Author's Note:
The hardest thing about this is deciding what power level everyone is relative to everyone else. Drat it, I know Vegeta was incredibly powerful as a kid, but he's going to have to be not so incredibly powerful right away, or this story won't work. Although, since no one's complained, I guess you're all okay with this. ^_^ Then why am I worrying?! *_* After all, it's a retelling, not the original story... and that makes it an AU! Okay, I'm calm again.
Chapter Seven: Bojack the deadly fighter! Who will face him?
Warning: Violence
Kuririn could feel the beads of sweat rolling down his back as he inched
his way a little closer. The wind that constantly swept up off the beach
chose that moment to buffet him, pushing his gi around with reckless abandon.
Kuririn ignored it, instead cupping a hand around the hole in the coconut
he was carrying, biting his bottom lip at the thought that sand might get
inside and sour the sweet, cloudy liquid inside.
Careful not to make a sound, he eased his way around to avoid casting a shadow over the body lying stomach-down on the warm sand. If his timing was off, he would look like a complete idiot. A voice in the back of his head wondered if she had heard him yet.
Kuririn lowered himself till he was sitting on the backs of his legs, near the head of the sunbathing woman.
"Um, excuse me?" He said, horrified at the discordant way the words erupted from his throat.
"Hmm?" The blue-green girl opened her blue eyes and stared at him.
"Uh, it's kinda hot out here and I was wondering if you, uh, wanted a coconut?" Kuririn babbled, holding out the coconut a bit closer to her.
Her eyes narrowed. With precise movements, Pepa sat up and dusted herself off, being careful not to put pressure on any of her bruises or her broken leg.
"Thank you, but I'm just fine," She sniffed, turning her head the other way. Her ponytails bobbed a few times in contempt.
"Oh...," Kuririn sighed, shrinking slightly. "I, uh, wanted to apologize for breaking your leg too. It must take lots of practise to do those flips and stuff, and... I know you'll probably be off it for weeks now..."
"Well, injuries will happen now, won't they?" Pepa snapped.
"Uh, you're really mad?" Kuririn asked before he could stop himself.
Pepa made a face. Then sighed in irritation. "Look, you're obviously a better fighter then me, so you won our match. I'll just have to practise for the next tournament. Can you stop rubbing it in my face now?!"
"Huh? I only won cause I surprised you with a power attack! You've got way more moves then I do!" Kuririn protested wildly. "You can do all those cool acrobatics! I'm not that flexible, I'd probably break my back or something if I tried that. And I've never seen a Ki sword before. It reminded me of this technique I made - I was inspired by swords, but I didn't think you could actually make a Ki sword and you made it so fast, that was incredible! It took me ages to be able to get an edge on my Kienzan without concentrating for several minutes. You must be really really good at controlling your Ki," Kuririn stopped only because he had to breathe.
"...That's nice of you to say that," Pepa said neutrally.
"Um...," Kuririn trailed off, not sure what to say. Finally he decided he should leave before the situation got more uncomfortable. "Well, enjoy the coconut!" He said, putting it down beside her and pushing himself to his feet. He was pleased that he didn't get sand everywhere.
"Bye!" The short boy called to her, turning to leave.
"Hey, um, Kuririn?" Pepa called.
"Yes?," Kuririn gasped, frozen in place.
Pepa reached around and grabbed a small leather waterbag lying on the sand near her. "You know, if you walk around without a hat, you're going to get a sunburn," She said, holding out the bag to him. "This is a special potion, everyone here makes it. If you put it on your bare skin, the sun won't burn it."
"Sun burn?" Kuririn asked, accepting the bag.
"Yes, it's really painful," Pepa explained. "Since you don't have any hair I thought you could use some," She tried to make it sound offhand.
"Oh, yeah," Kuririn mumbled. "Thanks a lot!" He smiled at her.
Pepa shrugged.
"I guess I'll see you later," Kuririn said, waving slightly as he turned and walked away. Pepa nodded once, before starting to move back into her sunbathing position.
Kuririn walked off, feeling immensely pleased with himself. Halfway back to the camp someone feel into step with him.
"Had a nice conversation, hmm?" Radditz raised an eyebrow.
"What?" Kuririn faltered, feeling his face blush.
"What's this?" Radditz pointed to the leather bag.
"It's a potion to prevent sunburn," Kuririn said quickly.
"Oh," Radditz said, deflating a bit.
"What did you think it was?" Kuririn asked suspiciously.
Radditz shrugged. "Water, I guess," He said.
"Water? Why the hell would she give me water?" Kuririn asked, bewildered.
"Why not?" Radditz sniffed.
Kuririn laughed.
"What?" Radditz snapped.
"I keep forgetting Saiyajin aren't used to the concept of 'lots of water'," Kuririn snickered. "Of course you'd think anything in a liquid-holding container is water. Hey, I have to remember that in case I want to poison any of you."
"Poison?" Radditz rolled his eyes. "You disgust me, Human."
"So tell me, if I gave a Saiyan girl water, would she think I was cute?" Kuririn grinned.
"Maybe, if she's three," Radditz sneered. "Then she'd be about your height too, heh."
"So Vegeta has to hit on three-year-olds or be over-shadowed too?" Kuririn narrowed his eyes, but couldn't stop the corners of his mouth from twitching upwards.
"Prince Vegeta to you, you low life scum," Radditz scowled, then levitated. "Now come on, the matches are about to start, and Kakarott doesn't want you missing his."
"Gotcha!" Kuririn said, jumping into the air and speeding off with the
long-haired Saiyan.
Kuririn and Radditz set down near Vegeta just as the announcer screamed for Kakarott and Jackie Chun to begin.
"Why did Kamesennin tell us he wouldn't be fighting when it appears he intended to all along?" Vegeta asked in Kuririn's general direction, although he didn't look at him.
"What?" Kuririn asked.
"Jackie Chun. He's Kamesennin. It's obvious. Same beard, he's old...," Vegeta replied.
Kuririn squinted at the old man.
Jackie Chun ran forward, punching at Kakarott's face. The Saiyan leapt up, jumping easily over the blow. Chun didn't seem at all fazed. The white-haired man jumped up into the air, somersaulting upwards mid-air, then suddenly unfolding into a kick that smashed into Kakarott's side, sending him sprawling through the air.
"I don't know, I've never seen Master Roshi fight like that," Kuririn commented as Kakarott caught himself in the air. Chun had already landed inside the ring and stood waiting for his shorter opponent to land. Kakarott set down and immediately settled into his stance, narrowing his eyes. Quite independently Kakarott had arrived at the same suspicion as his prince, and he was watching Chun closely. He had to admit to himself that if Chun really was Master Roshi, he truly was a legendary fighter.
"I didn't hit you too hard, did I, kid?" Jackie called across the ring.
Kakarott grinned, glad for the challenge and sprang forwards, closing the distance between himself and his opponent. As he did so, he noticed Jackie's image seemed to waver, but he had no time to think about it before his punch... went right through Jackie.
Gasping, Kakarott pulled his fist back, thoughts of pirate ghosts dancing through his head.
"Behind you!" Kuririn screamed, a little too late. Jackie Chun smashed the blades of both his hands into the boy's back, sending Kakarott face first into the dirt.
"He uses that technique a lot, although he made two fake images of himself yesterday," Vegeta frowned. "Kakarott should have been expecting it."
"Hurry up and get up, Kakarott!" Kuririn called.
Kakarott was doing just that, climbing carefully to his feet.
"How did you do that?" Kakarott asked Jackie.
"It's a simple matter, really, but I'm not going to explain it to you," The old man replied.
"Hiiiiii-yaaaaaa!" Kakarott yelled, before Chun had finished speaking. The Saiyan sped towards the Human, pulling aside at the last moment and sending a fist towards Jackie's side. Somehow the old man managed to dodge it, firing a Ki blast at Kakarott that hit and almost knocked him off balance. Kakarott levitated quickly, then spun around.
"That's rude," Jackie commented. Suddenly his expression changed to one of merry befuddlement and he began to stagger around.
"Are you okay?" Kakarott asked, completely confused.
"Ho ho ho," Chun chortled, continuing his odd movements, suddenly bringing his elbow down onto Kakarott's head and knocking him down.
"Ow!" Kakarott yelped, rubbing his head as he scrambled back up to his feet. He found himself staring at Jackie's back as the old man continued to stagger. Kakarott had no warning as Chun's leg suddenly sprang up, catching him square in the chin and launching the Saiyan skywards.
"What is he doing?" Radditz asked, watching Chun intently.
"Some kind of drunken stance, I think," Kuririn answered without taking his eyes from the fight.
Kakarott growled and changed directions as he descended, heading towards Chun in a flying kick. The old man staggered to the side instants before the boy's foot would have connected, and smacked an elbow into Kakarott's back, sending the boy tumbling as he crashed into the ground.
"What a clever style," Vegeta commented. "It looks stupid, though."
"Yeah, but if it came down to it, I'd rather look stupid then lose," Kuririn said.
"I wasn't asking for your opinion, Human," Vegeta sniffed.
Kuririn ignored the Prince, watching Jackie dodge another of Kakarott's punches, only to knee the Saiyan boy in the stomach. Kakarott crumpled, then rolled out of harm's way and stood up carefully.
"Giving up?" Jackie's voice sounded as drunk as his motions.
Kakarott jumped further away from Jackie, then crouched down, bending his head down.
"I can't guess what he'll do next cause he keeps moving randomly," Kakarott muttered to himself. "That means, I have to force him to move the way I want him to."
The Saiyan grinned to himself.
"Kakarott!" Radditz called.
"What attack will Kakarott come up with next?" The announcer was shouting. "He hasn't shown any signs of quitting up till now."
Suddenly Kakarott straightened and turned to face Jackie. His eyes were wild, and saliva dripped down one side of his face, as he snarled at the old man, showing his canine teeth. With a low, animalistic growl, the Saiyan jumped towards Jackie, landing on his feet and hands and quickly covering the distance.
With a savage howl he leapt at Jackie, his fingers extended as claws aimed for the old man's throat. As the little Saiyan had intended, Jackie forgot all about the drunken stance, straightening and launching a punch at Kakarott's head. Kakarott pushed out with his Ki, propelling himself in a neat flip over the punch, and he slammed his heel into Jackie's head as he descended, sending the old man sprawling.
Kakarott landed easily on all fours, then stood up, wiping the sweat from his forehead and grinning as he watched Jackie Chun climb to his feet.
"Saiyajin don't fight like that," Vegeta growled.
"Wow, he looked pretty scary," Kuririn muttered.
"You learn to snarl really well when you turn into a giant monkey once a year," Radditz grinned a wide, toothy grin at Kuririn.
"Do you foam at the mouth too?" Kuririn raised an eyebrow. Radditz's tail flew out from around his waist and smashed into Kuririn, knocking him off his feet.
"Cheater!" Kuririn spat, jumping easily to his feet, fists clenched.
"Later," Vegeta growled at them both.
Jackie Chun and Kakarott were busy exchanging a series of blows, each blocking, countering or dodging the other's maneuvers. Finally Kakarott fell backwards, rolling with a punch, landing on his back. Rolling quickly onto his stomach, he lashed out with his tail, tripping Chun. Kakarott scrambled to his feet and danced away, then placed his hands down behind his back, and began charging his energy.
Jackie Chun rose to his feet, and began to move his arms in a complex motion. Kakarott tensed, directing his senses at the man, but Jackie's Ki remained as it was, with no signs of charging for an attack.
"Kame...," Kakarott strained, beginning to recite the familiar phrase.
"Yo-i-ko-min-min-ken," Chun chanted, just loud enough for the Saiyan
to hear. Kakarott's mouth hung open, the next syllables refusing to come.
A lethargic tiredness fell over him, and his accumulated energy disappeared
as his eyes closed and he fell forward and hit the ground face-first.
"What the hell?!" Radditz demanded, his tail thrashing back and forward in surprise as he stood on tiptoes, peering intently at Kakarott's prone form.
"Kakarott, get up!" Kuririn yelled as the announcer began the count down.
"How... what did he do to him?" Vegeta muttered, warily eyeing the black-garbed old man that stood, hands clasped behind his back, waiting patiently as the announcer called out numbers.
"Kakarott!" Kuririn shouted, cupping his hands as he yelled at his friend.
"Kakarott, get the hell back up!" Radditz snarled.
"Three!" The announcer cried. Still, Kakarott didn't move.
"He's not dead," Radditz frowned, sensing. In fact, Kakarott's Ki level was still pretty high. His younger brother should still be jumping around - especially since Chun hadn't landed any major blows!
"One! Out! Match goes to Jackie Chun!" The announcer cried. The crowd of spectators began to cheer, and Chun bowed a few times, before walking away. Kuririn raced out to where Kakarott still lay, face down.
"Hey, Kakarott!" The short boy called, dropping to his knees and leaning down to inspect the Saiyan. A faint snore answered him. Kuririn began shaking him gently. "Wake up!"
"What's wrong with him?" Radditz asked, crossing his arms over his chest as he glared down.
Kakarott mumbled something, and opened his eyes.
"Are you okay?" Kuririn asked, concerned.
"Yeah," Kakarott said, standing up. "What happened?"
"You tell us," Radditz scowled.
Kakarott looked embarrassed. "I think... I fell asleep."
"No way," Kuririn said. "You can't fall asleep in the middle of a fight."
"Where's Jackie Chun?" Kakarott asked, looking around for the old man.
"Huh? I don't know," Kuririn shrugged.
"You could," Radditz sounded almost reproachful, "at least beat some old man, after beating me."
"...," Kakarott scowled at his brother.
"Get out of the ring," Vegeta said, walking over to them. "It's my turn."
Radditz nodded, throwing a glare at Kiwi. The pale humanoid was just entering the ring, still wearing his thick, white cape despite the heat and humidity.
Levitating, Kuririn, Kakarott and Radditz quickly flew back over to
their customary spot, ready to watch the final match of the day.
"Fighters! Ready?! Fight!!" The announcer screamed, as the crowd hollered it's approval.
Vegeta and Kiwi both slid into fighting stances, although neither made a move.
"I'm honoured to fight you," Kiwi smirked. "I hear that you're already near Elite class, and you're still young. You must be some sort of fluke."
Vegeta growled low in his throat. "Watch me get that final power boost into Elite by breaking every bone in your body, Iceman."
"I'll have you know I'm one of Cold's Palace Guards," Kiwi said grandly.
"Ah, all fluff, no real experience," Vegeta snickered.
Kiwi's face darkened. "Well then, oh experienced one, attack!"
"You asked," Vegeta sneered, springing into the air as he shot Ki blast after Ki blast in rapid succession at his adversary. Vegeta watched the clouds of dust until he felt a twinge of Ki to his right.
Spinning, the Saiyan brought up his arms, crossed defensively in front of him, and was knocked backwards, but not out of control, by a flying kick. Vegeta stopped his movement with a thought, then sped forward, meeting Kiwi mid air where the two began exchanging a brisk series of kicks and punches.
Kiwi caught Vegeta's left fist, shoving the hand to one side and catching the wrist in one smooth movement, quickly pulling Vegeta forward and bringing up his knee. Vegeta winced, although his armour absorbed some of the blow. Before he could recover, Kiwi slipped out to the side and rammed an elbow into his back, sending the Saiyan face first towards the already broken ground.
Vegeta angled and hit the ground on all fours, bouncing off the dirt and 'landing' at the same altitude as the Cold warrior. Vegeta growled, and sped forward again, feinting a right punch. As Kiwi moved his hand up to block it, Vegeta moved his fist to his left, pulling his body around after him and slamming his left leg into his opponent. Kiwi was knocked back several meters, far enough for Vegeta to prepare his next attack.
Placing his hands behind him, the Saiyan concentrated his energy then shoved his hands up and in front of him.
"Garlick-Ho!" Vegeta screamed, and a deluge of energy shot out, catching Kiwi and pushing the unfortunate Northerner ahead of itself. Eyes glinting, Vegeta flew upwards, altering his angle, and sent Kiwi smashing into the ground. Hearing some shouting below, the Saiyan Prince surveyed his work, smirking as he observed that Kiwi was pulling himself out of a new crater - behind the spectators.
"Well, well. That beam technique is the easiest manuever for the amount of damage it causes that I've ever pulled off. No wonder Kakarott likes the Kamehameha," Vegeta mused, descending slowly. When he was low enough to see Kiwi, he drew his lips back in a sneer, before touching down, spinning on his heel, and stalking over to Radditz and the others.
Behind him, Kiwi's knuckles went even paler as the man clenched his
fists so hard his nails bit into the skin.
The next day's match was fierce, as Dia did her best to please her King
and defeat one of the two remaining Mainlanders. To her credit, Vegeta
collapsed after the ten count and had to be carried off by Radditz, but
a defeat was still a defeat, and when she woke up the next day Spade informed
her King Bojack wasn't pleased with her. Depressed, the blue skinned woman
could do nothing but lie there and wait till she healed.
"How does your brother manage to hang around that guy?" Kuririn said, sitting down beside Kakarott, who was watching the setting sun.
"Vegeta? He's not too bad if you don't get him angry at you," Kakarott shrugged.
"Shame about tomorrow. Dia did a number on him. There's no way he'll be able to beat Jackie Chun," Kuririn shook his head. "I still can't decide whether Master Roshi and Jackie Chun are the same person. Master Roshi has missed all of Chun's fights... but he can't be Jackie Chun, because Jackie got injured in that fight against Lubu, but Master Roshi wasn't hurt."
"Jackie Chun wasn't injured when he fought me, and that was just the next day," Kakarott pointed out.
"Something weird is happening," Kuririn complained. His expression suddenly grew crafty. "Hey, Kakarott, how about if we do a little test."
Kakarott raised an eyebrow.
"If we could get something that stains the skin, we could 'accidentally' spill some on Master Roshi. Then, if Jackie Chun turns up with the stains on him, we'll know they're the same person!"
Kakarott nodded. "That's a good idea... but what if Roshi-sama gets mad?"
"What's the worst he's going to do?" Kuririn asked rhetorically.
"Kill us?" Kakarott suggested.
"Seriously," Kuririn said. "You know he wouldn't do that."
"Refuse to train us? Beat us up?" Kakarott listed.
"Exactly," Kuririn nodded, "but, you see, it was an accident. We didn't mean to spill whatever it is on him. So he can't blame us."
"This sounds like something Tabelu would do," Kakarott mumbled.
"Now, where can we get something that'll do the trick?" Kuririn asked.
"I have no idea," Kakarott replied.
"Squid ink," Kuririn said, tapping his fingertips together as he narrowed his eyes. "Squid ink would be perfect."
"I wonder if Roshi-sama brought any of those underwater capes," Kakarott mused.
"Ha! I'll go ask him for one!" Kuririn said, jumping up excitedly. "We can take turns diving for squids!"
"At night?" Kakarott made a face.
"Fine, I'll dive, you float up the top with a light so I can find you again, okay?"
"Okay!"
Although Kamesennin hadn't brought any underwater capes, he directed them to the tournament organiser, who found someone willing to lend them one. Kuririn told them he was planning on getting an early morning swim to check out the beautiful local fish, and after moving heavy furniture for the woman it belonged to, the boys found themselves out over the sea, with only the stars and half a pale blue moon for company.
Tracking down suitable squids took them most of the night, but by morning Kuririn had collected enough. Sneaking back to the campsite they managed to wake everyone, but in the darkness no one noticed the ink all over Kuririn's clothes. As Kakarott moved over to find a place to sleep, though, he tripped in the dark, knocking the drink he had been finishing all over Kamesennin.
After a lot of noise, everyone went back to sleep.
Kakarott was rudely shaken awake the next morning.
"Hey, wake up!" Kamesennin snapped at the boy.
"Wha?" Kakarott mumbled sitting up and scratching his head.
"What sort of drink did you have?" Kamesennin scowled.
"Um, some kind of juice," Kakarott lied.
"Really. It wouldn't just happen to be squid ink?"
"Why would I be drinking squid ink in the middle of the night?" Kakarott said quickly.
Kamesennin looked hard at the Saiyajin. Kakarott suddenly felt nervous.
"What's the matter, Master Roshi?" Kuririn asked, wide-eyed.
"Yeah," Radditz snorted. "It's not like any of the women have been looking at you as it is. If anything, some of them might actually talk to you long enough to find out what happened."
Kamesennin's eyes narrowed behind the sunglasses.
"You can always just stay to watch the match today," Kuririn suggested.
Radditz shot a look at Vegeta, who was glaring at the group, daring anyone to comment on how long he would last out there with torn muscles, several broken ribs, at least four broken fingers, a tender knee and more bruises then could be counted.
Abruptly Kamesennin's mood lightened. "I think I will," He said, tossing them all a smile. "I'm off for a morning stroll. See you boys later."
As he walked off Kuririn's eyes narrowed. The moment the old man was out of earshot he spoke. "How much do you want to bet he knows something that'll wash the ink off?"
Radditz and Vegeta looked at him.
"Hmm," Kakarott cocked his head to the side. "I'll follow him."
"Right!" Kuririn nodded.
Jumping into the trees, Kakarott quietly made his way after the old Turtle master.
"So that was ink," Vegeta said. "You think the old man's Jackie Chun?"
"One way or another, we'll find out for sure," Kuririn said firmly.
Kamesennin turned up to watch the penultimate* battle of the Island Tournament, still stained. After waiting for almost an hour, it was pretty clear that Jackie Chun wasn't going to make an appearance. Vegeta spent the whole time standing in the ring looking particularly cross.
Suddenly King Bojack stood up and walked over to the announcer, saying something in a low voice. The announcer gestured down to the man with the gong, who enthusiastically swung his mallet and pounded the metal dish.
"The match is forfeit! Prince Vegeta wins the round!" The announcer called, his customary excitement meeting the disappointed and annoyed murmurs from the crowd.
Vegeta's scowl deepened as he turned and marched - without favouring his sore leg - back towards Kamesennin and the others. He stopped in front of the old man, glaring accusingly. He was about to speak when Kamesennin glanced meaningfully at something behind the Saiyan.
"Prince Vegeta," A deep voice stated. Vegeta turned to see Bojack standing a few feet away.
"King Bojack," Vegeta replied, his tone one of practised politeness.
"Tomorrow is the final round of this tournament. Your last chance to withdraw will be tomorrow morning," Bojack eyed the Prince, his gaze lingering where he knew Vegeta was most injured in a warning.
"Withdraw? A Saiyan doesn't withdraw," Vegeta snarled.
"Even when the only other option is to die?" Bojack raised an eyebrow, slightly mocking.
Vegeta clenched his teeth. Kamesennin moved into the Saiyan's field of view, shaking his head. That was the last straw. Vegeta clenched his fists. "I'll fight you tomorrow, and I'll kill you," Vegeta spat, then turned and marched off, refusing to acknowledge Bojack's sneer. Radditz caught up with him before he'd gone more then three steps.
"Prince Vegeta is really strong," Vegeta heard Kakarott's voice pipe up. "Don't underestimate him!"
"Even if your Prince was my equal in strength, he's injured," Bojack murmured, then strode off.
Kakarott scowled at the tall man's back.
"Don't worry," Kamesennin put a hand on Kakarott's shoulder. "We've got till tomorrow morning to talk Prince Vegeta out of it."
"Out of it?" Kakarott looked up at him, frowning. "I don't think you will."
"Yeah, I get the feeling Vegeta would rather die then risk anyone knowing
he'd forfeit a fight," Kuririn said gloomily.
Later that afternoon as Vegeta sat, stubbornly refusing to listen to Kamesennin who was going on about Bojack's strength and cunning in battle, Kiwi walked up. The man from the Cold Empire was looking somewhat better then he had at the end of his last match.
"Prince Vegeta," He said, his tone dripping with faked concern. "I saw your win this morning. You'll be fighting the Island King tomorrow, I presume?"
Vegeta scowled at him. "Of course," He snapped.
"I do so look forward to taking home the news of your unpleasant demise at the hand of some nobody Islander King that no one has heard of," Kiwi beamed.
Vegeta held up a hand, screaming as he gathered energy at it before releasing it at the pale man's head. Kiwi leapt aside. Vegeta leapt up, bounding forward and smashing the Cold citizen flying.
"You pale freak!" Vegeta flew after him, the others a few seconds after. The Prince's lips curled into a sneer. "You know, you won't be taking anyone any news if you don't leave here alive."
Kiwi pulled himself out of a palm tree. "Think you can kill me and still get Bojack afterwards? You're an idiot!"
"Who said anything about me killing you? Radditz! Kakarott! Get rid of him!" Vegeta snarled.
"Them?" Kiwi looked quickly at the two of them, eyeing Kakarott for a second longer.
"Us," Radditz said firmly.
"If anyone learns of this it will result it all sorts of unfriendliness between our kingdoms," Kiwi babbled, looking a bit nervous, suspecting that he probably couldn't afford to take both Saiyajin at once. "I'm a high ranking officer!"
"We're already at war!" Vegeta yelled.
"Just border skirmishes!" Kiwi protested. "It's not all-out war yet!"
"Consider this a skirmish," Radditz smirked, charging up a Ki blast and leaping at him.
Kiwi flew up, then shot off into the distance. Radditz jumped up and followed him.
"Kakarott!" Vegeta scowled.
Kakarott made a face, then sped off after the other two.
"He's really just gonna go kill that guy?" Kuririn said, a bit shocked.
"Of course!" Vegeta said, looking annoyed. "Saiyans are warriors!"
"That's not fighting, that's killing," Kuririn pointed out.
Vegeta stared at him.
"There is a difference, you know," Kuririn continued, refusing to be intimidated. "You know they're probably going to win, so that's not fighting, that's hunting. Where's the honour in that?"
"'Honour'?" Vegeta asked flatly.
"Yeah," Kuririn nodded.
"Who cares? He's dead, he won't be telling anyone anything," Vegeta nodded to himself as he began to walk back to their camp.
Kuririn suddenly got a smug look on his face. "Right. I see. You really do think you're going to die tomorrow, and so you're making sure nobody's going to hear about it."
"What?!" Vegeta spun around, glaring at him.
Kuririn met his glare, wide-eyed. "Well, I mean, that's what everyone's thinking. So, I'm sure everyone will understand what happened when that guy turns up dead, cause if you were really confident, you wouldn't need to have him killed," Kuririn finished, then beamed at Vegeta.
"You're trying to manipulate me," Vegeta stated.
"I'm just calling it like I see it," Kuririn said, eyes downcast modestly.
"I ought to kill you."
"Um..."
"Fine," Vegeta snapped. "Go tell them."
With a final look of hatred directed at the small Human, Vegeta stomped off towards the camp.
"Impressive, Kuririn. You better go catch up with Kakarott and Radditz," Kamesennin congratulated him.
"Yeah, I'm good at making enemies, aren't I?" Kuririn said, watching
Vegeta nervously. With a sigh he took off, locking onto Kakarott and Radditz's
Ki signatures.
The crowd started to gather the next day before dawn. It was obvious no one wanted to miss this fight. The Island warriors hadn't done as well as expected, and the natives obviously wanted to see their King defeat the Saiyajin Prince. People came from all over the Island. Officials had to keep demanding that the spectators set themselves up a safe distance from the ring.
By the time the sun began to rise, the place was packed. Vegeta, Kamesennin and the others approached, Kuririn and Radditz with expressions of reluctance, Kamesennin contemplative, Kakarott worried and Vegeta defiant.
They stopped a ways back from the crowds.
"I suppose we aren't going to talk you out of this," Kamesennin said, breaking the silence.
"No!" Vegeta snapped.
"Well, then, I suppose you might as well go at it in while at your best," The old master reached into a pocket and withdrew something. "Eat this," He said, tossing Vegeta a small object.
"What is it?" Vegeta asked, eyeing it. It was small and brown, a bean of some kind.
"That," Kamesennin stated, "is a Senzu bean. Almost impossible to get if you don't know how to get them."
Vegeta scowled at him, then ate it. His eyes widened in surprise. "What..?!" He turned to Kamesennin. "So that was how you did it!"
"I have no idea what you're talking about," Kamesennin said gruffly.
"Did what?" Kakarott interrupted.
"Senzu beans are a special type of bean. Eat just one, and it will heal all your injuries and restore you to full strength," Kamesennin explained.
"It does?" Radditz stared at him.
"Wow," Kuririn whispered.
Vegeta smirked, turning to look at the ring. "Well then, Bojack is in
for a surprise."
Story Notes:
Round Three Matches:
Jackie Chun vs Kakarott: Jackie Chun
Vegeta vs Dia: Vegeta
Round Four Match:
Vegeta vs Jackie Chun: Vegeta
* Shameless plug. If you haven't already, go read Penultimate, my first DBZ short. Penultimate is an interesting word - it doesn't exist in US English. Found, however, in Australian and English English, 'penultimate' means the next to last, or second last - the whatever that comes right before the 'ultimate' or final. ^_^
- Finis Chapter 7 -
Please take two seconds from your life to bring a spark of joy into
mine: review! :)