tournament had got everyone in the mood, and despite the number of dangerous things that had happened at previous tournaments, everyone was still excited. It was an important tradition that would never die.

Holline had agreed to meet her family at the hotel they were planning to stay at, even though Holline planned to invite them to the Capsule house. It was Bra's suggestion. The red-head was extremely nervous for her family to meet Kiera and as much as Kiera wanted to support her girlfriend and tell her it would be ok, she was nervous too. Noca and Pan had to be the moral support for both of them.

As the group approached the hotel the nerves were definitely high within both girls. Pan and Noca could sense it, but they assured the girls that it would be fine. Their support was enough for them to keep on. They entered the lobby of the hotel and before they had even got a few feet inside Holline's name was already being called out. All four turned to see two people stand and walk over to them. There was a woman with dark red hair, similar to Holline's, but much darker. That was Holline's mother. The other person was Holline's grand-father. He had white hair and walked with a cane. He also had a bit of a hump. And a moustache.

"Mom, Grandpa!" Holline said with happiness, as she rushed to embrace them. "I'm so happy you two could come all the way here to cheer me on, but you didn't need to."

"Nonsense, young lady. We missed the last time you fought and we won't miss it this time," Her mother said before hugging her tightly again. "I've missed you."

"Mom… I can't breathe…" Holline struggled to break out of her mother's embrace, but subconsciously she didn't want to break free. She did get free eventually and chuckled with her mother.

"It's good to see my little grand-daughter, you've grown so much," Holline's grand-father said with a smile, "And you too, Noca."

It took Holline's mother a moment to notice, but she soon recognised Noca and was taken aback.

"Oh, my word, is that really you, Noca? You look so much older," Holline's mother said as she pulled Noca into a hug. "It really has been far too long."

"It's good to see you," Noca said as he hugged back, with a smile on his face. The hug broke and Noca motioned to Pan. "This is my girlfriend, Pan."

Pan said hello to Holline's mother and even got a hug too. It was just Kiera's turn now and suddenly she seemed to find a little confidence and stepped forward in a formal manner. She cleared her throat and held her hand out.

"Hello, I'm Kiera," She cleared her throat again, "Holline's girlfriend."

Holline's mother looked at Kiera's hand and up at the blonde. She smiled and some tears came to her eyes. She pulled Kiera into a hug and held her tight.

"It's so good to finally meet you. Holline has told me all about you," She pulled back and looked the blonde in the eyes. "There's no need to be so formal. You're a part of our family."

"Thank you…" Kiera said, tears coming to her eyes now. Both looked to Holline, who also had tears in her eyes and the three hugged one another. It seemed like it would last forever until Noca heard a recognisable voice.

"Who's going to hug me?" The voice said, confidently, and almost in a monotone and emotionless manner. Noca turned to see Android #17. "Hello, Noca."

"Wow, didn't expect to see you here," Noca shook #17's hand. They all said hello to one another again. Turns out #17 was competing in the tournament too. He was originally invited along with Holline's family, but he decided that he would take the time to have some fun and fight. It had been some time for him. He even said he had told #18 he would be there and would spend some time with them.

That's when Holline suggested them stay at the Capsule house. They agreed and that was settled, but Holline's mother wanted them to go out for a meal together. Holline and Kiera agreed to it, but Noca and Pan said they were planning to spend some time together, plus they should let the family have their time together. #17 would head to the Capsule house and see his sister and his recently married Niece. Before Noca and Pan planned to have some alone time, they went back to the house with #17.

The trio approached the Capsule house and spotted three more people standing outside the building. One of them was Krillin, and he appeared to be speaking with two travellers. They had big bags on their backs and looked like they had come a long way. One of the two strangers were bald, like Krillin (yes, he maintained the look). The other appeared to be a teenager. His hair was tied back, but it was shaved all along the sides, almost like it would be a Mohawk, if styled that way. They both wore the same logo. #17 seemed to make a slight sound of surprise as they approached the front of the building.

Krillin noticed them and looked past the two strangers over to the group. He began to wave, almost excitedly. That's when the two strangers turned to face the others and Noca noticed the tall bald man had a third eye in the middle of his forehead.

"#17! I'm so happy you're here, #18 and Marron are excited to see you," Krillin said, excitedly as he hugged his Brother-in-law. #17 did seem a little taken aback by this.

"Yeah, hey... bro?" #17 wasn't too sure what to say, he looked over to Noca who just smirked. Krillin broke the hug and pointed to the three-eyed man.

"You remember Tien, right?" Krillin asked. #17 nodded and smirked. He held out a hand and shook the man's hand, they greeted one another, although seemed wary of each other. Krillin then noticed Noca and Pan were still standing there. "Oh, of course, you haven't met. Noca, this is Tien. He used to fight alongside me, Goku and the group all the time, years ago."

Noca held out a hand to shake Tien's.

"Great to meet you," Noca said politely. Tien took Noca's hand.

"Likewise. And you are?" The three-eyed fighter asked, not really sure on who he was greeting.

"I'm Noca. Uh… Vegeta's cousin," Noca answered, smirking. Tien's brow furrowed and Noca remembered Vegeta's past. "It's a long story."

"I can imagine it is," Tien said and then turned to face Pan, he appeared to recognise her. "Wow, you must be Gohan's kid. You're definitely bigger than the last time I saw you."

"We've met?" Pan asked.

"A long time ago now, you were just a baby. You won't remember," Tien answered, smirking. "But I sense a great deal of power within both of you, you must have had some great training. I assume Gohan's been training you."

"Me, yes," Pan answered, "But Noca, well he has a long history of training."

Tien looked at Noca as he was shuffling a little, even chuckling.

"Well, I first trained with people in my village, not a lot though. Then #17 taught me for a little bit before I met Gohan, then I went and trained with Goku for a little bit… now I train with Vegeta all the time," Noca explained. Tien nodded, awkwardly and then turned to Krillin.

"I guess we have a strong young man here, then," Tien said, as he motioned to the teenager by his side. "This is my pupil, Torai."

"Nice to meet you," Torai said, bowing to Noca and Pan. Noca nodded to the young student. "I'm competing too."

This got Krillin's attention.

"Too? Tien, are you taking part?" Krillin asked his old friend. Tien looked down and nodded.

"Of course, I need to check out my student's progress, if I get that chance," He answered, "Plus it will be like reliving the old days."

Noca and Pan both realised that this was a conversation between old friends and decided they were going to head inside and leave them too it. They were getting hungry and also wanted to get in a little bit of light training with each other before the start of the tournament. They were planning to meditate together until dinner though.

The two of them asked for some privacy and that only spurned a few jokes from some of their friends and family, specifically Goten and Trunks, but the young couple just ignored the jokes and went about their meditation training like they had planned. They went to the room that Noca and Dom would be sharing and sat on the floor in front of each other. They crossed their legs and closed their eyes. Clearing their minds of all fears and concerns ahead of this tournament was a good idea. Neither of them wanted to dwell on the events of the last tournament. That had been a week to forget for many reasons.

Any thoughts were pushed from the minds of these two young fighters. They focussed on the only thing that mattered in this moment: their own inner peace. It was something they needed to channel if they could have true focus throughout the tournament. Any distractions would have an effect on both of them. In this moment, even though they had pushed thoughts and feelings from their minds, they were entwined. Their aura had become one and their energy was moulding together and thriving. They were both feeling the effects of each other's meditative states.

This could have had something to do with the fact they were in a relationship, or that they were both Saiyans, or maybe it was something else entirely. Whatever it was, a connection was visible within their mind's eye. A strong connection that mattered, a connection with intense power.

Something else intense… a Saiyan's hunger. Noca knew they were coming to the end of their meditation, it had been a couple of hours after all. Yes, a couple of hours. Noca opened his eyes, as did Pan, and they were brought back to the now. Noca smirked and stood up.

"Food time," He said with a childish grin on his face. Pan shook her head. He held a hand out to help her up. She took it and gave him a quick kiss on the lips. Noca blinked and smiled as she walked out of the room.

Dinner was great. It always was. Never a bad meal around these parts. Noca and Pan decided that they actually wanted to spend some time together that wasn't related to their training or meditation or anything like that. They wanted it to just be the two of them, chilling out together. So, they decided to go out for a walk in the town.

They just spent most of the time looking at the markets that had been set up in preparation for the tournament, taking a look at a lot of the Mr Satan merchandise, no matter how crappy it appeared to be. Considering they had their Saiyan appetites, they even tried some of the different and exotic food that was being served at some of the stalls. There was so much going on and it was crazy, but that was only part of the evening. Noca decided to take Pan to the nearby park. Somewhere they could go for a walk, in silence, away from the hectic crowds and crazy people. Just tranquillity.

The park wasn't big, but it was very nice. A nice narrow path that was almost hidden by the large trees. There was a little stream that ran through the park and it led into a larger opening of water, kind of like a lake, but much smaller. There was a bench looking over it though. Noca and Pan sat down at this bench and looked over the water. It was peaceful. The trees managed to block out quite a bit of the slowly setting sun. There was still some light shining through the gaps and it danced across the water.

Noca put his arm around Pan and she leaned into him, and they sat there, comfortably. They felt snuggled up and protected in each other's company. Pan closed her eyes as she lay her head on Noca. Noca looked down at his girlfriend and smiled to himself as he gently ran his fingers up and down her arm, just feeling her soft skin. This was comfort. This was peace. In that moment, Noca just pictured the kind of future that the two of them could have.

"I love you," Noca said, out of the blue. Pan reacted and looked up and her boyfriend. She smiled at him looking down at her. "I really do."

"I love you too," She replied, moving up and kissing him on the lips. It was only going to be a quick kiss, but both of them fell into the moment and the kiss lingered a little longer. They moved into it and found themselves enjoy it a bit too much. They broke the kiss and both instinctively looked around them to make sure they weren't being watched by anyone. They were in the clear, but both knew it wasn't right to be getting too into it in public. Sure, it had only been a kiss, but neither of them could deny they wanted more.

They looked at each other in silence for a minute or so and then Pan chuckled.

"No, we shouldn't," Pan said and turned her head away, looking over the water. "I think we should wait until after the tournament."

"Any reason why?" Noca asked.

"You can wait that long, right?" She replied, almost in a teasing manner. "Your instincts aren't that strong, are they?"

Pan was teasing him and Noca knew that. He just smirked and looked over the water.

"Of course, I can wait," He answered, before chuckling, "But can you?"

Pan hit him playfully and stood up, grabbing his hand and dragging him to his feet.

"Yes. I can. Now we should be heading back," Pan said as she continued to drag him along, but Noca just stopped, turning Pan around and pulling her towards him. He kissed her on the lips again, and it was almost as passionate as when they were sitting on the bench. They broke the kiss and looked each other in the eyes. Pan seemed a little flustered.

"Fine. After the tournament," Noca agreed. He was amused by how flustered that kiss had made her. She just hit him again, harder, actually causing Noca to wince a little, but he just laughed it off as they walked off up the path again. They knew it would be important to get an early night before the preliminaries the next day. They didn't know how long those fights might take. They better get their rest.

So, there it is. My first chapter in over 7 months! Sorry I have been away for so long, but life is is really busy. I've still been working hard at writing as much as I can though and I have quite a few chapters in reserve for regular uploads. But, uploads will no longer be weekly, they will be bi-weekly so that I can spread them out more.

I hope you enjoyed the start to this arc. Sure, there was no action, but the rest of it is coming! And I look forward to continuing uploads.

Drop a review if you feel like it!

Thanks for reading.

Next Time... Chapter 37: Old Friends and Loose Ends