"So let me get this straight. Your dad gave you a sword that you don't know how to use, and Roshi is sending you to Maroon village to find a guy named Kise to train you," Asuka asked.
"Yep, that's the gist of it," Gohan replied.
"What a way to start our adventure."
"Are you sure you don't mind tagging along with me?"
"I said I was gonna stick by you and I meant it. I don't need a weapon, I just need these two right here!" Asuka threw her fists in the air and laughed loudly. Random men and women who were walking nearby turned to look in confusion at the girl shouting and throwing her fists in the air.
"How about we save those for when we really need them okay…" Gohan suggested.
"Sure thing. I am pretty strong in our world, but here I can really cut loose. I gotta hold myself back sometimes at the dojo. I can't show off too much of my power."
"Is that why you won't participate in the Dream Fighting tournament?"
"Yeah, that's part of it. I'm stronger than the average human because I get training from this world here. Besides, I doubt I'll find anyone who would give me a challenge. I still say you should enter though. I wanna see how strong our training has made you."
"I'll tell you what, I'll enter if you enter. How's that?"
"Hmm, you drive a hard bargain Gohan. I might consider it."
While the two were walking and talking deep into their conversation, they didn't notice a beat up, middle aged ruffian brandishing a dagger at them.
"Stop! You wanna pass by this here path, you're gonna hafta cough up everything in the bag."
Asuka and Gohan paused and stared at the thug jabbing the air with his dagger.
"In situations like these most people would be scared, but for some reason I'm relieved," Gohan said.
"Why's that?"
"I'd rather deal with guys like this than a demon. Is that weird to say?"
"I see I see. I totally get what you mean. Demons are scary so it's nice to get a random grunt every now and then."
"Hey! Are you two dumbasses deaf? I said hand everything over before I-"
Asuka quickly jabbed him in the nose, causing him to drop his dagger. He fell on the ground, clutching his nose.
"Ahhh! It's broke its broke! You broke it!"
"I did not, I barely touched you. Wait a sec." Asuka grabbed his face and studied it with dramatic intensity.
"I see you are quite use to this," Gohan said chuckling to himself.
"I told you I was a gang mediator in Osaka remember. This is just second nature at this point."
"What… are… you... doing…" he asked as his face was getting stretched out from both his cheeks.
"Now I remember!" Asuka released his face as he rolled around on the ground in pain. "You're with Bunji's group of delinquents."
"Who's Bunji?" Gohan asked.
"They try robbing and harassing people that come through town. I had the unfortune of running into them awhile back. Of course, they all looked like him when I was finished."
He was smoothing out his still swollen face. His eyes grew big when he looked at Asuka for a moment.
"It's you, you're the bitch that beat us last time!"
"Bitch is such a harsh term but yeah, nice to meet you too."
"Just wait till the boss hears about this. You'll be sorry!"
With that declaration, he hopped into the bushes and dashed into the forest.
"Tell Bunji I'll kick his sorry ass for this! I told him to stop this a long time ago!"
"Does that happen often?"
"This world has all types of demons and losers. Just gotta stay on your toes at all times."
"I'll keep that in mind. Now, let's not keep Kise waiting."
With daylight still looming over the world, the two finally made their way to Maroon village. Gohan scouted the area, and did not see any signs of the guards he ran into a month ago.
"No patrols this time. Good."
"We're here, what now?"
Gohan pointed to Kise's hut. "That's the hut Master Roshi went inside. Kise must live there."
"Oh Gohan, what a pleasant surprise. It has been quite some time since we last spoke." Hanako came to greet them both.
"It's a pleasure to see you Lady Hanako," Gohan said bowing to her.
"Yo." Asuka said greeting her.
"Yo." Hanako greeted back.
"Huh, what kind of greeting was that? Do you two know each other?" Gohan asked surprisingly.
"You can't visit here and not meet Hanako."
"She reminds me of how I was when I was younger. It's like looking in a mirror. Although that mirror might have had a few cracks in it hohoho!"
"Are you making fun of me grandma?"
"Nonsense. Now, to what do I owe the pleasure?"
"We're looking for a man named Kise. We heard he was a powerful swordsmen back in the day. I was hoping he could train me."
Hanako opened her mouth but quickly closed it. She looked down at the ground, trying to gather her thoughts.
"Is something wrong," Gohan asked.
"That man hasn't picked up a sword in years, not after the incident that occurred. I highly doubt you can sway his mind."
"What happened years ago?"
"Well…"
"Help, help! The seal has become loose! The serpents are headed this way!" A villager emerged from the forest bruised and bleeding from his head.
"Oh no…" Hanako said quaking in fear.
"What's going on? What is he talking about?" Gohan asked with worry in his voice.
"This village was once terrorized by vile serpents years ago. We couldn't defeat them all, so our best option was to seal the cave. It's been named Serpent's Cove for the vile snakes that made it their den. Now it looks like the seal is gradually weakening…"
The villagers began running to their homes in a frantic. Gohan put a hand on Hanako's shoulder. "You'd best get inside as well. I'll handle this."
"How do you plan to do that?"
"With this here sword." Gohan pulled the Z sword out the sheath and held it high in the air, but it quickly dropped to the ground.
"Wow… This is pretty heavy."
"You might wanna put that back. Wouldn't want you to hurt yourself." Asuka teased.
Serpents began making their advancement to the village. Gohan had to grip the sword with two hands to keep it steady.
"No time to put it up now. It's go time. Haaaa!" Gohan charged at the serpent horde. He jumped in the air and sliced it in two.
"Oh jeez. Get to safety Hanako. We'll take it from here."
"Be careful you two."
Asuka joined Gohan in the fight. She concentrated her spirit energy into her fist and punched the serpent right in the face, killing it on impact.
"I surprise myself sometimes hahaha," she said looking at her fist.
"It's not over yet. More are coming." Gohan leveled his sword and started slicing and dicing the serpents, while Asuka used her hands and feet to make quick work out of them.
"Asuka duck!" Out of the corner of his eye, he noticed a serpent closing in on her, unbeknownst to Asuka. Without hesitation, she immediately ducked.
"Don't blow this Gohan…" He formed a blue ball of spirit energy in his hand, gathering just enough power, and threw it right at the serpent.
"Raaaaaaa!" The serpent exploded upon impact. Asuka dusted herself off and gave a thumbs up.
"Nice job! I'm glad you got the control aspect down. Otherwise, you could've blown that thing and me to bits."
"I have Hope and Master Roshi to thank for the training. Still, we'll be at a disadvantage soon. We've been able to stop them from making their way towards the village, but we'll have to destroy the source."
"Hanako said there was a cave that the serpents were in. Guess we'll have to go inside."
Another horde of serpents showed up. Gohan, fatigued and drained, readied his sword.
"I'll have to do what I can…"
Asuka raised her fists. "I'm with you Gohan!"
"Wind Tunnel!"
A strong gust of wind came from the east. Instead of blowing them away, it started pulling all the serpents in the vicinity in, along with Gohan and Asuka.
"What's happening?!" Gohan thrust his sword into the ground to stay planted, but was slowly losing traction.
"I don't know! There's someone there! Some guy but I don't know who he is!" Asuka opened one eye to see a man about their age with monk like robes and a staff. He has black hair worn in a ponytail.
"Who is he?!" Gohan asked.
"I said I don't know! I think he's causing all this WIND!" Asuka was taken off her feet and was getting closer into the Wind Tunnel.
"Asuka! Woah!" Gohan couldn't hold onto the Z-Sword any longer and started getting dragged as well.
"There!" The monk got rid of all the serpents, and quickly wrapped the beads around his hand before Asuka and Gohan got sucked in as well. They both landed in front of the monk sprawled on the ground.
"Looks like I showed up just in time. Are you two alright?"
Gohan rose and dusted himself yeah. "Yeah, we're alright. Thanks for the help mr…"
"You can call me Miroku." Miroku helped Asuka to her feet. "Are you injured?"
"No I'm fine. We owe you one- AH!" Asuka felt Miroku's hand on her bottom. What made it worse was that he did it while keeping a straight face.
"Is something the matter," he asked while still rubbing her bottom.
"ASSHOLE!" Asuka took his staff and started beating him repeatedly with it. Gohan stared with a blank expression, unsure of whether to stop Asuka or not.
"I was just patting you down, making sure you got all the dust off!" Miroku said covering his head with his hands.
Asuka finished her beating and threw the staff at him "Unbelievable! Are all the men in this world perverts?"
"At any rate, what was that weird power you used Miroku? It looked like we were getting sucked in with your hand," Gohan said.
Miroku slowly got up with his staff. "It's nothing for you to be concerned about. Right now, we have a bigger problem. I feel strong demonic energy coming through the forest. Does anyone here know what the cause was?"
"I can explain," Hanako chimed in confronting the trio.
"Hanako. I thought I told you to get somewhere safe." Asuka said.
"And miss all the fun? Don't waste your breath. If I was 30 years younger I would've joined in the fight. I must thank you all however, especially you young monk."
"No thanks is necessary. I just happened to be in the area."
"Well it was a good thing you were in the area. Now let me explain."
Hanako told Miroku about Serpent's Cove, and the seal that could break at any moment.
"I see. I'm starting to understand the situation now."
"Once the seal fully lifts, the serpents will flood our village once again. We need to put in a request to Lady Farron immediately. I loathe asking the higher ups for anything, but I do not want this village I was born in to be destroyed…"
"I'll take care of the serpent issue," Gohan said confidently.
"I appreciate the enthusiasm sonny, but I don't think you three will be enough to dispel the evil that lies within. We were fortunate to have the cave sealed. That's all we could hope for, until now that is."
"Hmmm…" Out the corner of Gohan's eye, he spotted a man with his arms crossed eyeing him from afar. He would've shrugged the man's gaze away, but he lingered for quite some time. Gohan turned to face him. "Is there something you wanted? You've been staring at me this whole time."
"Not you kid, that sword you're brazenly swinging. Hate to see that talent be wasted on a punk like you."
"What was that?" Gohan started walking toward him.
"Now now Kise don't make fun of the boy. He put that weapon to good use didn't he," Hanako said defending Gohan.
"Wait, Kise?" Gohan blinked a few times and realized who the man really was. "You're Master Roshi's friend!"
"Yeah, that's me. You're Gohan, the supposed descendant of Son Goku."
Hanako and Miroku were shocked at the sudden revelation. Gohan however was unfazed.
"Master Roshi told you who I was now did he?"
"I'm not buying it. You certainly don't look the part."
"Is this true Asuka? Is this boy really the descendant of the Crescent Blue Moon, Son Goku?" Hanako exclaimed.
"Damn right. Lightning's pretty convinced that he's the real deal."
"My goodness. Maybe there is hope…"
"Don't get too excited. He's still a whelp when it comes to using that sword. If he can't even wield this sword properly, then what hope does he have of saving this world?"
Asuka pointed his finger at him. "Look old man we came here because Roshi said you could help now-"
Gohan put his hand out for Asuka to cease her taunting. "I'm trying to change the world for the better, but I know I cannot do this alone. That's why I require your help. Master Roshi believed you could be the one to help me. Whether you do or not, I will not stop my journey."
Everyone grew quiet with Gohan's declaration. Asuka smiled and patter him on the back.
"Well said Gohan, very manly of you."
"I agree." Miroku chimed in. "I only met you for a brief period in time, but you do radiate a chivalrous aura. If you'll allow, I'd like to tag along with you two."
"Are you sure Miroku," Gohan asked.
"Of course. I'll also have to keep an eye on this young woman here." With quick reflexes Miroku clasped Asuka's hands and looked directly into her eyes. "Let me formally introduce myself. My name is Miroku, a traveling monk that is known far and wide. Might I ask you name?"
Gohan, and everyone else had a blank stare on their face. Asuka quickly judo flipped him over her shoulder. Miroku landed on the ground with a hard THUD.
"The name's Asuka Kazama. Gohan are you sure this guy will be useful?"
"Well, he did clear out all those serpents. It was beginning to be too much with just the two of us."
Miroku got up and looked in the direction in which the serpents came from. "There's also the matter of these serpents. If not handled properly, they will destroy this village in a matter of days. Seals won't be an option anymore. We need to take care of the heart of the matter."
"I agree," Gohan said. Well, Kise?"
Kise crossed his arms and mulled everything over.
"Hey Kise, is it okay to come out now?"
Kise turned to see a young boy near the doorway. He was ten years old with short yellow hair and freckles on his face. He looked timid and didn't make much eye contact with anyone else but Kise.
"Stay inside Luke. I'll be back as soon as I finish up here."
"Oh okay…" He went back inside.
"Is that your son," Gohan asked.
"That's none of your concern. Sorry, but Roshi had me pegged wrong. I'm not the guy you want as a teacher. I'm not qualified for it. You're better off finding someone else for that. I need to get some firewood for tonight." Kise waved his hand away and went off into the woods.
"Well there goes my sword teacher. It can't be helped," Gohan shrugged.
"Hey Hanako, what did Kise mean when he said wasn't qualified? Did something happen with him?" Asuka asked.
Hanako put her hands behind her back and was pacing back and forth, as if she was weighing her options.
"I suppose you deserve an explanation. It was during the events of when the serpents attacked. Luke's biological father, Leim, was accompanied by Kise into the cave to get rid of the serpents. Those two were the strongest in our village, so we only imagined their victory."
"However," Hanako sighed then began again. "Kise was the only one to emerge from the cave. He said they were outnumbered heavily, and their injuries were too great. Leim told him to leave the rest of the serpents to him, and escape. I'm sure you all can figure out the rest…"
"He didn't survive the attack, and looked after Leim's son ever since," Miroku concluded.
"Precisely, monk. Kise hasn't been the same since his friend was killed those years ago. Hasn't picked up a sword either. He's the only one capable of protecting the village, but he doesn't feel like he can anymore."
"Then he's a coward." Gohan said bluntly.
Everyone's eyes grew a bit large at Gohan's bluntness.
"A little insensitive don't you think Gohan," Miroku said eyeing him.
"Maybe, but that was years ago, and the same thing is happening again. If all those years pass and you can't get the courage you once had, you're doing a disservice to yourself, the village, Luke, and especially Leim. I wouldn't want a teacher like that anyway-"
"HEY! WHAT THE HELL DID YOU JUST SAY?!" Everyone turned to see Kise drop all the wood he was carrying and sprinted toward Gohan. He grabbed him by his shirt and got in his face.
"Don't you dare say his name like that you little shit! You don't know anything about what I've been through! Don't talk like you know me!"
"I don't, but I know that this village needs a protector. If you don't who will? The damn soldiers?! They don't care about anybody except themselves! They'd rather see you all dead!"
Kise winced and let go of Gohan. "It can't be me though, not after what happened…"
"Kise that happened years ago. You need to think about what you should be protecting. It isn't too late." Hanako insisted.
"You shouldn't have told them Hanako. These are outsiders they don't know anything about our struggle. You should've kept your mouth shut!"
Gohan took out his sword and pointed it straight at Kise.
"I'm tired of you shifting the blame onto everyone else. You failed, and you're hiding in the shadows to lament your own failure. Why would I entrust my son to you if you can't defend the very village he grew up in!?"
Kise's face was seething with rage. He wanted to yell and scream at Gohan, but couldn't find his voice. In his heart, he knew that Gohan was right.
"So what's it gonna be Kise?"
Out of the corner of Gohan's eye, he saw something hurling towards his head.
"Hm?" Gohan deflected the rock with his sword.
"S-stop bullying Kise…" Luke had a handful of rocks ready to throw at Gohan.
"Luke, I told you to stay inside. Why are you out here?" Kise asked.
"They were bullying you and I wanted to help you…"
"Hmmm…" Kise looked at Luke, and suddenly a figure of his father showed up. He quickly looked down, not wanting to see his old friend again. He smirked and looked at Gohan.
"So you really wanna see what I'm made of?"
"That's the whole reason I'm here. Luke seems to have more heart than you."
"Can't argue with you there. In that case…" Kise looked at Luke with a serious expression. "I've told you many times to never touch it, but today is a special day. Bring me the sword."
Kise hasn't been himself since dad died. He doesn't look at me often either, probably because I remind him of my dad. I really wish he could teach me how to use a sword. Now after all these years I can finally see him in action! -Luke
