TWO WEEKS LATER


Bulma took a deep breath as she wiped her forehead on the sleeve of her shirt. She'd just managed to finish the last few adjustments on the spaceship Goku would be using to get to Planet Namek. The Saiyajin could have used his instant transmission to get to the planet, but he used the excuse that the Namek's would need time to gather the dragonballs for him. King Kai had alerted them after all. But Bulma knew that wasn't the real reason for Goku's hesitation. The Saiyajin felt guilty for all that had happened. He felt as if it were actually him who had killed his family and friends, but that wasn't the case, and deep down, he knew it. He'd given revenge to all of Kakarotto's victims, and that was literally all he could do. He was only one man after all.... Well, NOW he was. Bulma smirked as another reason for Goku's stalling came to mind. Perhaps he was afraid of the wrath of ChiChi. The woman could swing a mean frying pan and that was enough to send even Vegeta running for cover. Only time would tell if Goku could avoid the horrors the kitchen utensil could inflict.


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Goku landed in front of the large building known as Capsule Corp and slowly made his way around back to take a look at the spaceship Bulma had completed. She'd called him earlier and requested he come over for a crash course on how to operate the ship before his trip. Quite frankly, the Saiyajin didn't like to use the term "crash course" when referring to something like navigating a spaceship.


Goku blinked as he looked at the ship that sat in the backyard. It was even bigger than the one Bulma's father had built! "What do you think?" the blue haired woman asked as she trotted over to the awestruck Saiyajin. "Uh... Did you have to make it so big? That makes it easier to run into things, you know..." Bulma blinked up at the ship as she cleaned her hands on a rag she had tucked into her belt. "Well I thought you'd need the extra space to train. Besides, everything is pre-programmed, so there's no need to worry about having to steer this thing or even land it." Goku nodded absently before pausing and looking at the woman in confusion. "Why would I need to train?" Bulma coughed and rubbed her arm. "I dunno. I just figured that you'd want something to do..."


"She's afraid you won't be strong enough to fight off that woman of yours." Goku blinked and turned to Vegeta, who was smirking at the two. "What? You really think she's gonna be mad at me?" The prince snorted. "Mad? I think she's going to attempt to inflict some serious bodily harm!" Bulma glared at the other Saiyajin as Goku's face paled slightly. "Vegeta, hush!" she snapped before patting the other Saiyajin on the shoulder in an attempt to comfort him. "Don't worry about it. I'm sure she'll understand that it wasn't you who snapped her neck." Goku's eye twitched slightly as he looked at the sweetly smiling woman. She certainly wasn't helping him gain confidence about this trip.


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Vegeta and Bulma stared at the sky as Goku took off in the spaceship, leaving a white streak across the sky. "I'll bet you 100,000 zeni that ChiChi nails him with a frying pan within ten minutes of his return." the prince said as he watched the last signs of the ship disappear in the sky. Bulma frowned and folded her arms. "Honestly, Vegeta! She'll get him in about five minutes! You're cheating me out of my money! I'm not a moron, you know!" The two were silent before Vegeta spoke again. "200,000 then?" "Deal!"


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Goku fidgeted uncomfortably as he stared out into space. It would be six days before he'd reach Planet Namek. Six days to let his imagination run wild about how the others would react once they were wished back. Six days to curse himself for not destroying all frying pans within a hundred mile radius. He was sure they'd all understand though. But he was also sure things wouldn't be quite the same anymore, which was something he'd have to expect. And that might not be a bad thing either. Maybe everyone would take him more seriously now. Maybe they wouldn't treat him like he was a child like they always had... unless the world needed saving, at least.


Goku smiled and sat back in his chair. "This won't be so bad."


FLASH FORWARD


ChiChi watched as her husband's spaceship slammed back to Earth. She'd been waiting for almost a week after being wished back and she was ready for him. Gohan looked at the frying pan his mother was currently gripping in her hand and edged away a bit. "Remember, mom... It wasn't dad who killed you..." ChiChi glared over at her son then glared back at the spaceship. "I know that perfectly well, but I figure if I hit your father on the head hard enough, Kakarotto might re-emerge. Then I can kill HIM for snapping my neck!" The group sweat dropped and silence was all that followed. Vegeta elbowed Bulma. "Ten minutes." The woman nodded and patted the bag of money she'd brought with her.


Goku waited until the ship had come to a stop before jumping up and slowly peeking out one of the windows. He saw everyone standing a little ways off waiting for him and smiled a little. It didn't look like they wanted his blood from what he could see, and that had to be a good thing. The Saiyajin froze when his eyes fell upon ChiChi, who was readjusting her grip on a brand new shiny frying pan. She clutched it so tightly that her knuckles were turning white. Goku jumped away from the window and ran back to the control panel. He could already feel his skull throbbing from the onslaught he knew would follow upon stepping out of the spaceship. The Saiyajin thought for a moment before punching in coordinates on the ship's computer before fastening his seatbelt and sitting back with a smile as the ship once again blasted into the sky. He'd decided that a trip to Planet Yardrack was in order. "They taught me the instant transmission, so maybe they'll have other useful techniques for avoiding an angry earth woman..."


Everyone watched in silence as the spaceship once again left the Earth's atmosphere. ChiChi glared and raised her frying pan in the air. "You can't run forever!!!" Vegeta frowned and looked over at the bag of money Bulma was holding before smirking and grabbing it from her. "Yoink!" He wasted no time before running off. "HEY!!!" Bulma shouted. The blue haired woman quickly grabbed ChiChi's frying pan before running after the Saiyajin. Once again, the entire group sweat dropped.


BACK TO THE PRESENT....


Goku rubbed his head as images of a very angry ChiChi once again entered his mind. "Um... Maybe I should train after all..." With that, the Saiyajin turned up the gravity and began his training routines in preparation for the day he'd reunite with his loving family.