Second Chances: The Life of Raditz Chapter 37, a dragon ball z fanfic

"Where's Piccolo? My dad? And uncle Raditz?"

Krillin, mimicking Gohan, sweeped over their surroundings with his black eyes. However, at the moment, nothing came into sight except for seemingly endless amounts of vast green water. In the center of it all, was a huge dome-shaped hole, a perfect indentation of Goku's Spirit Bomb, and, in said hole, water was flowing into it from every angle. For miles and perhaps even beyond that, not an island - which Namek seemed to contain a plethora of - was in sight. Whether or not it got destroyed as a result of the Spirit Bomb, like many other things did, or whether or not it was a result of the water itself, Krillin wasn't sure.

Unfortunately, that wasn't the only thing he wasn't sure about.

"I don't see them anywhere in sight." Krillin responded slowly, mentally hoping that everyone was okay. More than likely, everyone got separated. After all, they all had no choice but to do so in order to take cover. Then again, he did remember seeing them much closer to the Spirit Bomb than they were, so did they get caught up in the midst of it? Krillin shook his head. No, they were fine. If anything, they probably just needed to concentrate on their ki's a little harder. The former monk relayed just that to the younger Saiyan.

Though, after a minute or so:

"I still don't feel their ki's, Krillin." Gohan

By the tone in his voice and the expression alone on Gohan's face, it was more than evident that the half-Saiyan was rather worried. After all, if he put himself in his shoes; not aware of the location of his uncle, father, and friend, he could understand Gohan's perspective. He, on the other hand, wasn't all that worried. For one, he and Goku have been best friends since they were kids, and, as a result, he knew him like the back of his hand just about. Furthermore, in the past, Goku has always turned up and turned out okay in the end, so he had a feeling that this time wouldn't be any different.

On cue, Krillin felt a hand on his shoulder, shaking him to get his attention. Shifting his eyes over to Gohan, Krillin raised an eyebrow moments later when he suddenly gestured to the area before them with his head. Swiftly, he followed his line of sight; however, he had yet to see anything. And then, as if somehow hearing his thoughts, a green hand popped out of the water and the two immediately recognized it as Piccolo once he managed to pull himself onto the small island. For a minute, it seemed as if he was having a bit of trouble, as in struggling to pull himself up, but it was soon revealed why when he suddenly pulled out his other hand, revealing a pale hand.

"Alright!" Gohan exclaimed happily, balling his fists together in excitement and making a small pumping motion with them. Both Piccolo and his dad were okay; they made it. Even so, as if recalling that someone else was missing, Gohan's face fell immediately as if all of his excitement suddenly vanished - leaving just as quickly as it appeared. Krillin, noticing this and Gohan's shift in demeanor again, raised an eyebrow as he frowned. "Hey, Gohan, what's the matter?"

Gohan's shoulders sagged. "Uncle Raditz is - "

" - I'm fine." A voice interrupted from behind the duo, and the two immediately turned - more like whirled, in Gohan's case - around to face the long-haired Saiyan. He didn't appear to be carrying any noticeable injuries, so all in all, he was in good shape.

"Uncle Raditz!" Gohan exclaimed, wide eyes filled with excitement.

"Kid," Raditz greeted, unable to prevent the rare smile from tugging at his lips. He placed a hand atop of Gohan's hand, and ruffled it affectionately. Surprised, Gohan's eyes widened, seeing as this was the first show of affection (though, small) he has ever received from his uncle. Raditz, on the other hand, had this overwhelming feeling of relief. It was a pretty good feeling, and he was glad that Frieza was finally of no more. No longer would he be able to rule and force those under his command, no longer would he be a threat to anyone, and most of all, finally, he could attempt to put his past behind him. Granted, he was using it as a motivational means, but there was just some things he rather not recall. That aside, Raditz couldn't help but crack a smirk.

He did it, Vegeta.

He avenged our race just like you requested him to do.

Raditz, upon feeling a small hand grasp his own hand, jolted out of his thoughts and his smirk fell, for he was taken aback. Despite his surprise, though, he remained silent, not sure what to make of what was taking place.

"Come on! Let's go where the others are!" Gohan called out to Krillin, pulling Raditz along with him as he made his way over to his father and Piccolo. And, the minute they touched down on the ground, Gohan released Raditz's hand and rushed over to his father, "Dad! Piccolo!" He addressed with evident joy, throwing his arms around his exhausted father's neck upon reaching him, "you two are alright!"

Krillin chuckled happily at the sight. Not wanting to intrude on Gohan's and Goku's familial moment, he remained where he was; nevertheless, he was genuinely curious about his best friend's well-being. "How are you feeling, Goku?"

Goku, in response, gave Krillin a thumbs up with his free hand as he chuckled exhaustively, his other hand wrapped around his son; for he was returning his embrace. Eventually, the two pulled apart and Goku shifted his eyes over onto his son, sending him an apologetic smile, "Sorry to make you worry, son. You must have been pretty afraid, huh?"

The younger Saiyan was far too happy to be concerned with his past worries and fears. Everyone was fine, everyone survived and that alone, was more than enough reason to be overjoyed. "That's okay, daddy." Gohan dismissed, seated beside his father and somewhat supporting his weight for him. "Meanwhile, you were great out there!"

"Yeah!" Krillin agreed, recalling Goku's Spirit Bomb. "Your Spirit Bomb was huge - more like massive! Heck, I'm not sure if those words alone will be enough to describe just how big it was!"

Goku smiled exhaustively, shifting his attention onto his best friend. "That's because it was filled with energy from every living creature in the solar system." He elaborated, chuckling at their wide-eyed expressions.

Krillin, though, was quick to recover, sitting down as well and placing himself parallel to Goku, "Well, then," the former monk began, crossing his arms over his chest, "I guess we can all leave now and get back down to Earth. I honestly didn't think we'd get there." He admitted, and at their curious and taken aback expressions, he hurriedly set to finishing, "It's not like I didn't have faith in Goku or anything, I'm just...homesick." He revealed sheepishly, scratching the back of his head like Goku often did - it was a habit he picked up from him.

At his expense, laughter was shared, and Krillin didn't seem to mind. After all, he was laughing as well, and he was over all excited that everything worked out just fine. He honestly never thought he'd say this, but he really missed Master Roshi's perverted laughter whenever he was watching his 'tapes'. In other words, he was really just that homesick. Of course, he'd be certain to leave that little detail out. He could only imagine what oolong would say if he was to find out that he actually stated something like that. He wasn't sure if he'd ever live it down.

"Well, guys," Goku began, moving to stand up; however, he stumbled and it was evident that he was far too exhausted to support his own weight just yet. To Goku's surprise though, he felt his arm being pulled and placed around someone's shoulder. In response, his eyes widened and he quickly shifted his eyes over to Raditz, whom was the one responsible, and whom was now currently supporting his weight for him. Goku sent his older brother a smile, and Raditz's lips curled upwards slightly. Silently, he gave him a nod of thanks, before continuing, "it looks like its time to head back now. If we leave now, we can make it back in five days."

"Alright." Krillin agreed, chuckling at an ecstatic Gohan, whom was literally jumping for joy. "In that case, I say we better - " Krillin halted mid sentence, his eyes widening as he suddenly recalled something. The bald monk released a startled cry as his eyes widened, startling everyone around him. They were quick to divert their attention onto him, fearing the worst, "We forgot about Bulma!" Krillin informed. "What are we going to do?"

"Gee, Krillin," Goku began, closing his eyes as he released the breath he hadn't known he was holding in, "don't scare me like that! For a minute there, I thought you saw Frieza again."

And though Goku was the only one to address Krillin, Goku shared just what everyone else had thought.

"Sorry about that," Krillin apologized sheepishly, frowning moments later as he imagined what Bulma's reaction would be when she found out that they forgot about her. He continued, shuddering at the scenario he imagined; it wasn't pretty. "Maybe it's just me, but Bulma's worse than Frieza."

Silence.

And then, Gohan was the first to break that silence, laughing at Krillin's expense yet again. It wasn't too much longer before everyone joined in. At least until, Goku convulsed lightly, tensing as he released a pained grunt. "Aw, man. Don't make me laugh, Krillin; it hurts." He explained with a light smile, despite his obvious pain.

The atmosphere quickly shifted from light to serious in a matter of seconds after Goku's statement, Piccolo having taken the time to do a brief scan over their surroundings. "Well, it looks like we were too late to save Planet Namek. More than anything, I just hope that Guru and all of his loyal followers that were destroyed can rest in peace."

Gohan and Krillin shared a confused look.

Krillin was quick to recover; thus, the first to respond. "Wait a minute, Piccolo. How do you know about Guru?"

Though, before Piccolo could respond and answer his question, Krillin's eyes happened to land on something - rather, someone - behind the Namekian. He released a noise of surprise, before his eyes widened considerably in utter fear - a fear so grand that it had the monk literally convulsing.

Goku raised an eyebrow. "Krillin? What's the matter?"

However, Krillin was so caught up in his fear that he could hardly answer. So, seeing as the weren't going to get an answer out of Krillin anytime soon, everyone decided to follow his line of sight.

Frieza.

Everyone's expressions were quick to change upon seeing what it was that had Krillin so afraid; thus, their eyes were just as wide as Krillin's as they took in the tyrant. At the most, aside from his severed tail and a little blood, he seemed to be donning nothing more than scratches as far as damage went. How he survived the Spirit Bomb, they were uncertain; however, they had more important things to worry about. For one, Goku was exhausted and would be unable to go against Frieza again, and two, the tyrant was currently lifting up a hand and pointing a finger towards them with a heavy scowl.

He was pissed.

And, before anyone could even process what was happening, a laser-like, red attack was hurling straight for them - more specifically, Goku, whom's eyes widened. Raditz cursed loudly, quickly shifting his weight to the side and pulling Goku with him in the process. Despite his attempts, the laser-like attack still hit Goku, catching him in the chest.

"Kakarot!" Raditz called out in alarm, drowning out Gohan's and everyone else's call of his name. The long-haired Saiyan's eyes were wide as he caught his brother's slumped form, falling to a knee. Again, Raditz cursed. He didn't move fast enough! And if he would have attempted to jump upwards, there was a chance that the cue ball would have got hit instead.

And just why do you care?

Raditz ignored the voice in his head, his black eyes locked on his brother's closed lids. He was dead. Kakarot was dead. From behind him, he could hear his nephew's wails, and he felt anger began to course within him. Pissed, the older Saiyan, whom was convulsing with anger, snapped his eyes up onto Frieza, a heavy scowl on his features as he took in Frieza's features - which was full of amusement. The bastard was chuckling, laughing.

Though, it seemed as if Frieza wasn't quite finished yet.

"I must admit that your brother's Spirit Bomb packs quite the wallop," Frieza began, a smirk on his features as he continued, "it even managed to knock the air out of me. Looks like he won't be getting up any time soon, though...or should I say at all?"

Raditz set Goku's corpse down, shifting his eyes so that he could regard Piccolo and the others out of the corner of his eyes. "You three leave." Raditz ordered. "There's a ship not too far away from here that Kakarot and I used to get here. Find the blue-haired woman and get out of here while you still can; I'll handle Frieza."

It was a bold declaration, but the Saiyan was too livid to care.

"What?!" Gohan exclaimed with wide, teary eyes. "Uncle Raditz!" He protested. "There's no way I'm leaving you by yourself! I'm not going to let you handle Frieza by yourself!"

Raditz shifted his livid gaze onto his nephew, whom immediately flinched at his hard gaze. "Listen, kid; I didn't ask for any protests! I wasn't suggesting you go, I was ordering you go! There isn't much time, now don't make me tell you again!"

Frieza was quick to interject. "If you think I'm going to allow anyone to leave, you're sadly mistaken!" Frieza pointed his finger in their direction yet again, a sadistic smirk on his features. "After all, Raditz, you of all people should know me better than that!" And then, no sooner than he got those words out of his mouth, Frieza commanded yet another laser-like attack to appear. This time, though, Frieza went for someone he knew would get to Raditz.

His nephew.

Just as with Goku, the attack hit so fast, no one could hardly register it. However, this particular attack seemed to be different from the one he hit Goku with; for, once the laser-like attack hit a shaken up Gohan, Frieza merely commanded him to go upwards with a mere gesture of his hand.

Raditz's eyes widened in horror. "No!" He called after his nephew with wide eyes, drowning out Piccolo's and Krillin's call of his name. Raditz snapped his eyes onto Frieza, the look in his eyes warning enough. "Frieza!" Raditz barked. "Stop it! He's only six! He's just a child!"

"And you honestly believe that matters to me?!" Frieza retorted with evident sadism, watching as an utterly terrified Gohan futilely flailed around mid-air. "Any last words, Raditz?"

Raditz's eyes widened. "Wha - ?"

" - Suit yourself." Frieza interrupted, chuckling heartily as made Gohan further ascend.

"Gohan!" Piccolo called out after him, futilely extending a hand towards the small Saiyan.

"FRIEZA!" Raditz roared, diverting his attention off of his terrified nephew and back onto Frieza. "Stop! Don't make me tell you again!"

Frieza ignored Raditz, chuckling. "Boom."

"Uncle Raditz!" Gohan cried out fearfully.

"GOHAN!"

And then, with the clench of Frieza's hand, Gohan suddenly exploded and was blown to smithereens.

"...No." Piccolo muttered to himself, eyes wide with disbelief as he clenched his fists. "Gohan."

And while Krillin could hardly made a sound, utterly speechless. Raditz, on the other hand, was barely able to stop himself from convulsing with rage. His shoulders were shaking and the long-haired Saiyan was hunched over with clenched fists and wide eyes. Each second that passed, he was seemingly shaking more and more noticeably.

Kakarot.

In his head, images of he and his younger brother's first meeting, their first fight, and the words he told him before he died. It was Kakarot that allowed his second chance to be born in the first place. He was the one that gave him the opportunity to do so. It all started because of him. Easily, Kakarot, whom initially contained no idea of his Saiyan heritage, could have allowed him to die, he kidnapped his son; yet, instead of taking the Senzu Bean for himself, he gave it to him. His enemy. And it was all because he saw some good in him. Where he saw that good at, Raditz wasn't certain. He didn't even know he had any good in him. Though, admittingly, since that day and since the moment he began training Gohan, he changed. Granted, it was slight; however, no matter how hard he tried not to stray from who he was - personality wise - being around Gohan made it hard to do. And then, when Kakarot returned, he made it all the more difficult.

From coming to his aid against Vegeta back on Earth, seeing him in action and then being stuck with him in the hospital, he has gotten to known his younger brother more than he would've like. And then, even with traveling together, they spent time together, and not only that, they trained together on the way to Namek. Naturally, it'd make sense for him to get more familiar with his brother, get to actually know him, and be somewhat influenced by him.

And now he was gone.

Raditz released an animalistic growl through bared teeth.

Gohan.

He, himself, wasn't exactly pure, nor were his hands free of blood. But Gohan's were. The kid was just as pure as his father, and didn't seem to have an ounce of mean in him. Just like his father, he probably wasn't even capable of harming a fly. In fact, Raditz knew that he wouldn't be able to. The kid was just that kind, and just as his father did, being around him influenced him somewhat as well. Heck, he was more influenced by him than he thought he would, and he never realized how much he truly cared for Gohan and Kakarot until this whole ordeal with Frieza took place. He couldn't count how many times he saved the kid, and for the first time, he actually showed affection towards him today. Briefly, Raditz mentally recalled ruffling Gohan's hair, and how worried Gohan was for his well-being when he was heavily injured by Frieza, and then after the Spirit Bomb cleared up. His mind, just as it had done mere minutes ago, replayed all of the time they, he and Gohan, spent together like a slide show.

And now he was gone as well.

He was nothing more than a mere child. He was six, and despite the fact that he, personally, was carrying out missions and getting his hands dirty far earlier than the age Gohan was of now, he knew that Gohan didn't have the type of heart for anything of that nature. He wouldn't last a minute doing what he did, eradicating whomever he was ordered to eradicate all for the sake of their planet, and, not only that, Gohan didn't deserve what just happened to him. He didn't deserve to die like that. To be crushed to bits like that.

Gohan didn't deserve to die at all.

Vaguely, Raditz could register the lightning sounding off in the surrounding area around him, accompanied by frequent thunder; yet, he paid it no mind, angrily convulsing. The waves of the vast seas of Namek were harshly whipping, and the rocks from the very ground he was standing on were pulling apart and shattering to pieces - all in all, damage was being done to the surrounding area and it was clear that something big was happening for it to have this much of an effect on their surroundings.

"You...you won't get away with this!" Raditz declared matter-of-factly, his black eyes no longer present. In fact, his eyes were pupil-less and his hair was noticeably whipping.

Kakarot.

Raditz's eyes flashed teal, his long, black hair turning blonde and transitioning to that of a more jagged-like look just as briefly as his eyes changed color.

Raditz cursed loudly, quickly shifting his weight to the side and pulling Goku with him in the process. Despite his attempts, the laser-like attack still hit Goku, catching him in the chest.

"Kakarot!"

Once again, having replayed Kakarot's death over in his head, the long-haired Saiyan's hair flashed blonde yet again, his eyes simultaneously changing teal just as quickly. He clenched his fists further, hard enough to draw blood, and the Saiyan was releasing animalistic growls.

Gohan.

"And you honestly believe that matters to me?!" Frieza retorted with evident sadism, watching as an utterly terrified Gohan futilely flailed around mid-air. "Any last words, Raditz?"

Raditz's eyes widened. "Wha - ?"

" - Suit yourself." Frieza interrupted, chuckling heartily as made Gohan further ascend.

"Gohan!" Piccolo called out after him, futilely extending a hand towards the small Saiyan.

"FRIEZA!" Raditz roared, diverting his attention off of his terrified nephew and back onto Frieza. "Stop! Don't make me tell you again!"

Frieza ignored Raditz, chuckling. "Boom."

"Uncle Raditz!" Gohan cried out fearfully.

"GOHAN!"

And then, with the clench of Frieza's hand, Gohan suddenly exploded and was blown to smithereens.

Repeatedly, instead of pregnant pauses in-between, Raditz's hair and eyes began to constantly flicker back and forth between black to blonde and black to teal, respectively. Each time his hair and eyes changed, his head jerked upwards as if he was attempting to somehow restrain himself or somehow control the brief surge of power he'd feel coursing within him. And, like a movie on fast-forward, the deaths of Goku and Gohan replayed a final time, and, with a toss of his head backwards, a golden aura encased him as he released a loud yell.

Permanently, his hair stayed jagged and golden. As for his eyes, they were stable as well, currently a piercing teal. Standing tall, the Saiyan warrior, the last of his kind, had made a literal transformation. And his eyes were locked on none the than Frieza's.

Momentarily, he diverted his eyes off of Frieza and onto Piccolo and Krillin, ignoring their gaping expressions. "Find the woman, go to the ship, and get out of here." He snapped his teal eyes onto Piccolo more specifically. "If Frieza kills you, then, if I'm not mistaken, the dragon balls on Earth will no longer be effective. So go."

Piccolo nodded, recovering from his shock. "Got it. And as for you?"

"I'll be fine." He dismissed, diverting his attention back onto Frieza.

"Well, in that case," Krillin began, nodding towards Piccolo. "We'll get out of your hair now. Be careful."

Raditz didn't respond. Instead, he kept his eyes locked on his opponent's red eyes. Said eyes were wide with shock, and it looked as if Frieza could hardly process what had taken place. First and foremost, the only transformation he knew the Saiyans contained the ability of changing into was Apes. This, on the other hand, was completely different from anything he has ever seen. Golden hair and teal eyes? Just what did this mean? Was such a thing even possible?

And then, as if finally realizing that the others were trying to escape, Frieza's eyes widened, quickly diverting his eyes over to Krillin and Piccolo. Frieza chuckled sadistically. "As if I'll allow anyone to leave." He pointed a finger towards Krillin and Piccolo; however, before he could do so, Raditz, whom eyes had widened, was quick to phase out of sight and appear before Frieza in the same fashion. Truthfully, Raditz had moved so quickly, that he had actually managed to startle Frieza.

So fast!

Just as quickly, Raditz grasped Frieza's hand, stretching it out towards the side as he squeezed. "I never cared about you wiping out the Saiyans, the only thing they were concerned about was power and those that were weaker than them were regarded as trash," He began, referring to how he was treated by his own people due to his weak power level. "And," Raditz continued, "I didn't care that you wiped out our planet. What I do care about is how you betrayed us when we did everything you asked. For as long as I can remember, Frieza, I worked for you and - "

Frieza, despite the situation he was in, scowled. "How dare you talk to me about betrayal? If I recall correctly, which I do, you're not so loyal yourself, Raditz. Also, I certainly hope you're not going to give out a whole speech about what I did like Vegeta."

"No," Raditz answered, narrowing his eyes. "Vegeta already took care of that, and I'm pretty sure Kakarot did as well. Personally, I have nothing to say to you. Just know that you will pay for killing my brother and my nephew."

Frieza chuckled. "I should have expected for you to get attached to someone. The other Saiyan I can understand; however, you should know better, Raditz. Vegeta did."

Raditz scowled. More than anything, due to his childhood and background, he hated being compared to others. It was something he couldn't stand, and one of the things that riled him up easily. He hated that Frieza knew this about him. And, further more, he hated that Frieza was going to use it against him. After all, Frieza was foul and used means just as foul to get whatever he wanted. "I think you have more important matters to deal with." Raditz responded coolly, squeezing Frieza's hand harder, eliciting a pained grunt.

Futilely, Frieza attempted to remove himself from Raditz's iron grip, tugging as hard as he could; however, neither was he moving, nor Raditz. Pulling his weight downwards, Frieza attempted to use his weight to advantage by pulling on his hand that way. Even so, despite this attempt, he quickly found out that it was overall pointless. In a desperate attempt to free himself, Frieza called forth some of his ki (dark red), allowing it to encase them. Again, it was futile. Finally, Raditz released him, allowing him to stumble back.

Scowling, Frieza grasped his wrist. "How did you get such incredible power?" Raditz didn't answer him; however, he didn't expect him to, piecing it together minutes later. "No..." Frieza mumbled to himself in disbelief. It was suppose to be a mere legend. It was suppose to be no more fictional than your average bedtime story. "It's...true."

Raditz smirked. "Vegeta was right all along, wasn't he?" The long-haired warrior inquired rhetorically, strolling towards the tyrant. However, Raditz refused to give Frieza anytime to answer, propelling off of the ground towards Frieza with a push of the feet and slugging him in the jaw upon reaching him. On contact, Frieza hurled backwards, and Raditz was quick to give chase, grasping Frieza and harshly kneeing him in the back, following it up by clasping his hands together and sending him hurling towards the ground. Almost instantaneously, Frieza slammed into the ground, a huge crater forming upon impact and a huge cloud of debris kicked up. From above, slowly descending, Raditz stared after the tyrant, aware that it wouldn't be too much longer before Frieza would be getting up again.

By chance, Raditz teal eyes happened to flicker over and land on his brother, whom wasn't too far away, and his eyes widened briefly. There was no telling how wild his battle with Frieza would get, and, even if Kakarot was dead, he didn't want him getting caught up in the cross fire. Swiftly, before Frieza could recover, Raditz phased out of sight and appeared at his brother's side, moving to place him in a more safer area. Having caught sight of another island not too far away, Raditz wholly intended on moving in that direction; however, he halted upon noticing the slightest of movement.

Was he seeing things?

Casting a glance behind him and making sure that Frieza was no where in sight, Raditz rolled his brother over and placed his ear against his chest, attempting to find out whether or not he was alive. He had assumed that Kakarot was dead the minute Frieza attacked him, and hadn't thought of the possibility of him still being alive and somehow surviving.

Thump.

It was faint, but it was definitely there. If he would have known that Kakarot was still alive and hadn't been so quick to assume that he was dead, then he would instructed the Namek and the cue ball to take Kakarot along with them. However, it was far too late, and they were probably on the ship by now. Even if they weren't, he supposed this could work in his favor. If anything, he'd just have to finish off Frieza first. Afterwards, he could run Kakarot to Frieza's ship and put him in the regeneration tank on the way back to Earth.

However, seeing as he wasn't sure how much longer Kakarot would be able to hold on, time was of the essence.

A/N: Again, I appreciate the feedback, support and all of the reviews; it means a lot to me. Thanks. Also, how did you like the surprise in this chapter? Did anyone see it coming? Let me know what you think! Next chapter will be out tomorrow, hopefully earlier.