Disclaimer: No longer necessary.
Author's Notes: Okay, you guys caught me. Gohan can't transform into SSJ, or SSJ2 for that matter, once he's given the mystic power-up. However, I'm changing this little detail for two reasons: One, it's important later in the story, and two: I just like the SSJ2 form better. But, to appease you, I will offer a little explanation within the story. Anyway, these chapters will go through the timeline rather quickly, until we get to the part where the main story arc takes place, about 20 years from the beginning of this chapter, which in itself takes place about two years after the last one ended.
P.S. In case you haven't picked up on it, Uubu isn't the only one not present here. Mr. Buu has been cut as well. I never did like those characters much. If you want an explanation, just say that Mr. Buu is living deep in space somewhere away from everything that has to do with this story, and Uubu hasn't been reincarnated yet.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
Episode 2-The 26th Tenkaichi Budokai
Another enormous boulder shattered as the rocky landscape endured yet another wave of the beating that had been thrust upon it. The two warriors continued to have at each other across the terrain, neither one willing to give an inch.
"You've really come a long way, Gohan," said Goku to his son. "I think you've more than made up for the ground you lost in those seven years without training."
"Thanks, dad," Gohan said as he powered down from his SSJ2 form and asked the question he'd wanted to ask many times before. "But is all this really necessary? I mean, I've still got the power that Rou-Dai-Kaioshin gave me."
Goku powered down as well. "Well, yes and no, Gohan," he said. "You still have that power inside of you, I can sense it. But you haven't been able to tap into it once since the fight with Buu, have you?"
Gohan lowered his head. "No. It's as if that power is separate from my own. I don't know what's wrong."
Goku merely shrugged and flashed the infamous Son grin. "So then you're just going to have to keep training the old fashioned way." He then dropped into a fighting stance and powered up again, once again right up to SSJ2. Gohan followed suit, and they began their sparring match once again.
* * *
Over at Yamucha's dojo, Videl was about to enter the gravity room. She had it to the point where she could take 7 G's, but that was her limit. Just as she was about to enter the room, Yamucha stopped her via a hand on her shoulder.
"Gohan told me you're not going to enter the tournament," he said. Videl nodded.
"That's right. I'm not in it for tournaments anymore. I just want to better myself, that's all. You know, be the strong wife that a saiyan deserves."
Yamucha chuckled. "I honestly don't think Gohan cares about that," he said.
"I know he doesn't, but deep inside him it's what he wants, whether he admits it or not. Besides, I've never been cool with being a weakling."
Her sensei chuckled again. "You're anything but a weakling, Videl. Discounting Juuhachigou, you're the strongest woman I know, and I know Chi Chi and Bulma." It was Videl's turn to laugh. "Seriously," Yamucha continued. "You don't ever have to worry about a thing like that. You are the strongest woman in the world, and Gohan knows that. He considers himself very lucky to have you, trust me." This really did make Videl feel better. She offered her sensei a warm smile, and then came to a decision.
"Master Yamucha," she began. He repeatedly told her that she didn't have to call him that, but she insisted upon it. "I think I've finished my training here. I think I've learned what I need to know, and I'd like to spend more time with Gohan. Besides, I can learn anything else I may need from him."
Yamucha smiled back at her. He'd been hoping for some time that she would make a decision like this.
"I only have two things to ask of you before you leave," he said.
"What's that?"
"Well, I want you to spar with Keiichi in the gravity room. He's come a long way and I think he can take it. Besides, he's entering the Budokai in a month, and I want him to beat the pants off of that kid your dad's been training. He won't say who the kid is or anything, just keeps gloating that he's going to finish second in the tournament, after your dad himself, of course."
"Sure thing," she said with a chuckle. "What's the other thing?"
Yamucha just grinned at her. "You'll see," was all he said, and then he turned and walked away.
* * *
In the front section of the dojo, all the students had stopped their exercises to watch the heated match going with Keiichi versus Bokken and Fej. The former was doing very well, and looked as if he were about to win the fight.
"I can't believe this guy!" Yamato exclaimed. "He's incredible!"
"Look, here comes Master Yamucha!" said Faita. "Let's see what he says!" The guys watched as Yamucha took a spot against the opposite wall from them and watched the fight with a smile. In the center, Fej had just been thrown out, leaving only Bokken to fight Keiichi.
"Yamato, go help him!" Yamucha called. The former looked up.
"Who, Bokken?" he asked. Yamucha nodded, and the young man ran out to assist his comrade against their friend.
"How long do you think Keiichi can keep this up?" Antas asked Faita.
"I'm not sure, but a normal person would've passed out by now."
Indeed, Keiichi was getting tired, but he refused to give up. He executed a powerful kick to the gut of Bokken, sending the latter flying out of the center area they had dubbed as the ring, leaving only Yamato. Yamato wondered if Yamucha would send anyone else up to help him, but it appeared that he was on his own. All the others were cheering for him, since they didn't want to see Keiichi beat three of them in ten minutes. He managed to drag the fight out for a few more minutes, but eventually he too succumbed to Keiichi's superior skill and strength and was flung from the ring. The group ran up and congratulated Keiichi, and then Yamucha came over to speak with them.
"You three can take a break," he said to the three who had fought Keiichi. "Takeru, I want you to work on one of the punching bags, and I want you two to spar." He pointed to Antas and Faita for this last bit. "Keiichi, come with me."
"Where to, sensei?" he asked.
"I'm taking you to the back room." All the others immediately froze, and Fej dropped the water bottle he'd just picked up. The back room was beyond exalted. Only Videl and Master Yamucha himself were allowed to train in there. None of them even knew what was back there, so it was quite a big deal that Keiichi was allowed to go in.
"The back room, really?" Keiichi was just as stunned as the rest of them.
"Yeah, I want you to get in a little bit of extra training before the Budokai." Keiichi followed his sensei to the back, a big grin on his face. When they reached the back room, he took a moment to gaze at the door in wonderment. There was nothing spectacular about the door, except that it was made of metal and had an electronic keypad to open it. The fact that he was going to walk through it was what amazed Keiichi the most.
"Videl's already in there, and she's going to train with you," Yamucha said.
"Master, what kind of room is this?"
Yamucha just grinned. "You'll see." He then punched in a code on the keypad and the door opened. He gestured for Keiichi to enter the room.
The young warrior looked around the room before crossing its threshold. There was nothing spectacular about it. Some weights and other training equipment rested on the floor on the opposite side, and he could see part of a large computer terminal. He didn't really see what the big deal was. That is, until he fully entered the room, and nearly toppled over.
"Whoa! What's going on in this room?" he said, righting himself again. It was more the initial and unexpected change than the added pressure itself that caused him to stumble.
"It's a gravity room," Yamucha answered, entering the room behind him. "Right now it's set on double gravity."
Keiichi's eyes went wide. "A gravity room?"
"That's right. And I want you to do the rest of your training in here until the Budokai."
"How high can it go?"
Yamucha just laughed. "You don't need to worry about that. Right now you have to worry about handling the lower settings."
Keiichi nodded and looked around. "Master, I thought you said Videl was in here. Where is she?"
"Up here," came a voice from the ceiling. Keiichi looked up to find Videl hanging upside-down on a pair of gymnastics rings. She jumped down and with a few flips landed on the floor. "You ready to train?"
Keiichi took a moment and forced his mouth to close. "You can do that in double gravity?"
"Sure, it's not that hard," Videl said. "You'll be able to as well after a little practice."
"Well I want you two to get started," Yamucha said. "Videl, don't go easy on him. We still have a few senzu beans in the drawer. I need to go out and work with the others. Most of them think they're not ready for the Budokai, but Fej wants to give it a try, just to see how he'll do. Keiichi, you're going to be training with Videl in here until the tournament, okay?"
"Okay."
Yamucha then left and shut the door behind him. Videl turned to her new training partner with a wicked smirk on her face.
"Are you ready?"
He gave a weak nod, and dropped into a fighting stance. He remembered all too well his fight with her on his first day at the dojo, and she'd been training in extra gravity since then. He didn't like his chances. All at once, Videl charged him, and it took every ounce of strength he had just to raise a defense.
* * *
It was the day before the tournament, and the former desert thief was at the Son's house, speaking with Goku and Chi Chi about who all was entering.
"So two of your students are entering, Yamucha?" Chi Chi asked.
"Yeah. They'll both do really well, but I think Keiichi is gonna go all the way. Is Goten entering the Junior Division again?"
Goku nodded. "Yep. He and Trunks said they wanted to have an official rematch, but I think they're going to try to sneak into the adult section again."
"What about Gohan? Is he going to defend his title?"
"You can ask him yourself," Goku said. "He and Videl just arrived."
As if on cue, the younger Son couple entered the house.
"Hi, guys!" Gohan greeted. "Yamucha, hi! How've you been doing?"
"All right. Say, were you planning to reenter the Tenkaichi Budokai this year? You mentioned that Videl wasn't going to, but you didn't say anything about yourself."
Gohan shook his head. "No, I don't think it would be fair, do you? Besides, the Great Saiyaman doesn't need to prove that he's the strongest fighter in the world; he just needs to help people. The only reason I even entered as him the last time was to protect my identity. That, and somebody blackmailed me into entering." He glared at Videl teasingly. She narrowed her eyes at him but grinned.
"Well that means the championship is open ground then, because Kuririn and Juuhachi said they weren't going either," Yamucha said. "And that probably means Keiichi will win it."
"I'll say," Videl agreed. "There's nothing my dad could do that would equate to training in triple gravity."
"He got to triple?" Yamcha asked.
"Oh yeah, comfortably. We went up to quadruple a few times this last week, but he can't move around normally just yet."
"Looks like he's got it wrapped up," Gohan said.
"Don't be so sure, Gohan," Goku said. "Every tournament I've been to so far, something unexpected has happened."
"Well, we'll be watching for that," Yamucha said. "I assume that since Goten is entering that you guys are coming to watch?" They all nodded. "And Bulma said she and Vegeta are coming, too."
"And what about this new woman in your life, Yamucha?" Chi Chi asked.
"Nukino? No, she can't come. She has a meeting with a new client. It's just as well, though. I don't think she's ready to meet everybody yet. She just got used to the idea that I can lift cars. She doesn't need to know that you all can, too. Much less everything else we can do."
"You lifted a car for her?" Goku seemed stunned.
"It was just a figure of speech, dad," Gohan assured him. Then he turned to Yamucha. "Right?" The former bandit looked a bit uncomfortable.
"Well, not exactly. You see, she dropped her purse one day while we were out walking, and before I could bend over to pick it up for her, a car parked with its tire over the strap. Without even thinking, I lifted up the corner of the car and got it for her. The rest of the day was spent explaining things to her."
When Yamucha finished, Goku and Gohan were laughing, and Videl and Chi Chi were trying to hide the fact that they were, too. Yamucha decided it was time to go anyway.
"Well, I'd better get going. I'll see you guys tomorrow, okay?" He excused himself and then flew off.
"Bye!" Goku managed to say through his laughter.
* * *
Two eager young fighters were looking in awe at the aerial view of the remote island that was their destination.
"So this is the island where the tournament is held, Master?" Fej asked. Yamucha had booked a private plane for them to fly to the competition.
"This is it," he affirmed. "Down there, the greatest fighters in the world are waiting to challenge you two."
"Do you think the Great Saiyaman will be there?" Keiichi asked.
"I'm sure he'll be there watching over things, especially after what happened last time. But I don't think he's going to compete."
"Why do you think that, Master?" Fej asked. "He is the defending champion, after all."
"He told me he wasn't," Yamucha said. The boys' eyes went wide. Their already great respect for their sensei just went up another notch.
"You know the Great Saiyaman?" Fej couldn't believe it.
Yamucha paused for a moment and grinned to himself, for he had no intention of answering that question.
"Buckle yourselves in, we're about to land."
* * *
Goten walked excitedly with his family toward the arena where the tournament was being held.
"Are you sure you're not going to enter, big brother?" he asked.
"Yes, I'm sure, Goten. There would be no point in me defending my title, and it would go on forever, anyway."
"A little cocky, aren't we?" Videl teased.
"No, but you know as well as I do that very few people on this planet could offer me a good fight, and none of them are entering, either." Then Goku broke in.
"Besides, it makes the tournament more interesting to watch when you don't know who's gonna win."
"Speaking of unfair competition," Gohan said, "Who do you think's going to win the Junior Division, Goten or Trunks?"
"Well, I hope Goten wins," Goku said thoughtfully, "but with the way Vegeta pushes Trunks, you never know."
* * *
Over at the sign-in station, one of Yamucha's pupils was having a bit of trouble.
"What was that name again?"
"Fej. Aras Fej." He sounded a little annoyed; for this was the third time he'd been asked for clarification on his name. It wasn't as if it were that complicated.
"I've got it," the monk said as he wrote it down under Keiichi's name. "Next." A familiar face stepped up behind them.
"Well, look who it is," Daisuke jeered. "How've you losers been doing?"
"Should I know you?" Fej replied sarcastically. Keiichi just chose to ignore him.
"Well, it doesn't matter if you do or not," Daisuke shot back. "Because I don't need a sensei who can't spot talent. I've been training under Mr. Satan himself, and I'm gonna kick both of your asses." Fej was just about to insult back when Yamucha placed a hand on his shoulder and led him away. Daisuke laughed, and Keiichi rolled his eyes.
* * *
"These should be good seats," Gohan said as he and his family sat down. "I hope there aren't too many entrants this year. I wanna see Trunks and Goten fight."
"Speaking of Trunks," Goku said, "Are Vegeta and Bulma here? I haven't seen them."
"Bulma told me yesterday that they'd be a little late," Chi Chi said. "They'll be here in a few minutes." However, as they were waiting for the Briefs', someone else they knew showed up.
"Hi, everyone!" Yamucha greeted as he came over to sit down with them.
"Hi, Yamcha!" said Goku and Gohan together.
"Are Fej and Keiichi signed up?" Videl asked.
"Yep, I just said goodbye to them. Oh, and you won't believe who else is here." He turned to Videl. "Remember that one guy from tryouts who beat up Takeru?" Videl nodded. "Well, apparently he's the guy your dad's been training, and he's here, just as arrogant as ever."
"Dad trained that guy?" Videl sounded incredulous, and then rethought it. "Actually, that does make sense. Dad wants to prove that he's a better teacher than you, so of course he'd pick up a student that you turned down."
Yamucha chuckled. "Fej was about ready to knock his head off right there! I can't wait to see what happens if they end up getting paired up to fight!"
* * *
The junior division went just as it had the time before. Trunks and Goten easily defeated all of their opponents, and then faced each other in the last round. The fight was just as colossal as the last one, but in the end, Trunks came out on top again. Goten was more than a little disappointed.
As soon as Trunks won, Gohan sneaked off from the rest of the group. Nobody noticed until Videl turned to where he should have been to suggest they go find seats for the adult tournament. When she didn't see him, she was a bit confused.
"Hey guys, where's Gohan?" she asked. The rest of them looked over, and then they noticed for the first time that the aforementioned demi-saiyan was nowhere in sight. They were going to start looking for him when the announcer brought their attention back to the ring.
"All right, everyone! We have a surprise treat for all of you out there! A special guest is coming to present Trunks with his trophy!"
"Trophy?" Bulma asked, puzzled. "He didn't get a trophy last time."
"Who's this special guest he's talking about?" Chi Chi asked.
"I think we're about to find out," Yamucha said, and then pointed toward the sky. "Look!"
They all looked up, and there they saw Gohan descending toward the ring in his Great Saiyaman outfit with his arms crossed and a grin on his face.
"So that's where he went!" Videl exclaimed.
"Yes folks, it's the current champion of the Tenkaichi Budokai, the Great Saiyaman! He won't be able to compete to defend his title this year, but he's agreed to make an appearance to congratulate our junior champion!"
The whole crowd cheered. Ever since the previous tournament, the Great Saiyaman had been extremely popular.
Gohan touched down in the ring in front of Trunks and the whole stadium grew deathly silent.
"Congratulations," he said in his deep, superhero voice loud enough so that everyone could hear him. He took the trophy from the announcer and presented it to Trunks, who held it over his head. The crowd cheered once again.
You two boys are fine young fighters," he said to Trunks and Goten. "Keep training, and you'll be the best in the world someday." With that, he flew of, and Trunks and Goten waved after him. When the crowd finally settled down several minutes later, it was time to begin the adult tournament.
* * *
"Why didn't you tell me you were going to do that, Gohan?" Videl demanded when the young demi-saiyan rejoined the group.
"It was a
surprise," he replied. "Besides, I wasn't planning on it, but when I went to
tell the Budokai people that I wouldn't be competing, they asked if I would do
this for them. I figured it couldn't hurt anything, so I agreed."
"Fej and Keiichi will be
disappointed," Yamucha said. "They were hoping you'd be here today. They'll be
upset that they missed out."
"Maybe he could make another appearance later," Videl suggested. Gohan didn't want to, but the look Videl was giving him told him that he was going to anyway.
* * *
The punch machine idea had flown by the wayside, after the previous tournament had shown it to be rather unreliable. It was back to fighting the old-fashioned elimination rounds. While they waited to see who would be fighting in the tournament, Gohan and the others decided to get a bite to eat. They headed over to the nearest restaurant and got themselves a big table. It was a booth with a wraparound bench.
"I'm starving!" exclaimed Goku after they'd ordered and were waiting for their food to arrive. Just then, Trunks and Goten burst into the restaurant and headed for the table.
"Brother! Brother!" Goten was calling.
"Hey, you two!" Gohan greeted them when they arrived. "That was a heck of a fight out there." The boys smiled.
"That was cool that you decided to give out the trophy, brother!"
Trunks smacked Goten on the back of the head. "Quiet, doofus. We're not supposed to know who he is, remember?"
"Oh, yeah."
"Would you two like to join us?"
Videl asked.
"Would we ever!" Goten exclaimed. The two young warriors hopped up onto the bench with the others.
* * *
By the time the saiyans finished eating, it was time for the adult tournament to begin. Yamucha, Chi Chi, Videl and Bulma had gone ahead to reserve them all seats in the stands. The first round match-ups weren't anything interesting, which was a little disappointing to the saiyans. Vegeta especially.
"Why do I have to sit here and watch a bunch of pathetic humans attempt to fight each other?" he demanded.
"Because," Bulma answered him, "We're here to support Yamucha's students."
"Maybe you are," the saiyan prince snorted, "But I couldn't care less about this weakling or his weakling students."
"Well that's too bad, because we're staying."
Vegeta just harrumphed.
"I bet you're glad Nukino's not here now," Gohan joked. Yamucha laughed with him.
"Nukino?" Bulma asked. Then she remembered. "Oh, right! Your new girlfriend, the one you think can replace me."
"No one could ever replace you, Bulma. I could never argue that much with anyone else." The whole group had a good laugh, except for Vegeta, who was now even more peeved than he'd been a moment ago.
All of a sudden, the announcer's voice came booming from the center of the stadium.
"Okay, ladies and gentlemen! It's time to begin the first round of the 26th Tenkaichi Budokai! I hope everyone's in for a good show, because we've got some of the greatest fighters in the world here ready to battle it out for the championship! It'll be tough to top the excitement of the last tournament, so our fighters definitely have their work cut out for them! Let's go ahead with our first match: Aras Fej vs. Idesa!"
The two fighters walked out to the ring amidst the cheering fans. Bulma was looking intently at Fej's opponent.
"Isn't that…"
She trailed off when they heard obnoxious shouts from a few rows in front of them.
"Come on, Idesa! That boy's a pushover! He's not even worth fighting!" Sure enough, it was the fat broad from three years ago, back again. Bulma rolled her eyes.
"It looks like only one of her sons is in this year," said Chi Chi, who was looking through her binoculars at the big board.
Bulma smirked. "So I guess the other one wasn't good enough." She and Chi Chi shared a chuckle, and then the announcer came back.
"Idesa lost to Trunks in the first round of the Junior division last time, so this is his first time in the adult section. Aras Fej is a complete newcomer to the tournament. He's been training for the past two years with the Wolf Master Yamucha, and he's anxious to prove himself here today. Let's see how they do. Let the match begin!"
* * *
The two fighters dropped into fighting stances, and Idesa grinned cockily at his opponent.
"You better be prepared to make a fool of yourself," he boasted. Fej merely looked back at him, a perfectly neutral look on his face.
"If you just stand there talking and don't fight," he said, "You'll be the one making a fool of yourself." This of course angered Idesa, who went on the offensive with a high kick to the head, which Fej blocked. He threw a few more punches and kicks, and Fej blocked all of them as well.
Then, on one punch, he not only blocked but knocked Idesa's hand away. He utilized the opening and punched the other boy in the stomach. When Idesa doubled over, Fej executed a perfect flying roundhouse kick, sending the former flying to the edge of the ring. He teetered on the edge for a moment, and then fell over it. Fej had won.
"And that's a ring-out! The winner of this fight is Aras Fej!"
The crowd cheered, the fat lady was furious, and Yamcha and the others clapped proudly for his young student. The next fight was between two fighters they didn't know, so they stopped paying attention. It wasn't until the semifinal round that anything interesting would come up again.
* * *
"And now
ladies and gentlemen, it's time to begin the semifinals!"
Goku and the others were caught
off-guard, for all of them had lost track of time, as no fights worthy of
watching had come up for quite a while. The only one who'd been watching was
Yamucha, as he had two students participating. However, the semifinal round
offered some interesting match-ups at least worth checking out.
"First off, we'll have Aras Fej versus former champion Mr. Satan! And then we'll have Keiichi versus Daisuke!"
"All right!" Gohan said. "Now maybe we'll get to see something!"
"I wouldn't count on it, brat," Vegeta snapped, "None of these weaklings could do anything worth watching." He would've continued, but a sharp look from Bulma shut him up.
"Do you think Fej can beat my father, Yamucha?" Videl asked.
"It's hard to say. Although I'm willing to bet he's got a few surprises that your dad won't be ready for." He hid a small smirk. The announcer piped up again.
"Would Aras Fej and Mr. Satan please report to the ring?"
The crowds cheered wildly as the two fighters entered the ring. When they stepped up and faced each other, Mr. Satan was the first one to speak.
"Nothin' personal, kid," he said. "Let's just try and make this a good clean fight, okay?"
Fej nearly smirked and emitted a low grunt for a reply, and dropped into his fighting stance. Mr. Satan gave up on the big talk and did the same.
"All right, fighters! Let the match begin!"
Mr. Satan charged at Fej, ready to eliminate him in one blow. Fej was stronger than he'd anticipated however, and blocked the attack easily. The young fighter then came back with a counterattack of his own. After a few successful blocks, Mr. Satan lost track of his opponent's fists and got one straight in the gut. The sheer strength of the blow was enough to send the former champion reeling to the edge of the ring. Fej pressed his advantage, and charged the burly man as he was getting back to his feet.
* * *
"What's he doing?" Yamcha asked from the stands. "He knows better than that! He's overconfident and he's being careless!"
"It might just cost him the match, too," Goku said. "Mr. Satan's got his bearings back."
* * *
Indeed he had. Mr. Satan reached out and grabbed the arm that was trying to punch him. Then, with one swift motion, he pulled Fej toward him, tripped up the younger warrior with his feet, and used his own momentum against him to hurl him out of the ring. Everyone was shocked, especially the Z-senshi. They'd expected the fight to go on for much longer. However, they were in for a bit of a surprise.
"Oh my goodness! Aras Fej has stopped himself in midair and is hovering outside the ring. While this seemed to be quite a popular technique at the last Tenkaichi Budokai, Aras Fej is the first to use it this time. What a stunning upset!"
* * *
Goku and the others were stunned, to say the least. Except for Yamucha.
"When did you teach him the bukujutsu, Yamucha?" Gohan asked.
"He's been practicing it for a while. It's the one technique he wanted to learn over anything else. I said he had to work extra hard to earn the chance to learn it, and he did, so I taught it to him."
"Impressive," Goku declared. "How long did it take him to learn?"
"He picked it up pretty quick, only a couple of weeks or so. But he's the only one of my students who can do it. Let's just see what he can do with it."
* * *
'Oh great,' Mr. Satan lamented to himself. 'Another one of those flyers. How am I going to get out of this one?'
As he pondered, Fej floated back over to the ring and landed semi-gracefully. The young warrior dropped into his fighting stance once again, and this time waited for Mr. Satan to make the first move.
The former champion took his time in planning his next attack. He obviously couldn't ring-out his opponent, and he was pretty sure the kid wasn't going to give up or start crying, so that left a knockout. He dropped into his fighting stance once again.
"Okay kid, ready for round two?" he jeered.
"Bring it on. I promise you I won't make another careless mistake like that last one."
Mr. Satan charged at his opponent, and just as Fej was raising a defense, the older man leapt to the side and swung around behind. He threw a high kick at the back of Fej's head, but the young fighter ducked underneath it without much difficulty. Fej then shot out a leg and tripped up Mr. Satan, who was still balancing on only one leg. The large man fell backward, but managed a back handspring and landed on his feet.
It was Fej's turn to charge. He threw a barrage of punches and kicks at Mr. Satan, who blocked or dodged most of them. Then, Mr. Satan grabbed an incoming fist, and Fej didn't have time to react before his other fist was grabbed as well. Mr. Satan pulled the younger man in with a quick jerk and executed a massive blow to the other's head with his own. In the moment that Fej was stunned, Mr. Satan came down hard with both hands in a chop to the base of Fej's neck. The younger man dropped, and the announcer began the count. Ten seconds later, Mr. Satan was declared the winner, much to the disappointment of Yamucha and the others.
* * *
"He was trained better than that!" Yamucha yelled. "He was careless because he was overconfident!"
"Well, it doesn't matter now," Gohan said. "Let's just hope Keiichi can do better." At this comment, Yamucha calmed back down, and even a small smirk crept onto his face.
* * *
"Wasn't that
exciting? Now, let's bring out our next pair of fighters! Keiichi and Daisuke,
please report to the ring!"
Keiichi walked out with a stoic
expression, followed by Daisuke who looked just as cocky as ever.
"You're gonna get it," Daisuke taunted as they ascended the stairs into the ring. "Nobody here except Mr. Satan has a chance of beating me."
"It appears you're out of luck then," Keiichi responded as calm as ever. "For Mr. Satan is at the least of my worries. If he can defeat you, I should have no trouble." This statement only angered Daisuke more, and he began emanating a growling-like sound.
"You'll pay for that wise lip of yours!" He yelled, pointing an accusatory finger at Keiichi. "Nobody insults me or Mr. Satan!" He dropped into his fighting stance and adopted a Vegeta-esque smirk. "I'll make it humiliating for you," he said in an icy tone. "You can lose horribly in front of your master."
Keiichi said nothing, he merely stepped into his own fighting stance, and the announcer initiated the match.
"Now you'll be disgraced!" Daisuke yelled and rushed at Keiichi at full speed. His rear arm was pulled back for a massive punch. However, when he went to deliver it, his fist was caught. Before he could react, Keiichi's left foot slid underneath his legs, causing him to lose his balance. Keiichi's knee continued upward and met with Daisuke's stomach. Then, handling his opponent's fist like a baseball, Keiichi threw Daisuke from the ring and into the arena wall, where he dropped to the ground, unconscious. Keiichi put his foot back down and stood still as a statue in the same place he'd started, having never moved from it.
* * *
The eyes of nearly every spectator present were as large as dinner plates. That one fighter hadn't even moved! They were getting what they'd paid for, that was for certain.
* * *
"He didn't have to embarrass the guy that much!" Yamucha managed to say through his laughter. It took him a moment to calm down. "Still, that seemed a bit too cold for Keiichi. Daisuke must've really set him off. I wonder what it was he said."
"I wouldn't worry about it," Videl said. "He's going to win now. There's no way my dad can handle him. And he won't repeat Fej's mistake, that's for sure."
"Can he fly?" Gohan asked Yamucha.
"No, but he won't need to." Yamucha was sure he'd said only Fej knew the bukujutsu. Oh, well.
* * *
"Jeez, these breaks between rounds are nice when you're fighting," Gohan griped, "But when you're trying to watch, they seem to take forever."
"It should only be a minute or so more," Videl assured him.
"I should've brought a snack or something," Gohan said. "This waiting is driving me crazy!"
"Now you know what it was like for me the last time," Videl replied. "Every time you won a match, I couldn't wait for the next one to start so I could watch you again." Gohan blushed. Even though he was now married to Videl, there were still those moments that reminded him of the time not too long ago that they were just kids falling for each other. Suddenly, they heard what they'd been waiting for. The announcer's voice came booming back over the sound system. Videl and Gohan held the moment a bit longer with a gaze, and then returned their attention to the center of the stadium.
"Okay, ladies and gentlemen! It's time for the final round! It's the newcomer Keiichi versus the indomitable Mr. Satan!"
Mr. Satan began walking out toward the ring, and the announcer introduced him.
"I'm sure you all know who this first fighter is. He's a former champion of this very tournament, and he warrior who defeated Cell! He was eliminated early on in the last competition, but it was due to pure chivalry! Here he is, the one and only Mr. Satan!"
The crowd cheered wildly, for Mr. Satan was still one of the most famous and popular fighters in the world. As they cheered, Keiichi began to make his way out to the ring, and the announcer introduced him as well.
"And now, please welcome our other finalist. This young man has come to our tournament for the very first time this year, and has managed to make it all the way through! He's a skilled warrior, which can only be expected from somebody who's trained under the wolf master for two years. Let's hear it for Keiichi!"
The crowd cheered again as the two fighters took their positions opposite each other in the ring. Mr. Satan looked his opponent over, and was careful not to underestimate him. He'd learned his lesson during his previous fight against Fej.
"So you train with Yamucha too, huh?" Mr. Satan asked. "Does that mean you can fly like your buddy?"
Keiichi calmly shook his head.
"No, I can't fly. But I can do a great deal of other things that you should concern yourself with just the same."
"I won't let you get the best of me," Mr. Satan said. "That punk may have beaten me, but I'm sure as hell not about to let one of his students do it."
"We'll see."
The bell sounded, and the two fighters dashed at each other. They each threw a set of preliminary punches and kicks, mostly to feel each other out. After about ten seconds of hand-to-hand combat, they sprung apart again.
* * *
'This kid's pretty good,' Mr. Satan thought to himself. 'I'd better be careful or I could end up losing this match.' He took a moment to think of what his strategy should be.
'He said he can't fly, so that means I can go for the ring-out. I just have to wait for a good opportunity to throw him.' The former champ chuckled to himself. It was in the bag now.
* * *
'Hmm, he's strong, but I think I can handle him. I just have to pay good attention and I can win this match easily enough.' Keiichi was sizing Mr. Satan up as well. He decided to make another attack, in order to find out what strategy the older fighter was using.
* * *
"And Keiichi's on the attack again! Mr. Satan barely had time to duck under that last kick. It looks like our newcomer is a fast one! Here he comes again with a massive volley of punches! The former champion is strictly on the defensive in this fight."
'Come on!' Keiichi thought as he pressed his attack. 'You've got to have some sort of plan to defend yourself! Show me what it is!' He threw two more punches, and then a double whirlwind kick. So far Mr. Satan was only blocking and dodging, and Keiichi was getting frustrated.
'Stop stalling, damn you!' Keiichi cursed in his mind. He could only keep up this level of attack for so long, and then he would have to do something. The only problem being that he wanted that something to counter whatever Mr. Satan's 'something' was. After having another kick deflected, and that's when he saw it. Mr. Satan made his move.
'Aha! He's going to try and throw me! He's going for the ring-out!' He pulled back his uppercut at the last second, and right when Mr. Satan grabbed his arm, he made his own move. He brought up his other arm and grabbed his own fist, and the he bent over backwards, pulling with all of his might. It worked! Mr. Satan flew over his head and landed on his back behind him. Keiichi then flipped the rest of the way over so that he had one foot on either side of his opponent's stomach. With one more swift movement, he pivoted on the balls of his feet, driving his right knee right into his adversary's gut. The sudden impact made Mr. Satan release Keiichi's wrist, and lurch his head up in pain. Carrying out the plan to the finish, Keiichi shot one hard punch to Mr. Satan's forehead, knocking it back against the tile of the ring and rendering him unconscious. The new kid had won the fight, and he'd done it with a move that took about two seconds to execute.
* * *
Needless to say, the entire crowd was left speechless; including the Z-senshi. Gohan was the first to speak.
"He's a really flexible guy. Was that yoga?" He directed the question at the young champion's instructor.
"You got me," Yamucha replied, just as amazed as Gohan. "I didn't teach him that."
"Videl?" Gohan asked, thinking that perhaps she had taught him this when they trained in the gravity room together.
"Huh-uh," was her response. She shook her head for emphasis. "I can't even do that!" Somewhere in the depths of Gohan's subconscious was uttered the word, "Darn!"
Gohan didn't know why, but for some reason he was blushing.
* * *
"…TEN! And that clinches it! With one amazing maneuver, Keiichi has won the 26th Tenkaichi Budokai! What an unbelievable fight!"
The crowd, as was usual when the champion had been announced, couldn't stop cheering. They were throwing things, and yelling, and all the typical hoopla. Just because the person who won wasn't who they'd expected didn't mean they still weren't excited.
* * *
Fej and Keiichi were talking about the tournament for the entire plane ride home.
"I still can't believe the Great Saiyaman came back!" Fej was saying. "I was so disappointed when I heard we missed him at the junior division."
"He looked like he was in a hurry, though," Keiichi said. "I don't think he was originally planning to show up."
"Well of course not!" Fej replied. "Otherwise, he would've entered the tournament himself! He's a superhero you know, he's got things to do!" Yamucha laughed.
"You guys sound like a couple of little kids," he said. The two young men sweatdropped and grinned sheepishly.
"Well anyway," Fej went on, "Congratulations again, Keiichi. That was one great move there at the end."
"Thanks. But you had some good moves, too. Where did you learn to fly?"
"It's a technique called the bukujutsu," Yamucha interrupted. "Fej saw Videl and some of the other fighters perform it at the last tournament, and asked if I knew it. When I said I did, it was all he wanted to learn."
"You could probably learn it too, Keiichi," Fej said. "I mean, if I can learn it then you definitely could."
Keiichi calmly shook his head. "No. I'm planning on leaving the dojo." Fej's eyes bugged out, but Yamucha stayed just as calm as ever. He'd been expecting this.
"You're leaving?" Fej couldn't believe it. "Why?"
"I've learned a lot from Master Yamucha, but now it's time for me to move on. I'm going to travel the world, train in the wild, and see if I can find any opponents out there to challenge me."
"You might run into a friend of mine out there," Yamucha said. "He'll fight you, and probably train you for a while if you ask him to. Say hi to him for me."
"What does he look like, and what's his name?" Keiichi asked.
"Don't worry," his master replied. "You'll know him when you see him."
Keiichi was perplexed by this response, but didn't probe his master further. The rest of the fight was spent with continued talk of the tournament, as well as what the dojo would be like without Keiichi.
When they returned, the other students crowded around the three of them, demanding to hear about the tournament. When Keiichi got to the part about him leaving, everyone became just as surprised and disappointed as Fej had been. They were even more shocked when they heard what Yamucha said next.
"And Videl is leaving too, so that means that the position of top student is wide open." They all knew that Yamucha didn't rank his students, but they also knew that Videl and Keiichi were by far ahead of the rest of them.
"What?" Bokken asked. "Now there'll only be six of us here unless…Master, are you going to be accepting new students again?"
"No, I don't think I'll be doing that for a long time. If you'll excuse me, I have some things to take care of." With that, he walked back out of the dojo and took off.
"So who do you think will be the new top student?" Yamato asked.
"Maybe we should have our own little tournament to find out," Bokken suggested.
"Nah, I think Master Yamucha was kidding about that," Takeru said. "What difference does it make which of us is the best, anyway? Let's just keep training like we always have."
"I'm for that," Faita concurred. The others agreed, and they set about sparring as usual.
* * *
Several months passed, and Yamucha's students went on with their training. Videl left as she said she would, but not until after staying long enough for the second favor her teacher had asked of her.
Elsewhere, in his home hear Mt. Paozu, another young warrior's training was also progressing.
"You're really getting better, Gohan," the eldest Son commented. Today, Gohan was training with his father and Piccolo as usual, and Kuririn was there helping out as well. It was all Gohan could do to fend off all three of them at one time, even in his SSJ2 form.
"You definitely are!" Kuririn affirmed. "I can barely manage to keep up with your movements, let alone attack you!"
"But something is still wrong!" Gohan insisted. "I'm much more powerful now than when I fought Cell, but I'm still nowhere near how powerful I should be!"
"It's like when we were on Namek-sei, and Vegeta said that most of your power was lying dormant, and you weren't even aware of it," Kuririn pointed out.
"Except this time he is aware of it, and he still can't use it," Piccolo said. The fighting abruptly stopped, and the two super saiya-jins powered down to their normal forms.
"I'm sure he'll find a way, Piccolo," Goku said. "He's just put up another one of those protective walls around his own power again, and he needs to figure out how to take it down."
"Well if he keeps training like this, he won't even need to," Kuririn said. "Remember how strong you two got after you trained as super saiya-jins in the room of spirit and time? Training at the next level can only work even better."
"Let's hope it is enough," Piccolo said.
"Hey come on, you guys," Kuririn protested, "What could ever be worse than Majin Buu?"
"It's that attitude that got us in trouble the last time," Piccolo snapped. Kuririn shot up his hands in defense.
"Okay, okay! I'm sorry!" Goku just laughed.
"Well anyway, I think that's enough training for today. Gohan needs to get back home or Videl's gonna be mad. I think Chi Chi is gonna be mad at me, too."
"Well lucky for me, Juu-chan said she was going shopping today," Kuririn laughed. "She won't know if I get home late at all!"
"Well I don't want to have to hear any of those women scream," Piccolo said. "Why don't you all go home then? We'll continue training tomorrow."
"Will you be back tomorrow, Kuririn?" Goku asked.
"No, I promised Yamucha that I'd spar with him in his gravity room. He hasn't had the chance to fight anyone except his students since he set up his dojo."
"All right, good-bye then."
"Good-bye. And thanks for lunch!" He took off and flew towards Kame Island at an amazing speed. Training regularly with the saiya-jins and Piccolo, as well as his wife, had increased the human's power substantially.
"I'm going to be going as well," Gohan said. "I'll see you tomorrow Dad, Piccolo." He waved and then took off.
"Do you think he'll ever allow himself to reach his full power again?" Piccolo asked Goku as the two watched their younger sparring partner fly off.
"Who knows? But maybe Kuririn is right. Maybe he won't even need to."
* * *
"Videl?" Gohan called as he landed on the grass outside his house. "Videl, I'm home!" He could sense his wife's ki nearby, but he couldn't yet pinpoint exactly where she was. That became irrelevant just a few moments later as he looked up and saw her foot flying straight for his face.
"AAA!" He jumped back quickly, easily avoiding the kick. Videl hovered in the air in front of him.
"What was that for?" He demanded, horrified at what he might have done wrong this time.
"Nothing," she shrugged. "But today was my last day of training with Yamucha, and I wanted to test my skills."
"I thought you stopped training there weeks ago," Gohan said.
"I did, but he wanted me to come back one last time to see how I was doing."
"Well, how are you doing?"
"Good question. Let's find out!" She launched herself at Gohan, who brought up a solid defense quickly. She threw a few good strong attacks at him, and he was quite impressed.
"You've definitely gotten a lot stronger," Gohan noted.
"Good!" Videl was pleased. After one final kick, she flipped back and landed on the ground about ten feet from Gohan. He turned to look at her, and found her crouching back in what appeared to be a defensive position. However, her hands were open and claw-like, something which implied an attack. He heard her mutter something, but couldn't make it out as the next thing he knew she was rushing toward him at a speed he was completely unaware she was capable of. He barely managed to bring up his arm to block, as he had lowered his power to her level and was also warn out from the training with his three senseis.
The attack came swiftly, but it was not a conventional attack by any means. Videl kept her hands in the open, grasping position, so that with each blow Gohan felt as if she were tearing at him with a pair of razor sharp claws. The attacks were as fast as her charge, and as she swung a kick over his head Gohan wondered if she was actually going to beat him this time. When he looked up from dodging the kick, he saw her hands flying at his chest in a double-fisted punch that looked like the way the hands were positioned for a kamehameha. He had no time to react, and her blow connected, sending him reeling back into a tree.
Videl ceased her assault and looked on triumphantly as her husband slowly stood up rubbing the back of his head.
"That was incredible, Videl!" He exclaimed once he was sure she wasn't going to rush him again. "What was that technique?"
"The rogafufuken," answered Videl with a proud grin. Gohan was impressed. His father had spoken to him before about Yamucha's signature attack, but he'd never seen it before. It was very effective.
The young demi-saiya-jin assumed the fight was over, but he was wrong. Videl, still facing him, dropped into another aggressive fighting stance. However, instead of her palm facing forward, it was facing up. Gohan could see her concentrating, and wondered what she was planning. Then he felt a huge spike in her ki and his eyes shot open. That's what she was doing!
A ball of light formed over Videl's hand, and she held in place until she was satisfied with it. Gohan could only look on, dumbfounded. Videl smirked, and then let out a cry.
"Sokidan!" The ball of energy flew at Gohan, who shot up into the air. With a few movements of her hands, Videl got the ball to follow Gohan, who was flying at the speed he normally did when sparring with Videl. He found he had to move a little faster to avoid this new blast. He swerved around for a while until he lost it, and then landed back on the ground in front of Videl.
"That was incredible, Videl! I can't believe you…Videl?"
The young woman had not shifted out of her fighting stance, and still wore a triumphant smirk upon her face. She brought her right arm up, first two fingers extended, and then inverted her wrist and brought her fingers down sharply. Gohan looked up just in time to see the energy ball explode in his face, slamming him down to the ground.
When Videl managed to stop laughing, she was met with the sight of a slightly annoyed but very impressed Gohan.
"Now I see what Yamucha's been teaching you for the past few months," he said.
"What did you think?" Videl asked proudly. She stood normally now, and was visibly more relaxed.
"You really mastered those techniques well," her husband told her. "However, I don't think they'll work on me in the future."
"Oh, and why is that?" Videl asked wryly. The next thing she knew, Gohan had her in a bear hug from behind.
"Because I'm to fast for you," he said.
"Hey!" She yelled as she squirmed in a futile attempt to break free. "That's not fair! Son Gohan, you let go of me this minute! Do you hear me?"
Amidst all of her protests, Gohan spun her around so that he still held her tightly, but she was facing him. She continued ranting for a moment, and then he silenced her with a kiss. She resisted for a moment, but then her body went limp and she kissed him back. The sparring was over for the day.
* * *
Aye carumba! Sorry 'bout that. I suffered from long-term writer's block on three separate occasions while working on this chapter. Can you imagine it was originally intended to continue past the next tournament? Yikes! But it's finished now, so all of you who actually remember me can go back and re-read the first chapter so you can remember what the heck is going on. I'd like to say the next chapter will not take nearly as long, and most likely it won't, but I've learned in the past to never make such promises. Just know that the story will eventually be finished, even if it takes the course of a few years. (God forbid, eh?)