Authors' Notes:
A 'kingdom' would be a city and it's surrounding
towns. An 'empire' is more than one city with a single ruler, and all the
associated towns.
Ever seen Disney's 'The Jungle Book'? Similar scenery, but a lot less
light and a lot more plants. :)
Chapter Two: Who is this other girl? Kakarott finds another girl in the jungle.
Warning: Blood, Violence
There was just no getting around it. Kakarott was lost. Very lost. He
scowled at the trees around him and sent a Ki blast through the tree in
front of him, clearing a trail. The short Saiyajin trooped dispiritedly
on through the wet wilderness. He wondered if there really was a road,
or if there had ever been one. The humans had seemed to think so. Kakarott
sighed and sensed for Ki, promising himself when he got home he'd train
harder to increase his range.
To his surprise, he picked up a Ki fairly quickly. It didn't feel too strong, and Kakarott decided it was probably another human. A new person, that he could ask directions from without feeling too stupid.
He sighed and levitated, deciding to fly to it so he could follow a straighter path. When he was about above it, he dropped down through the trees, landing gently on the plant covered ground. He looked around for the Ki signature. He sensed for it. Up to the left. Kakarott looked up, and saw a girl, sitting in a tree.
She saw that he'd seen her and jumped down, taking a combat stance.
"Leave me alone, okay?!" She hissed.
"I just wanted to ask directions," Kakarott said defensively.
"Huh?" She gaped at him.
"I'm lost," Kakarott said.
"You're not one of those bandits?" The girl asked suspiciously.
"Who?" Kakarott blinked.
"Those men in the black clothes. They attacked me and my guards!" To Kakarott's surprise the girl's eyes started watering.
"Um, no, I don't know who you're talking about," Kakarott said, scratching his head. "I'm not really wearing much black though..."
He looked down at himself. Standard torso armour over a dark brown leather bodysuit. True, his bodysuit wasn't a full one - it cut off above his knees and past his shoulders, but it kept his armour from chafing, and was reasonably comfortable. Good camouflage too.
The girl sniffled.
"Why are you crying?" Kakarott asked, confused.
"Because my guards are dead and I'm still far from home and those mean guys might still be out there and maybe they're trying to kill me, or maybe they will if they find me!" The words streamed out. "Besides, I'm not really crying," She said, wiping her eyes hastily and sniffing once more for good measure.
"Okay," Kakarott agreed.
"Who are you?" She asked.
"I'm Kakarott," He answered simply.
"Oh. I'm Chichi," She introduced herself. "Hey, are you a Saiyajin?"
"Yes," Kakarott answered immediately.
"Wow, can I see your tail?" Chichi asked, looking a tiny bit brighter.
"Huh?" Kakarott blinked. He unwound his tail from his waist and brought the tip up level with his face. Chichi walked forward, covering the distance between them, then stared intently at the brown furry tail. Kakarott began to feel a bit nervousness. He decided to ignore it. Radditz would laugh if he was scared of a human girl. His moved his tail back to it's customary position.
"You don't have a tail, do you?" He asked.
"Nope," Chichi said, rubbing her nose.
"Oh. Well, can you tell me what direction the Saiyajin Empire is?" Kakarott asked hopefully.
"Um, I think it's that way," Chichi pointed to her right. "I hope so. I'd need to get back to the main road to be sure."
"Can you go there with me then?" Kakarott asked.
"Huh?" Chichi stared at him.
"The main road," Kakarott prompted. "I'm not very good with directions, so I'd really like to make sure I'm going the right way."
Chichi's eyes started watering again. "But there are bad men back there!" Her voice dropped to a loud whisper.
"I can fight them," Kakarott said encouragingly. Chichi looked at him doubtfully.
"But you're just a child like me," She said.
"I'm old enough to go on scouting missions!" Kakarott protested. "And I'm the best fighter my age in the whole Saiyajin Empire! Even Vegeta-sama says so."
"King Vegeta?" Chichi seemed surprised.
Kakarott shook his head. "No, Prince Vegeta."
"Oh," She thought about that for a moment. "But I saw six guys, and there might be more. And they're all adults."
Kakarott sighed. "I can take out adults. It's going to take me ages to get out of this jungle," He complained.
"That's silly, I know my way around the jungle," Chichi told him.
"How? It all looks the same," Kakarott pointed out.
"Not exactly the same," Chichi said quickly. "Well, I don't know it perfectly, but I know if I keep going that way I'll get home," Chichi pointed in a direction slightly over his shoulder.
"Isn't that the wrong direction for me?" Kakarott asked, confused.
Chichi shrugged. "If you pick one direction and keep walking eventually you'll get out."
Chichi looked at the depressed expression on his face. "Oh... I'd like to take you to the main road, but I'm scared of those guys. I can't sense them anywhere."
"Huh?" Kakarott asked, surprised.
"You know, sense their Ki," Chichi said impatiently. "My Dad says Saiyajin can do that."
"Yeah, I can sense Ki," Kakarott said. "I sensed yours."
"Well, I can sense yours," Chichi scowled, "but I couldn't sense theirs, even when they were close. So I don't know if they're still there, and I don't want to go back."
Kakarott cocked his head to the side. "If I got to your home, would there be someone there who could help me find my way out of the jungle?"
"Sure," Chichi said, surprised. "There's lots of people."
"Well, if I help you get home without running into those guys, can you convince one of them to take me?" Kakarott asked hopefully.
"Sure!" Chichi answered enthusiastically.
"Whew," Kakarott sighed, relieved.
"Let's go before those guys decide to come find me," Chichi said firmly, grabbing one of Kakarott's hands and yanking him around none too gently as she took off in the direction she had decided was home. Kakarott let himself be dragged along, frowning and sensing for Ki before shrugging and turning his attention to Chichi. She had shoulder-length black hair, that was held out of her eyes by a pair of metal things, and matching black eyes. Her clothing was particularly odd, consisting of a leather top and a matching bottom piece, leaving her stomach and legs and arms completely bear, except for ankle boots and wrist bands, again in black leather. She wore a shoulder bag similar to his, over one arm and her head.
Kakarott pulled his hand free. "I can walk," He told her.
"Hmph," She frowned briefly. "Well, keep up, okay? I'm going to take a difficult route in case we're being followed, and I'm going to go fast."
Kakarott heard a footstep behind them.
"Huh?" He muttered as he spun around.
A figure dressed entirely in black was charging him. Kakarott jumped aside just in time, deftly whacking his tail into the man's legs, tripping him. Kakarott spun around, ready to take him on...
And stared as a dagger embedded itself into the black-garbed stranger's head.
"Come on, there's probably more of them!" Chichi yelped, a second dagger
in her hand. The small girl took off, disappearing through the dense plants.
Kakarott followed the order, still stunned.
Almost an hour later, they came to the river.
"Wow," Kakarott murmured, staring at the sluggish brown expanse of water. Sunlight streamed down in merry abandon, giddy at finding someplace to land after being blocked by the canopy for so long.
"This is Frying Pan River," Chichi informed him. "We call it that because it forms into a big lake near the capital, so from high up it looks like a frying pan. The easiest way to Animal City is to get a boat or raft and sail down the river."
"A boat?"
"Yep," Chichi affirmed. "But we don't have one, so we'll have to walk along the bank."
"Okay," Kakarott said, catching up beside her as they picked their way over water-logged tree roots and odd rocks. "How did so much water get into one place?"
"Well, this river starts in a lake, one smaller than Frying Pan Lake.
It's back in the jungle. When it rains, lots of water gets into the river
from the sky, and from the ground, and then it flows much faster," Chichi
began.
Kakarott listened, enjoying her simple explanations of the weird territory.
The land back home didn't have many plants, and very few lakes. If it didn't
rain during the year, water could become scarce. This place had so much
water he could practically taste it in the air. Suddenly he felt his battle
instincts flare up, and spun around... only to catch a punch full in the
face. Kakarott flew backwards, landing in the river with a splash. Gasping,
he thrashed, trying desperately to keep his head above the water.
Hands grabbed him under his arms, forcing his head up and holding it up.
"Hold still! Stop trying to move!" Chichi yelled near his ear. Kakarott coughed, sensing Ki to get his barrings. Chichi was behind him, in the water, and their attacker... Kakarott growled. He couldn't sense him!
Suddenly a ball of energy slammed into the water, barely missing Chichi's arm. The girl yelped, almost letting Kakarott go, but somehow managed to keep a hold. Kakarott looked up. There was the dark figure, framed against the bright sky. A light appeared around the attacker's hand, and a second Ki blast sailed down towards them.
Kakarott grunted, raising his hand and firing a counter blast. The figure dropped a bit lower, then began firing Ki blasts in earnest. Kakarott pulled his other hand out of the water as he fought to counter them all, finally just erecting a Ki shield as the blasts became too numerous for his skills to parry.
"Quick, get up!" Chichi hissed at him.
"Huh?" Kakarott used the lull in fire to concentrate on her. He suddenly realized there was ground under his feet.
"Climb out of the water! You can't swim!" Chichi ordered, already standing nimbly on a half-submerged root. She offered him a hand, but he levitated up and hovered beside her.
"Why didn't you fly before?" She said, suddenly angry.
"I was too busy trying to breathe," Kakarott said, then grabbed her and flew forwards as Ki blasts began raining down on them again. Kakarott landed behind a tree. The Ki storm stopped, and he poked his head around to see what was happening. Chichi followed suit, and gasped.
"Oh no! Three of them," She sounded like she was about to cry.
Kakarott scowled. "Do you have any more knives?"
"Uh huh," Chichi nodded, teary-eyed.
"Well, get them ready. We can take these guys. Remember, I'm the strongest fighter for my age in the whole Saiyajin Empire, okay?" Kakarott clenched his fists.
Chichi sniffed, then rubbed her eyes. "Okay."
Kakarott glanced back at their enemies. "I'll take those two over there that just landed. Can you take the third guy?"
"Yes, my Father trained me to fight," Chichi said, raising her chin. She pulled a knife from her boot. "I should've gotten my other knife back," She said, frowning.
"Ready?" Kakarott asked, curling his tail tightly around his waist. She nodded.
"Go!" Kakarott wasted no time. He launched himself up and flew at one of his targets, building up a Ki blast in his left hand as he swung a punch with his right. It connected solidly, and Kakarott spun, releasing the Ki blast at the other guy.
As soon as he left, Chichi effortlessly vaulted herself up into the tree they were behind, and scrambled quietly into a position where she could see all of the fight. She picked out the one Kakarott told her to take, and took aim with her knife. As Kakarott sent off his Ki blast the guy turned to watch, and Chichi let fly, nodding with satisfaction as it sunk to the hilt into the guy's chest. He dropped from the sky like a stone into the river, where a red patch of water began to spread.
"Damn! My other knife!" Chichi clenched her fists, then jumped down as one of the remaining attackers launched a Ki blast at her.
Kakarott was too busy exchanging blows to hear her. Finally one of his kick's connected, sending his opponent sprawling into a tree. He glanced over to see Chichi barely dodge a tackle, and growled as he formed a Ki blast around one fist. He fired it, then turned back to his own adversary.
The man staggered up. "Traitor," he coughed.
Kakarott ignored him, caught up in the fight. A slight smirk appeared on his face as he decided his next attack. He held both hands up, and a glow formed over them. Quickly, before his enemy could move, a swarm of energy blasts raced towards him. The black-clad fighter barely had time to bring up his arms before blast after blast slammed into him and obscured him from sight. Kakarott kept it up for a few more moments, then stopped, panting slightly and waiting for the dust and debris to settle.
As Chichi's opponent turned to counter Kakarott's Ki blast, the slight girl took the opportunity to put her father's training into practice. Gritting her teeth, she ran towards her foe, jumping up with a yell as she got close, and slamming a foot into his stomach as he spun back towards her. He doubled over, and Chichi smiled in exhilarated relief. Then she narrowed her eyes, determined not to let him recover, and punched him in the face. She followed it up with a kick that snapped his head back, then spun herself around, sending her heel into the side of his head. He fell over, not moving.
Chichi turned to see how Kakarott was faring, and yelped as she practically bumped into him.
"You can kinda fight," He grinned at her, looking impressed. "Can you use Ki?"
"Not really," Chichi admitted, "I can start a fire if I concentrate, but I've never really gotten the hang of it."
Kakarott started to say something, then gasped in surprise, turning towards the river. Chichi followed his gaze to see something thrashing about in the water.
"What are those?!" Kakarott exclaimed.
"Oh, those are crocodiles. They live in the river, and they can taste when there's blood in the water," Chichi said, happily explaining her homeland. "We probably better not walk too close to the river for a..." She cut off suddenly as Kakarott slammed into her, knocking her down. Before she could do more than blink, he was standing with a mean look on his face.
"Eeeeeeeyaaaaaa!!" He screamed, a Ki blast flaring to life amongst his fingers, then shooting off faster than her eyes could follow. Chichi sat up as Kakarott ran forward, and Chichi saw another black-clad figure. She stood as she watched Kakarott reach the guy, and begin exchanging punches and kicks so fast she had to concentrate to see. After a brief moment, Kakarott got a punch through, nailing the guy in the jaw and sending him crashing back to the ground. The Saiyajin boy then created a Ki blast, and shot his opponent point-blank. Chichi looked around, and realized that their latest attacker had been the guy she fought earlier. She felt a surge of annoyance at herself.
Kakarott came back over, looking at the river as he walked. The crocodiles were no longer churning the river. Instead some were floating, and others were gliding to the shore, apparently searching for more.
"Are those edible?" Kakarott asked, eyeing the huge lizards.
"Yeah," Chichi said, "Hey, you're not hurt at all, are you?"
"Nope," Kakarott proudly shook his head.
"You really are the greatest fighter," Chichi gushed, "I've never seen anybody fight so many people and not get hurt. Not even my Dad, and he's the best fighter I know!"
Kakarott scratched the back of his head, but he was grinning at her. "I train a lot," He said, shrugging.
"You saved my life," Chichi said, serious. "Thank you."
Kakarott stared at her, mouth ajar, wondering what to say. Chichi giggled. "You look like a fish," She smiled.
Kakarott smiled back. "Speaking of fish, I'm kinda hungry..."
"Hmm," Chichi frowned. "Fish is out of it with all those crocodiles around..."
"You said they were edible, right?" Kakarott asked hopefully.
"Yeah," Chichi brightened. "If you kill them, I'll cook them!"
"Okay!" Kakarott agreed, and bounded happily towards the reptiles.
They were still sitting beside the small cooking fire later, after the sun had set. Kakarott finished the last of the crocodile and lay back.
"I've never seen anyone eat so much," Chichi said, shaking her head.
"It tasted really, really good," He said, putting his hands behind his head as he turned to look at her. The tip of his tail twitched once from it's customary place curled around his armour.
"Thank you," Chichi blushed, turning to gaze at the fire. For a while the sounds of the jungle around them took over - the gentle lap of the river against it's banks, the rustle of leaves as the nightlife scurried around, and the crackle of the fire as it struggled to burn slightly damp wood on the flat rock Chichi had found earlier.
"You know, you're the first guy who's ever really fought for me," Chichi said softly, not moving her eyes. "Father says I'm a bit too young to have suitors or anything, but I've always wanted a knight. Princess Bulma used to have a knight when she was twelve. She always has guys around ready to fight or do anything she wants them to do. She came to visit once and she kept bragging about how her knight was the best fighter she'd ever seen. I asked Captain Yama to be my knight, but he said I didn't need one. Then he told Father, who came and gave me this dumb talk about how I could fight my own battles and I was too young to worry about that sort of thing."
Chichi clenched her fists. "I know I can fight, but that's not the same thing, and he thinks I'm too young for everything! Even girls who aren't princesses have guys that promise to be their knights. It's not fair!"
"What's a knight?" Kakarott asked.
"Oh, it's just a word for a guy who promised to fight for someone. Like Bulma's knight, whatever-his-name-was. He promised to fight for her, I dunno, if she made an enemy or something, and so Bulma called him 'her knight'," Chichi said, frowning.
"Oh," Kakarott said. He sat up. "I'll be your knight, if you want."
"Huh?" Chichi's head snapped up and she stared at him.
"I like fighting with you," Kakarott explained.
"You... you'd be my knight? Really?" Chichi gushed, her hands flying to her cheeks.
"Sure," Kakarott confirmed.
Chichi shrieked and jumped to her feet. Kakarott tensed up, also jumping to his feet, looking around quickly to see if they were under attack again. Suddenly he found Chichi had her arms around him, squeezing, but not tightly enough to really be an attack.
"Thank you!" She sobbed in his ear. She let him go suddenly, and clasped her hands in front of her. "Wow! I have the best knight in the world!"
"Uh, yeah," Kakarott said, scratching his head.
"I'm so lucky! Thank you, Kakarott," She smiled at him, practically jumping up and down in excitement and joy. Kakarott found himself smiling back.
"You know, that's really special to me," Chichi said as she calmed down. She sniffled, but her eyes didn't water.
Kakarott nodded, knowing he was missing something, but he just couldn't put his finger on it.
Chichi stepped back, looking him up and down with an appraising look on her face. She smiled. "You're kinda cute too."
"Huh?" Kakarott stared at her. She blushed, and giggled.
"You know," She said, putting her hands behind her back and turning to look at the fire, "sometimes knights marry the girls they promised to protect."
"Marry?"
"Mm hm," Chichi nodded. She looked back at Kakarott. "If I was grown up enough, would you marry me, Kakarott?"
"...," Kakarott scratched his head, "..uh..."
Chichi's shoulders sank as she quickly turned back towards the fire. She sighed, and sniffed slightly.
"I guess so," Kakarott said, shrugging.
"Really?" Chichi sniffed, turning back shyly.
Kakarott nodded solemnly, wondering why she seemed ready to start crying again.
Chichi smiled. "Do you think I'm pretty, then?"
Kakarott blinked, and cocked his head to the side, looking at her. 'She looks a bit like a Saiyajin, but her hair's not quite right, and her eyes are wider. She looks... neat. Tidy. Like a perfectly performed kick, with the balance all just right.'
"Yes," the boy answered honestly.
"Will you promise?"
"Promise what?"
"To marry me."
"Okay," Kakarott agreed, glad she seemed happier. He liked it when she smiled. "What's 'ma...'"
Kakarott got no further as a voice cut through his question.
"Ahoy the fire!!"
Chichi frowned. Kakarott tensed, dropping into a defensive stance.
"Hello?" Chichi yelled back.
"Can you help me here?" The voice replied.
"Where are you?" Chichi called.
"The river! I can't land because of these big... lizards! I've got my own dinner, but I'd like to be able to cook it!"
"Okay!" Chichi called back. Then she lowered her voice to normal volume. "Come on, Kakarott!" She said, and took off for the river. Kakarott caught up with her easily, then passed her. He reached the bank, and could see a dark shape on the river in the bluish moonlight. The moon hung high in the sky, full and blue. Kakarott regarded it for a moment, remembering how much Vegeta hated that second, large moon that couldn't transform a Saiyajin. Not like the white one, but it was only full once a year.
Chichi was scanning the water. She held up a hand and concentrated. A small glowing ball appeared, brightening slowly.
"Hey!" The voice from the boat sounded startled. "You use Ki?"
"She can't talk, cause she's concentrating!" Kakarott called helpfully. He levitated himself up and hovered out to the boat.
"Yikes!" The voice cried. "You've got a strong Ki... hey, I wouldn't go into the water if I were you..."
"I'm not in the water," Kakarott answered, reaching the boat. A human boy, probably not much older than himself, regarded him, surprise pasted onto his features. Kakarott stared back. The boy had no hair! And no nose.
Abruptly the human remembered himself. "Uh, hi, I guess. I'm Kuririn."
"I'm Kakarott."
Kuririn peered closer at the messily haired boy in front of him. "A Saiyajin?!" His eyes widened.
Kakarott nodded.
The light snapped off. "Hey!" Chichi yelled from the shore. "Are you guys going to come over here or not? And don't forget the boat!"
Kuririn concentrated, a ball of Ki forming in his hand. He looked over the water, and pointed at a floating log. "Damn those things. They're full of teeth."
"That's a log," Kakarott pointed out.
"You think so, huh?" Kuririn raised an eyebrow. "If you can fly, you can shoot Ki blasts, right?"
"Of course," Kakarott said, sounding insulted.
"Then shoot it," Kuririn suggested.
Kakarott raised a hand and sent a Ki blast at the log. It reared back in the water, churning the dark river, and disappeared underneath the surface.
"Oh, it's one of those crocodiles," Kakarott said. "Wow, it hides well like that."
"Yeah," Kuririn said. "One of those almost bit my leg off. See why I don't want to get out of the boat while they're around? I know I can shoot 'em off, but I can't see them coming."
Kakarott grinned at him, and lowered himself down. He sank a bit into the water, and let back his head, screaming as he summoned an aura of power around himself to scare off any crocodiles. Then he grabbed the front of the boat and began 'flying' towards the shore, pulling the boat with him.
"Wow!" Kuririn said, impressed. As soon as they were close enough that Kakarott could stand without levitating, Kuririn jumped out, extinguishing his Ki light and grabbing the other side of the boat. Together they dragged it up, making sure it was caught securely between some tree roots so it couldn't drift off.
Chichi was standing there when they turned back.
"Hello," She said, "I'm Chichi."
"I'm Kuririn," The human boy answered her politely. Then he turned and jumped into the boat nimbly and rummaged around until he found a sack. He jumped back, and smiled. "You want to share?" He offered.
Chichi authoritatively took the sack, and inspected it's contents. "Well, I'm full, but I'll cook it for you, if you want."
"Really?" Kuririn asked. "Are you a good cook?"
"I'm an excellent cook," Chichi assured him.
"Yeah, she is," Kakarott confirmed as the three of them began walking
back to Chichi's fire.
Chichi had borrowed a knife from Kuririn the next morning and cut off a fairly straight branch. She was now standing at the back of Kuririn's small boat, steering and poling them along when she could. Kakarott found Kuririn to be a very interesting human. Kuririn had explained to them last night, as he and Kakarott ate, that he was on his way through the Animal Kingdom, searching for a famous fighter called 'Kamesennin'. Kakarott knew of the man - he was one of the few human warriors the Saiyajin regarded with any respect. That he was at least three hundred years old and still more than a match for most Saiyajin warriors only helped, and Kakarott was intrigued that Kuririn was planning to ask such a famous warrior to train him.
Kuririn had assured him that Kamesennin did indeed train people - people who had enough skill or potential. Kuririn had been training since he was young to fight, and had surpassed all of his age-group, and even most of the adult warriors of his city. So he was going to see if Kamesennin would take him on as a pupil.
Now, as the morning sun beat down on the three young people, Kakarott and Kuririn were animatedly exchanging stories of sparring matches and Ki techniques. Chichi had yelled at them earlier when they tried to actually perform those techniques while on the boat, so now they settled for descriptions.
"And then I thought, 'What if my Ki was sharp like a sword?' Unfortunately he took the opportunity to punch me, and I lost the match. Later on I went out, and started trying to make a Ki sword. Never did quite get a sword, but after several months I came up with this really, really cool Ki blast. It's flat, but it's round, and the edges are really sharp! Sharper than any sword I've ever seen! It cuts right through rocks!" Kuririn was proudly re-telling how he created his favourite and trademark Ki attack.
"Does it go through metal too? And armour?" Kakarott asked.
"Of course it goes through armour," Kuririn said proudly. "I'm not sure about metal though. I've never had a really big bit of metal that I needed to cut. It takes a while to get it right, though. I can flatten my Ki blasts, but the edge always needs a minute or so of concentration. It's a real shame... and no one I showed it to could get it right."
Kakarott glanced at Chichi and then quickly back at Kuririn. The boy grinned at him, and leaned forward, lowering his voice. "I'll show you later, when we land, okay?"
Kakarott grinned. "Can't wait," He said.
"You know, you're the first Saiyajin I've met who's ever said more to me than 'Die, Human!'" Kuririn said, leaning back a bit. "How come you're so friendly?"
Kakarott blinked, then shrugged. "I dunno. I guess there's not really much point trying to kill anyone. I was on a scouting mission, in the jungle, and I... I got lost," Kakarott admitted with a sigh.
"Oh," Kuririn said, warily. "Well, don't worry, everyone gets lost sometime. How come you're traveling with Chichi, then? The Saiyajin Empire is the other way."
Kakarott gritted his teeth. It was one thing to admit he had gotten lost, but to tell another warrior that he had no sense of direction...
Kuririn studied his new acquaintance, noticing his darkening expression. "Hey, it's none of my business," He offered, waving away his curiosity.
"I was hoping to find a guide," Kakarott said, slowly. "Chichi was worried about getting attacked by those guys I told you about, so I told her I'd travel with her to her home. She says someone there can... show me back to a proper road or something."
"Oh," Kuririn nodded. "Well, I can show you out of the jungle, but it'll be the wrong side. Kamesennin is supposed to live on this little island, so I'd be going towards the sea, and then trying to find another boat."
"You can't fly?" Kakarott asked, an innocently curious expression on his face.
"Not yet," Kuririn said defensively.
"I wonder what it would be like, being trained by a single warrior," Kakarott mused.
Kuririn smiled slightly. "Shame you can't come with me."
"Huh?" Kakarott gaped at him.
"Well, if half your stories are true, you're a pretty good fighter," Kuririn said.
"He's a very good fighter," Chichi interrupted, causing both boys to jump slightly at the unexpected interruption.
"Yeah, well, like I said: Kamesennin trains people who come to him who have lots of potential," Kuririn said, relaxing again. "I wonder if he'd agree to train a Saiyajin..."
Kakarott brightened, then his shoulders slumped almost comically as his face took on a depressed expression. He opened his mouth, then brightened and straightened back up. "Yeah, if I don't show up in a few more days, everyone'll probably think I'm dead."
"That's good?" Kuririn asked, raising an eyebrow.
"Well, maybe," Kakarott said. "If I come back with improved fighting ability nobody'll mind. But... I'm kinda late back as it is. It's just... Radditz is going to tease me about this for years. So if I go back, I think I'd prefer to have trained with a famous warrior than just drag myself back in. Even just a new technique or something."
Kuririn suddenly felt a bit sorry for Kakarott. He reached out without thinking and put a hand on Kakarott's shoulder. "Hey, I tell you what. If Kamesennin won't train you, I'll teach you my Kienzan technique, okay?"
Kakarott removed his gaze from Kuririn's hand - prolonged contact was something most Saiyajin did not do - and stared at the Human. "Really?" He found himself asking, unconsciously copying one of their favourite questions.
"I promise," Kuririn said, removing his hand. Kakarott let himself relax, and grinned happily across the boat at him.
"Look!" Chichi called, pointing ahead. "There's Frying Pan Lake! We're almost at Animal City!"
"Cool!" Kuririn said.
Chichi began to tell them about the city, and how wonderful it was. A little while later the river emptied them into a lake, and Chichi used her pole to skirt the edges of the lake until they reached several long wooden platforms - Chichi called them 'piers' - that stretched out into the water. Chichi brought the boat up to one of them, and yelled at a nearby man to throw her a rope. He did so, tying one end to one of the pier's poles first. Chichi caught the rope and tied it to the boat. Kuririn stood carefully and addressed her.
"Chichi, does this lake go to the sea?"
"Yes," Chichi nodded, "but the river between here and the sea is full of rocks and sandbars, not to mention the occasional shark and the crocodiles. Nobody really uses it."
"Oh, well, Kakarott and I will just walk. You can keep the boat," Kuririn said, shrugging.
"Thank you," Chichi smiled, laying the pole in the boat. "I'll give it to someone who needs it." She stepped carefully to the pier, the put her hands up on it and began to pull herself up. Kakarott levitated over to her and put his arms around her, lifting her up and landing on the wood. He let her go and turned back towards Kuririn.
"Thank you!" Chichi smiled brightly at him. Kakarott smiled back, before leaning down and offering a hand to the other Human. Kuririn raised his eyebrows in surprise, then smiled, taking Kakarott's hand and bracing himself as the Saiyajin pulled him up.
"You're handy to have around, Kakarott," He said with a grin.
"You think so?" Kakarott asked, looking surprised.
"Oh, yeah!" Kuririn chuckled.
"Come on! You want to come meet my father?" Chichi took one of Kakarott's hands and began tugging on it.
"Actually, I was hoping to leave straight away," Kuririn said apologetically. "I don't really like the jungle, and the sooner I get through it, the better."
Chichi frowned and made a disapproving noise.
"Sorry, Chichi," Kuririn said.
Chichi sighed, looking slightly miserable. "It's okay, Daddy would probably be busy anyway. Will you come back and visit me?" She asked, looking at Kakarott.
"Um..," Kakarott mumbled.
"Sure!" Kuririn said, whole-heartedly. "I'm sure I'll pass back this way, and Kakarott'll have to to get home."
"Okay, then, I guess," Chichi said. She pulled her bag off it's customary shoulder, and reached into it, rummaging around. "Hey, Kakarott, these are for you," She said, blushing slightly after a moment. She held out a round stone tied onto a leather necklace, and a small, gold ring with a funny symbol on it.
Kakarott took them, and began to look them over.
"The ring will help you find me," She said, in her explaining tone. "When you come back, just show that to people and ask them to take you to me. That stone is magical. You see the red mark? Well, it moves, and so it's always pointing the same direction."
She took it from him and held it so both boys could see, then moved it around. "No matter what direction you're looking at, it's always pointing to the same direction it's always points to, so you can use it to find your way without getting lost."
"Thank you," Kakarott said, smiling as he took it back and moved it around a few times. Then he put it on, shaking his head a few times to help it over his hair. He slipped the ring onto the small finger of his right hand.
"You're welcome," Chichi smiled. She gave him a quick hug. "Good luck!
Bye!" She said, and then turned and ran off.
- Finis Chapter 2 -
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