My Life's Stranger Than Yours
The Struggle Is Real; Training's Finishing Touches
At the base of a mountain, a mischievous trio of two old men and their young cohort could be found. The taller of the elders turned to the young man and asked, "Are you ready?"
Taro nodded before taking a firm stance. With a guttural grunt, he began to raise his energy before slowly ascending into the air. Clasping his hands together, he spread them out in a diamond shape and aimed straight towards the mountain.
"Ki-Ko-HO!" With a loud, yell he let his energy erupt and fired a nigh invisible blast at the giant formation, leaving a large square imprint.
A satisfied Taro began descending, panting between his pleasured chuckling. "How was that…old man…?"
"Excellent!" Shen praised.
"Even I have to admit, that was a stellar display there boy!" Happosai followed up. "With that technique, that caped clown won't stand a chance!"
"Don't get ahead of yourself Happy," Shen dissuaded. "He's learned the technique, but now he must master it before we go after those Turtle hatchlings again."
Happosai gave a dismissive shrug. "Well, it's your technique so whatever fluffs your feathers pal. Regardless, I think that's quite enough for tonight. If you'll excuse me, I'm gonna go turn in."
"If by 'turn in', you mean going for one of your raids in the nearby village," Shen sneered.
"I shan't confirm nor deny." With an impish guffaw, Happosai left the others.
Moments later, Shen and Taro were gathered around a campfire, the latter still reeling from his previous usage of the Crane technique. Despite his exhaustion however, Taro wore a look of determination on his face.
"I never would've imagined you'd have a technique this powerful."
"While flight may be the Crane School's signature technique, the Tri-Beam is the most powerful. It takes a strong body and soul in order to use effectively," Shen explained. "You boy, are only the second one who managed to perform it."
"You mean the student who abandoned you?"
Shen nodded, with his fist clenched tightly.
"If you don't mind my asking, what did happen to that student?"
Shen took a calming breath before staring into the fire with contempt. "Strap in my boy, this is going to be a long one."
Moments later, Taro wore a somber expression as Shen finished his story, a tale of vengeance and betrayal that left the Crane Hermit a nearly broken man. As much as he didn't favor Happosai, introducing him to Taro was the first flash of hope he'd had in nearly two decades.
Taro could sympathize with Shen's ordeal given his own personal beef with Happosai. Despite his ordinarily deceitful nature, he was determined to make sure he paid his due by ensuring that his teacher's hope wasn't ill-placed.
"I'm sorry to hear that happened."
"What's done is done, what matters now is that you have all that's required to help me revive the Crane School!"
"As well as finally get that dirty old freak to change my name!" Taro quickly added.
Shen wore a contemplative look and crossed his arms. "Level with me boy, do you really expect Happosai to keep his word?"
"Not in the slightest," Taro simply replied.
"Then how will you be sure you get what you want from him?"
"I haven't quite figured that part out yet, but I'll think of something before the time comes." Taro narrowed his eyes but quickly calmed himself. "Still, I do have the slightest bit of hope that he'll keep his word since he led me to you, and I must say, training with you has been an extremely beneficial experience."
"I'm so glad to hear that," Shen sneered. "Because I think I may know just the insurance you need."
Taro raised his eyebrow with intrigue. "I'm listening…."
"You see, back when we first got this deal of ours underway, Happy and I decided to reminisce and he told me a story that, I really didn't care to hear, but it may come in handy now."
[Months ago]
In a familiar, large, bustling city, a masked Happosai, his sack of 'loot' in hand, slinked his way over to the largest domed house in town. He'd been casing this house for some time now, deciding it would be his next hit when he visited West City again. After spying on the place for a few nights, Happy came to know three of the residents. An older blonde woman who still looked appealing for her age (besides, she's way younger than Happosai himself), a young boy with purple hair, and finally, the object of his intrigue, a knockout 'mature' woman with short cut blue hair. Judging from her slim yet curvaceous figure, Happy figured that her 'treasure' would be the crown jewel of his collection. Maybe the blonde lady would have something worth collecting too, given how big her chest was. Today however, as far as he knew, the lady in charge and the boy had left the house. The older woman shouldn't be an issue. Even so, she's only one obstacle to get past. Nothing the great master of 'Anything Goes' can't handle.
Thankful for his small stature, he zipped across the place's front lawn before leaping his way up to a rear balcony. Taking careful precision to undo the lock, Happy let himself in and quickly made his way to what he presumed to be the matriarch's room. After minutes of searching around, he finally found what he was looking for: a dark brown lingerie set, with a bra made for a very bust woman, complete with a garter belt.
"Eureka~!" Happy guffawed.
Dying to savor the moment, Happy slowly reached towards the clothes, an expecting, breathy smile on his face. Just as he was about to grab them, a gruff male voice sounded out.
"Are you finally back? Excellent."
Happy could only let out a shocked "Wha-?" before the door burst open and in walked a man with hair that stood straight up, nearly like a flame on a candle with a fierce expression on his face, clad in a dark-blue bodysuit. "The drones in the gravity chamber need to be…!?"
The man paused when he saw the diminutive elder rummaging through his wife's drawers and his already sour expression turned into one of fury. "Who the Hell are you!?"
Ordinarily, Happy would've lobbed a firecracker by now and attempted to make an escape, but in the face of an extremely large ki glaring down at him, even the great evil master himself couldn't help but freeze against such an overwhelming presence.
The moment Happosai fully regained his senses, it was already too late. In a scene mirroring many of his other defeats, Happy was swiftly punched in his tiny gut and subsequently launched through the window and far away to parts unknown. This time however, was different. Despite his age, Happosai could very easily take a hit from opponents with superior strength. The pain he felt from the punch of that man was unlike any sensation he'd felt before. Even getting blasted by Ranma's Heavenly Dragon Wave paled in comparison to the intense agony he currently felt. Further adding to Happosai's ire was just the amount of time he'd been flying. He was no stranger to punch induced flights, but this lasted nearly a full half hour before he landed face first in a pile of…snow?
Further adding insult to injury, when he was launched away, his sack had fallen off meaning now he was hundreds of thousands of miles away from civilization, freezing, hurting all over, and he'd lost his newest collection. Just when things possibly couldn't get worse, Happosai started to fall unconscious before the figure of what appeared to be a large, heavyset man in a dark blue coat."
[]
As Shen finished the story, Taro burst out laughing. It was rare for the old man to be defeated so thoroughly, and even rarer for him to talk about those great defeats. "Okay, I don't know what that story has to do with bargaining, but hearing it sure made me feel better at least."
"Yes, yes, it's AOK to laugh. I had to hold back my own snickering when he told me," Shen replied through more snickers. "But, back to the point, that woman may be the key. Happosai is very easy to please, so if you can get your hands on…"
"I refuse to play that bastard's game." Taro quickly declined.
"I can't say I blame you, but I was actually going to suggest Plan B first."
"And what is Plan B?"
"A simple photograph of that woman, an exposed photograph, if you catch my drift."
Taro grit his teeth. He still wasn't to fond of appeasing Happosai like this, especially if it meant taking pages from the old master's book, but getting a few spicy pictures were an easier pill to swallow than stealing clothes.
"How would I even go about getting pictures of this woman when I don't even know what she looks like?"
"I'll brief you about her later. As luck would have it, I'm…somewhat acquainted with that woman."
"Really!? How!?"
"She's one of the Turtle School's supporters. I've seen her at past Tournaments, and I can say, despite her being much older these days, I haven't forgotten her face!"
[]
BANG!
In the Capsule Corp lab, Bulma let out a disgruntled sigh as the drone she was repairing was crushed to scrap under the intense pressure of her sudden, intense hammer swing.
"Dammit…where did that even come from? I didn't meant to hit it that hard."
"Bulma, what was that?"
"Nothing serious but…you're going to be one drone short for a while Vegeta."
[]
"I can tell you where she lives, but as for getting your bargaining fodder, you're on your own boy."
"Don't worry about me. I'll find a way to get it while I'm perfecting this new technique," replied a determined Taro.
"Excellent. Work hard boy, and do me proud." Shen gleefully sneered.
[]
Shockwaves boomed across Mt. Paouzu as Goku and Piccolo assaulted a defending Gohan with a barrage of strikes. After their last session, they figured having Piccolo wrap his arm around Gohan's waist was starting to become a hassle. Now they had the more simple solution of using an extremely tight belt, courtesy of Piccolo. With the stub of his tail still being pressed down on, Gohan was initially on the receiving end of a massive beatdown from his father and teacher. All that would change when he finally summoned the strength to transform. The fight would become less one sided as Gohan defended against the two, but not entirely as it was still two against one.
It would all come to a heat as both Goku and Piccolo fired off their signature blasts at Gohan; Goku with a massive Kamehameha and Piccolo with a Demon Wave. Gohan countered with his own Kamehameha, but was quickly being forced back. Determined not to falter, Gohan willed his power to rise and soon his power erupted as his hair shifted from gold back to black and his blast quickly overtook his mentors'.
In his Unleashed form, Gohan smirked before powering back down to base, panting.
"How ya feelin' Gohan?" asked Goku.
"Tired, but fine."
"Considering you only unlocked that power a year ago, you feeling tired might be a little concerning," noted Piccolo.
"Lighten up Piccolo. Don't forget, Gohan was handicapped."
"Speaking of, I hope that little scene of you transforming yielded some results."
Feeling around his lower back, Gohan pressed against his tail stub and flinched. There was definitely still feeling in that spot, but he didn't feel the same crippling weakness he did during the fight with Taro.
"It still stings, but it's more like a bug bite now," said Gohan.
The two teachers smiled. It thankfully wasn't very long, but it looked like their training bore some much desired fruit.
"Good. Now you won't have to deal with someone else taking advantage of your super secret oddly specific weakspot ever again," said a teasing Piccolo.
Gohan shyly rubbed his head. "Are you ever going to let this go?"
Piccolo chuckled. "Don't worry. I don't blame you for forgetting about it. I still can't believe it actually happened though."
"Well, we don't really fight too many people with constricting abilities so I was…less than prepared for it," said Gohan.
"What about Gotenks' Ring technique?" said Piccolo.
"You mean the Galactic Donut?" Gohan pondered back to his battle with a Gotenks absorbed Buu. "Thinking back I remember he had me at the shoulders, stomach and legs. He must've just missed my tail stub…not that he was aiming for it or anything."
"Hmmmm…now that I'm remembering, I actually had to fight an octopus once when I was a kid," said Goku.
"Seriously?"
"Yeah. He didn't grab my tail though, and his tentacles were wrapped in a way that I could still move my arms."
"Speaking of which, I should probably start using my arms in battle more often," said Piccolo. "I'll be honest, I almost forgot I could stretch them out until Goku suggested we try it."
"I guess both of us are prone to forgetting things about ourselves," Gohan giggled.
The trio shared a small laugh altogether until they were interrupted by Goten who, at Chi-Chi's behest, summoned them back home for the night. While Goku followed his youngest son, Piccolo went his own way, leaving Gohan alone for the moment to contemplate. Now that he could focus less on his own training, his thoughts shifted to Videl. He'd heard tales about Master Roshi's training and couldn't help but wonder if Roshi would be as harsh with her and Akane as he'd been with his father and Krillin. There was also the issue of Roshi…being Roshi. Ironically, those thoughts countered each other. Roshi obviously wouldn't put the girls through anything they couldn't handle, for one reason or another, but on the other hand, he wasn't the type to baby his students either.
'I hope you girls are alright.' With his mind eased for now, Gohan took off for home.
[]
It had almost become routine for Tien to take the girls out on their own and work with each of them individually in order to iron out each of their personal shortcomings before they really got to work on learning the Mafuba. Today however, things were just a bit different. Instead of working with the girls one at time, today he was leading both of them to an unknown spot.
"Hey Tien, where are going?" asked Akane.
"Just hang tight for a moment," he replied. The trio remained quiet until finally,"Ah, we're here!"
Tien led the girls out of the forest and into a large clearing where they were met with the base of a tall hill.
"Where…is here?" said Videl.
"Tien!"
The three turned up to find Chiaoutzu approaching them, a large boulder floating just above his head. Carefully, he set the giant rock at the top of the hill before landing beside it to take a breather.
"Thank you Chiaoutzu. You're free to head back now if you want." Tien's young helper gave an approving nod before flying off back to the village.
"Okay girls. Today's training is going to be a little bit different than what you're probably used to," Tien began.
"What exactly are we doing?" asked Akane.
"I'm glad you asked. The exercise itself is actually pretty simple. Videl, you will roll that boulder down the hill and Akane, your task is to stop it without destroying it."
"Say what!?" they exclaimed.
"I'm sure you two have your questions, but I'll break it down. After working with you two these past few days, my conclusions are as follows; Videl. You have an exceptional basic understanding of controlling your energy, but your physical condition needs a bit of touching up. Akane, your physical strength is impressive, but before you can properly learn to harness your energy, you need to increase your endurance. This little exercise I came up with will accomplish both at once.
The girls shared a look with each other conveying the same thoughts. Tien may have had a point, but this exercise seemed a bit overkill.
"Don't you think this is a bit…much?" asked Akane.
"Nah. This is a step up from what we've been doing, but all in all, this is pretty light all things considered."
"You call that boulder light?" snarked Videl.
"Feel free to make jokes, but realize that if this is too much for you two, then I surmise you won't stand a chance against that old master," said a stern Tien.
Though Tien wasn't trying to bait the girls, both of them took his statement as a challenge. Though not to the infamous degree of the Saiyans, both girls had their pride and weren't about to take that little jab lying down. With a pair of determined nods, they both headed their respective positions.
"One more thing. If things do get a little out of hand, don't worry. I will step in!" Tien confirmed.
With Videl atop the hill by the boulder, Akane stood firmly at the base, steeling herself.
"You ready down there!?" Videl called.
"Ready!" Akane confirmed.
Rubbing her hands together, Videl placed both hands on the boulder and summoned all of her strength, pushing it. It's irregular shape made it a less graceful roll than a more smoothened, round rock would have been, but with enough effort, she slowly but surely moved it over to the hill's incline. After about half a minute of effort, Videl finally managed to get the boulder to the slope and it began rolling down to a suddenly unnerved Akane.
Quickly regaining her composure, Akane steeled herself and just as the boulder was about to roll into her, she thrust out both hands and held and held back the giant rock, though not without getting pushed back and almost toppled over. It took a greater deal of strength than anticipated, but Akane was eventually able to halt the rock.
Tien nodded in approval at the success of the exercise. "Not bad for a first attempt," he praised. "We'll do this for a few more reps and then you girls can switch positions."
"Oh joy," Akane sarcastically droned.
"Now, who wants to roll this thing back up the hill?"
"She does!" they frantically pointed to each other.
Tien could only chuckle at their response. "Kids."
Moments later, the two girls now swapped positions with Akane atop the hill and an incredulous Videl at the base.
"You ready?" called Akane.
"Not really," Videl half joked.
Tien snickered before giving Akane the okay. With apparent ease, Akane shoved the boulder onto the slope and it rolled straight for Videl who was looking tense. As the rock rolled faster and faster, Videl threw her hand out and just as she made contact, the rock was obliterated into tiny pebbles.
Videl fell to the ground, breathing a relieved sigh. That is until an irritable Tien called out her name.
"Videl, did you forget that you weren't supposed to destroy the boulder?" he scolded.
"No I just…sort of…did that by instinct…?" Videl looked down to see her hand bathed in a small, whitish glow. Sure enough, she'd used the 'Point of Impact' technique to destroy the boulder.
"I can overlook a first offense, but don't forget that the point of this training is to buildup your body. Your energy will rise alongside it and then…."
"Yeah, yeah, I know can I just…try that again?" Videl dismissively interjected.
Tien nodded before ascending. "Take a breather until I get back. Something tells me you girls may need it," he ordered.
As Tien disappeared, Akane slid down the hill to the ground besides Videl. "I take it he wasn't happy with that?"
"Believe it or not, that's not putting it lightly," Videl replied. "I made a mistake, we're moving on, simple as that."
"Okay, then."
Taking Tien's advice, the two girls lay down besides each other, their bodies at opposing poles.
"Hey Akane?"
"Yeah?"
"Do you think Ranma's training is harder than ours?"
"I dunno. Why?"
"It's just that…Tien called this light and we're both already worn out. If this is light, I can't help but wonder what 'heavy' looks like."
"I think I have an idea of what 'heavy' looks like, but unless there's something incredibly specific, I don't think it should be anything beyond what Ranma can do," Akane replied.
"Akane, let me say right now, what you think is heavy might be completely different than what Tien and Goku's other friends think is heavy."
"What makes you say that?"
"Let's just say, I've seen Goku and Gohan spar before and their friendly matches can get insane. If their casual fights can kick up a storm, a serious fight could probably start a hurricane."
"Don't you think you're exaggerating a bit? I know you care for Gohan and want to support him, but maybe you shouldn't be hyping him up this much."
Videl could only give a silent grin. 'I have my reasons,' she thought with a blush.
The solemn conversation would be abruptly halted by a loud, startling crash. Followed by another, and another, and another. Both girls frantically rose to their feet, taking defensive stances.
"What the hell!?"
"What's going on!?"
"Relax girls, it's just us," came the calm voice of Tien.
Sure enough, he along with Chiaoutzu returned with a large number of boulders that were dropping like spilled marbles. "I figured just in case we have any more accidents like earlier, it'd be better to have a few spares lying around so we won't have to waste time."
The girls froze with an uneasy blue tint covering their faces. "Well that…"
"…Makes sense."
Tien chuckled. "Alright then. Let's get back to work."
[Meanwhile]
"How much longer do we have to go?" asked Ranma.
"Not much further," replied Roshi.
The young fighter was following behind the elder master, while holding two large crates of milk in both hands. As the pair skipped across the road, stopping only so Ranma could make his deliveries, an airborne Krillin watched the scene play out with even more nostalgia.
After many days, it became abundantly clear to Roshi that no matter how much he tried to pile on the load to his standard routine, be it the shell, more milk, or anything in between, Ranma was beyond his typical training methods. Still, he was adamant that one should never forget the basics, especially when preparing for something as risky as the Mafuba, so Roshi would continue to give Ranma the Turtle School Special, and if he finished his tasks soon enough, he'd then let Krillin take over the lessons and train Ranma as he saw fit.
For the most part, Ranma and Krillin just sparred which they both seemed to enjoy. Ranma loved having a teacher who didn't try to actively screw him over in anyway and Krillin enjoyed having a sparring partner that was below his level but still skilled enough to keep pace so he could fight seriously.
In the moments where they weren't sparring, Krillin would take it upon himself to give Ranma more information on Ki Manipulation, more specifically, his Scatter Wave attack. Using the Ranma's Prideful Tiger Blast as a basis, Krillin was eventually able to demonstrate to Ranma how he could control his attack after having already fired it. Ranma got the basics down, but his failed attempts did lead to some…unfortunate damage to the house when he tried ironing out the kinks on the island, much to Roshi and 18's chagrin.
In addition to manipulation, Krillin would be instrumental in assisting with Ranma's Ki Sensing. He already had the skill, but Krillin would help him refine it. Taking place in the familiar fields, a simple session of 'Hot and Cold' was the key to expanding Ranma's senses. With the young fighter blindfolded, Krillin would raise his energy and instruct Ranma to sense and find him. After every success, Krillin would hide himself further and further away, only increasing his energy when necessary. Like the manipulation, this too had its share of mishaps including Ranma walking into and tripping over various objects like rocks, logs, and (regrettably) even a stream a few times.
Despite the road bumps, Ranma seemed to be doing well. He wasn't on the level where he could sense a strong enough power from miles away, but his scope was certainly expanded from what it was.
Outside of training, Ranma had also been earning his keep as a houseguest. After spending so much time outside doing yardwork, milk deliveries, doing a few indoor chores like dishes or watching Marron for a short while was small potatoes.
The routine would continue for days on end until finally, one day, Roshi pulled Ranma aside on his own.
"What's up Gramps?"
"Ranma my boy, I don't know what else to say. I knew you were exceptionally skilled when you first showed up on my island, but even I didn't expect you to be this far beyond my training," Roshi finally verbally admitted.
"So does this mean…?"
"Yep. Starting today, we'll officially begin training for the Mafuba proper," Roshi declared.
Ranma clenched his fist with an excited grin. "Alright!" 'Just you wait you old freak. Your days are numbered!'
[]
Days have passed since the girls had began Tien's 'Boulder Routine'. Despite a strong showing on the first day, both girls had gotten more than a little scuffed up in the process, Videl moreso than Akane.
Like he anticipated, Videl would wind up destroying some boulders with her Impact Technique as survival instinct would often win out against 'success'. On the occasions she didn't destroy the rocks, she'd be more easily toppled over than Akane who didn't get off scot-free either.
Like Videl, she would sometimes break the rocks by punching them. A few too many instances of this, as well as some poor timing when genuinely trying to stop the rocks, would leave her dominant hand in bandages for a short while. Still, even despite the countless failures, aches, and sore muscles, the girls were determined to see Tien's training through to the end. Once they were fighting fit again, Tien would begin increasing the rocks' sizes until finally, they reached a size where neither girl could reliably move the rock at all, let alone down the hill. After encountering this roadblock, Tien decided to switch things up a bit.
"Okay you two, I think it's time we switch things up a bit," he declared.
"How so?"
Tien positioned himself besides the boulder and explained. "This time, I'll be the one rolling this thing down and you two will have to work together to stop it."
The looks on both girls faces said it all. They both wore looks of uncertainty.
"Is something wrong?" asked Tien.
"No but…."
"You two are having doubts?" Tien guessed.
"After that whole montage of us getting shaken and rolled, can you really blame us for being a bit cautious?" said Videl.
"Being cautious is a good thing, but another key to martial arts is confidence. You two have shown a bevy of confidence thus far, so don't let it waver when we're in the home stretch."
"Home stretch?"
Tien nodded. "We'll keep at this exercise for today and after taking tomorrow off to rest up, I think we'll be able to start with the basics on the Mafuba."
That caught the girls' attention. They were both still sore and a little uncertain after having to deal with all the boulders, but after hearing they were this close to the next step, they both silently agreed they couldn't stop now. Moments later, they both took their positions at the base of the hill.
"You two ready!"
Sharing a look, both girls made their final preparations before taking their stances. Videl stretched herself out while Akane patted her face. Determined looks on both their faces they simultaneously called out, "Yeah!"
A grinning Tien nodded before nudging the giant rock over the hill. Sure enough, the huge stone rolled to the two girls at a brisk pace. Easily avoidable if intentioned, but instead the duo braced themselves for what they expected to be a severe impact. Sure enough, the rock slammed into them with intense force instantly pushing them back, but neither of them fell. It took a great deal of effort on both girls parts, but with time and a lot of energy, they were able to keep the boulder at bay, even if just barely.
Winded from their strenuous success, the girls fell to the ground, though their break was short lived as Tien floated over to them and said, "Don't fall apart on me just yet. You two still have to roll it back up the hill."
The girls could only groan in response.
[]
A whitish blur zoomed across the ocean, revealing a young man in a dark blue gi. With a stern look on his face, Gohan upped his speed. 'I probably shouldn't be worrying, but I don't think dropping in to see how everything's going should be a problem.' Moments later, the lone island finally appeared to the young Saiyan's sight. To his confusion though, it wasn't Videl and Akane he saw on the beach with Master Roshi, it was a face he hadn't seen for a short while. "Ranma?"
On the beach proper, Roshi stood besides Ranma as the latter was poised with his hands by his sides. Before him lay Turtle and a jar with its cap on the sand. "Okay my boy, now just as I showed you earlier."
Ranma nodded and prepared to attempt the technique. As a fearful Turtle retreated in his shell, anticipating what was coming, a voice called out to them from the sky.
"Hey!"
All eyes turned up just in time to see Gohan land on the beach. "Well, if it isn't Gohan," Roshi greeted.
"Hi Master Roshi."
"Not that I ain't happy to see you or anythin' but, what are you doin' here?" asked Ranma.
"I think that's my line Ranma, but since you asked first, I'll answer. I wanted to check and see how Videl's training with the Mafuba was coming along."
"Videl? She ain't here," said Ranma.
"Excuse me?"
Roshi nodded in confirmation. "Yeah. The girls weren't too keen on me being their teacher, but they still insisted on learning the Mafuba so I directed them to Tien."
"Tien? I didn't know he knew the technique too."
"Then you can join Krillin in that club," Roshi joked. "Ayways, if you're looking for the girls, they should be with him back towards the Eastern Mountains."
"Okay, thanks. Tell Krillin and 18 I said 'Hi!'" Gohan leapt off the beach prepared to take off when he was swiftly halted by Roshi.
"Gohan wait!"
"What!? What's wrong?"
"If you don't mind, why don't you hang around for a while," Roshi suggested.
"I…don't mind staying since I'm not really in a rush, but can I ask why?"
"Same," Ranma added.
"Gohan, I want you to be Ranma's target," Roshi stated.
"What!?"
"Huh?"
"Like I said before, the Mafuba can cause great strain if your target is more powerful than you. This will be the first and last test for you Ranma. If you can seal Gohan in that jar, then you'll be more than capable of handling happy." Roshi explained.
Ranma incredulously crossed his arms. "Hold on a sec Gramps," why does it sound like you're implying Gohan's stronger than the Old Freak?"
"Because he is," Roshi simply replied. "Gohan isn't the type to brag about his power, but I feel little shame in saying that that boy there is leagues beyond even me."
"Master Roshi…"
Gohan wore a worried expression as Ranma shot a contemplative glance at his hybrid friend. Ranma did notice that Gohan seemed to be better than most other guys at his age and level, but he couldn't really be stronger than both the old guys, right? Then again, there was still the issue of his brother. Ranma had unintentionally stored that memory away, but whenever he remembered it, he couldn't help but ponder, if the kid was that strong, how strong was Gohan really?
Dismissing the thought for the moment, Ranma shrugged. "If you say so Gramps. The less times I gotta do this means the quicker the Old Freak gets put away!"
Roshi nodded then turned to Gohan. The pair shared a look of understanding and Gohan nodded back. Even being as casual as possible, Gohan's energy would probably still be too high to not drain Ranma, so he'd have to consciously lower his power further, but not too much.
Once he was mentally prepared, Gohan stepped in place of a relieved Turtle who sat besides Roshi while Ranma took the appropriate stance, and raised his energy.
In that instant, Ranma could already feel a strain on his body as he stared down a stern looking Gohan. 'The old man wasn't kidding when he said this took a lot of energy. I already feel winded and I ain't even done nothin' yet.'
Gohan also took note of Ranma's condition. From what he could sense, Ranma's power had increased these past days. Not by a wide margin, but enough to be noticed.
Ranma narrowed his eyes as Gohan returned a look. The pair nodded and Ranma thought, 'Here goes nothin!' Thrusting his arms forward, Ranma called out, "Mafuba!" and the sky seemed to be bathed in a green glow. A neon green cyclone shot straight for Gohan who instinctively crossed his arms in front of him before it hit. In seconds, Gohan was swept up by the vortex and even despite his own incredible durability, he couldn't help but let out an anguished yell.
Once the beam had hit Gohan, the strain Ranma felt intensified ten-fold. Every muscle burned as Ranma struggled to keep the stream under control. Summoning all his willpower, using what he learned from Krillin, Ranma rocked the vortex to and fro until finally raising his hands up in the air, willing it to do the same. With a fierce, guttural yell, Ranma slammed both arms down bringing Gohan and the twister down with it, right above the open jar.
Gohan screamed as he felt himself get pulled towards the container. Though he couldn't move himself, he braced himself for the inevitable crash but instead of landing inside a dark container, he landed face first into the sandy beach.
"Gack-pwa…!" Spitting out the mouthful of sand he received, Gohan turned to see Ranma frozen in the Containment Wave's dropping pose. "Hey, what happened Ranma?" asked Gohan.
He received no response as Ranma's body subsequently collapsed.
"Ranma? Ranma!? Ranmaaaa!"
[]
"Okay girls, its time for your final task," said Tien.
Akane and Videl were once again at the base of the hill with Tien at the top with the boulder. After repeating the exercise for a while and taking a decent amount of time to recover, Tien reassembled them for one more run-through.
"You'll only have to do this once. If you can succeed, then I can feel confident that at least one of you could be able to handle the Mafuba."
"And what are we doing this time? The same boulder rolling again?" snarked a sarcastic Akane.
"Yes, but this time I'm not just going to casually roll it. I'm putting my real strength behind it," Tien clarified.
Though Akane had a dismissively smug look, Videl was visually more concerned. She knew Tien wouldn't intentionally try to hurt them, but knowing that he was someone who could fight on Gohan's level (comparatively speaking) so hearing that he was going to get serious was alarming to say the least. Turning back to Akane, the Tendo heir looked as confident as ever.
Despite taking her own lumps, but she didn't seem ready to give up yet, and Videl wasn't ready to fall behind. Summoning a newfound confidence, Videl stood besides her partner and held up her fist. Taking the cue, Akane bumped her fist with Videl's and the pair stood prepared.
"We're ready!" the said in unison.
"Alright then…here goes!" Summoning his inner and outer strength, Tien shoved the boulder with a ki-infused arm thrust, and the difference compared to the previous sessions were made instantly apparent. The girls barely had half a minute to brace themselves before the rock slammed into both of them. Like before, they were both forced back, but not knocked over. This time however, they were being pushed way back.
Videl's hold appeared to be slipping as she was slowly but surely shoved back from the intense weight of the boulder. Akane's superior strength helped lighten the proverbial load, though she too seemed to be struggling to keep the rolling rock at bay.
Videl struggled, desperate to at least attempt to match Akane's strength. When she did however, she kept reminding herself of her previous failures that wound up destroying the rocks, and she was determined to not repeat the same mistakes. Summoning her energy, instead of focusing it in her fist like usual, she let it all burst outward, her body bathed in a familiar clear aura as she pushed back against the rock. With that extra boost, they finally seemed to be making some leeway as they and the rock appeared to decelerate.
"A-kan-e!"
"Just…a bit…more…!"
With a newly amped Videl and an always hardened Akane, they shifted their stances so that they were now leaning forward whilst pressing both their palms forward in unison. The decelerating boulder slowed even further as did their sliding. Sliding their closest hands together and with an intensified yell, the two girls thrust their palms forward and halted the giant rock in its tracks.
Both their strength finally fading, Akane and Videl both collapsed clutching their arms. As soon as they let it go however, the boulder began rolling again. Before they even had a chance to be scared, Tien warped in and held it at bay.
"It was pretty touch and go there for a moment girls, but you pulled it off."
"Yay…" Akane raised her opposite hand before falling back on the ground, panting.
"I…don't think…I can…."
Tien raised a hand for quiet. "Don't worry. After a performance like that, you girls can take all the rest you need. We can start the actual technique training once you're both back to full.
"Thank goodness," groaned Videl. "I don't think I can even fly back to the village like this."
"Guess I'll be your ride back," Tien chuckled. Crouching down, he hoisted each girl up on his shoulders before taking off. "Once we return, I'll have Launch and Rouge watch over you girls for the night, because you both look like you could use a bit of freshening up."
The reply he got was soft breathing entering both ears. "Can't say I blame them."
[Meanwhile]
In the fields of the famous Mt. Paozu home, Goku was hacking away at the dirt of the crops when a sudden loud crash filled the air.
"What was that?"
The crash then repeated itself, only this time, a more alert Goku could feel a certain energy not too far away. The energy wasn't big, but it was certainly much larger than the standard power level one would expect. Placing two fingers to his forehead, Goku honed in on the energy and warped to it.
Arriving on the scene, Goku was met with the surprising sight of a large, square shaped crater plastered onto the ground. "Whoa! Where'd that come from?" 'If I didn't know any better, I'd say that looks just like….'
"Who's there!?"
Goku glanced up to see a young man floating in the air, probably similar to Gohan's age with long dark hair and a sharp gaze. Goku hid his surprise as beyond the kid being able to fly, he recognized his energy as the one he was sensing before. Keeping his composure, Goku gave a simple wave and greeted, "Yo."
"You there!" he called as he descended. He took a quick but solid glance at Goku and replied, "A farmer? What are you doing in these woods?"
"I was working on my crops when I heard that large explosion," Goku replied. "You wouldn't happen to know anything about that, would you?" he asked in a knowing manner.
"Maybe I do, maybe I don't," Taro dismissed. "Either way, it's none of your concern. If you know what's best for you mister, you'd best do well to stay out of my way. I won't be held responsible for what happens if you get in the way of my training."
Goku's eye sparked with intrigue. "What kinda training are you doing out here?"
"I said, it's none of your business," the young man snapped.
"If you say so," Goku replied with a shrug. As he began to walk off, Goku quickly added, "But just let me tell ya, if that was the Kikoho you were doin' back there, you may want to do it in a place where there are less people and animals."
The young man quickly turned towards the retreating Saiyan with surprise plastered all over his face. 'Wait…how does he…!?' "You there hold on!"
Complying, a smug Goku turned back to the boy. "Who are you, and how do you know of the Kikoho?"
"It's one of my friend's signature techniques, and as for me, I'm Goku."
(A/N: I meant to get this done last month, but I got caught up with some other things including a small private project, and a playthrough of Persona 5 Royal. Regardless, I managed to update right before the month ends so I guess that counts for something. Anyways, before we talk about the girls, I want to shoutout that one reviewer who complained that we haven't yet seen Vegeta after FIFTY chapters. Low and behold, he manages to make a small appearance here and doing what everyone wishes they could do and punting the FUCK out of Happosai and making it hurt…like REALLY hurt. Disclaimer, I didn't include him JUST because that reviewer mentioned him. Initially, he wasn't in this Chapter's original draft, until I decided to give Bulma a small role in this performance, even if she herself doesn't know it yet. For anyone who shared the sentiment of wanting to see Vegeta, let me quell your expectations now, I don't know when he'll appear again, or if he'll play a bigger role in this story beyond small cameos. Why? Putting my own personal distaste for Vegeta aside, Videl has next to no connection with Vegeta. I know the same can be said for Tien as well, but hear me out. The main reason I excluded Vegeta is because he's too out of this world for this more down to Earth story. What I mean is Vegeta always fights his hardest as opposed to the halflings and the Earthlings who'd hold their strength back in the right situation, and the fact that again, unlike the Earthlings, he wouldn't waste his time screwing around with two teenage girls. Tien being human made him more eligible to get a more significant role. Also, there's the fact that Tien is a former World Tournament champion. A little forced, but there is a connection on that front.
Speaking of Tien and the girls, he really put them through the ringer or should I say, really 'rocked' their socks off? [Guns cocking] Tough crowd. Anyways, yeah. The girls went through their own trials, Ranma got off comparatively easy by comparison but still gets rocked in the end (no pun intended that time), and Gohan's rejoined the fray. On the opposite end of the spectrum, Pantyhose Taro is trying to master the Tri-Beam, and in doing so has come face to face with the man his master's brother has come to fear so deeply. What will come of Goku and PHT's meeting? Will the girls be fighting fit when they wake up? Is Ranma still alive!? The answers to all these questions and more (probably) next time.