Chapter 13 - Succession, Pt. 1

The girl in question, Grey Wolf, was sitting by the fire. Saito had felt that she and Zac needed some 'alone' time, so to speak, and hit the sack early.

'Midget boy' was climbing a tree, one of his favorite pasttimes.

"Will you get down from there!" Grey Wolf yelled, joking. "Monkey!"

"Bah! All I get around here is names! Midget! Monkey! What next??"

"Maybe Midget Monk!"

"Hah, so funny, I forgot to laugh-" The smirk wiped from his face as he heard a crack in the branch below him. He was already too high to get down without that branch, and going any higher wasn't possible. Staying there, however, wasn't any more appealing. Grey Wolf, who had heard the crack, her ears very sensitive, had stood.

"Zac... Don't move..."

"Grey Wolf, what do I do??"

"I don't know-"

Another crack pierced the silence, and Grey Wolf watched in horror as Zac descended, scratching himself on branches along the way. She flew at the tree, barely catching him. "Jesus... Don't you ever, ever climb another tree in front of me again, is that clear?" Grey Wolf said, looking at the multiple bruises, scrapes and cuts that lined Zac. She set him down on top of his sleeping bag, treating his injuries.

"I... I'm sorry..." He spoke after a while.

"No, don't be... I overreacted." She softly touched his face. "I just... care about you too damn much." She pulled him close and kissed him. It was a soft kiss, but it got the message through. She did love him back. She finished treating his wounds, and they fell asleep together, comfortable in each other's arms.

Saito, Zac and Grey Wolf awoke as the rain began to pour. They ran down the path, looking for some form of shelter. True, they were in a forest, but a forest meant trees, and trees meant lightning. They ran into a clearing. Zac and Saito ran ahead.

Grey Wolf stopped involuntarily as she entered the very graveyard she had created at the age of five. The 2754 victims of the Ryuu(Dragon)-Ryu Shockwave Buddha Giri lay there, victims of circumstance.

"Save... Saito..."

Grey Wolf whispered his name in pain, remembering the first man she had ever loved as she stared upon his grave. A solitary tear fell to the floor.

The tear was lost in memory as Saito and Grey Wolf's swords clashed.

---THE NEXT DAY---

Ghost fired off a few shots at where Vejiita was asleep. Vejiita sensed them coming and jumped away, still in his sleeping bag. "What the hell, Ghost!" Ghost didn't answer back, but simply flew straight at Vejiita. "I guess this is the new training plan...?" Vejiita muttered. He ripped his sleeping bag open and fired a beam at Ghost. Ghost knocked it away and punched Vejiita in the gut.

"What... the...?!" Vejiita fell over in pain, finally knowing what the training really was- a deathmatch. Vejiita stood, flying at Ghost. He tried to punch Ghost, but Ghost blocked the strike and counterattacked Vejiita, punching him in the jaw. Then, Ghost kicked Vejiita into a rock formation. Then, Ghost flew above him and pulled him out, punching him again, sending him flying again. Vejiita stopped himself and flew back at Ghost, connecting this time to Ghost's face. Ghost flew backwards slightly, but then stops himself as Vejiita flies at him, striking Vejiita with a ki beam. Vejiita tries to block, but Ghost overtakes him, causing Vejiita to fly through a rock formation and land on the ground.

Ghost teleported above Vejiita and kicked Vejiita down, hitting him and pressing his foot into Vejiita's stomach, causing a crater to form. Vejiita screamed in pain, crying for Ghost to stop. His cries were unheard by Ghost, as the pressure soon became unbearable. Ghost lifted his foot and stomped on Vejiita's head, pushing his face into the dirt.

"Fight, damnit! Fight me and kill me! That, or die!" Ghost screamed as he raised his foot.

"Die?" The word flashed in Vejiita's head, as thoughts came upon him. He'd leave much behind if his life ended here. His goals... he had sword, alongside Grey Wolf, that one day, they would restore the saiyan people. His dreams... he aspired to, one day, reach the level beyond an elite four, to reach the level that was so close, yet so far... to reach the level of a poke'mon master. Then, perhaps Grey Wolf would again give him some form of respect... Which lead to his one, true desire, his desperate, agonizing, star-crossed thought... that perhaps, one day, he could ask Grey Wolf, beg her to marry him. What was most agonizing to him was the chance that had once been, when they had been engaged before... which he had so utterly destroyed in the biggest mistake of his life. And what was more, he had been right. The rage of it all filled Vejiita's soul as Ghost brought down his foot to break Vejiita's neck, and the dam broke.

Golden hair, turquoise eyes and a rageful soul were all Ghost could see as Vejiita stopped the deathblow and tripped him. As Ghost fell backwards, Vejiita delivered what must've been his most powerful kick of his life sharply into Ghost's backside, sending Ghost flying forward, landing on his stomach in pain. Vejiita stood, walking toward Ghost filled with the rage of the thoughts flashing through his head, reminding him of a day so long, yet so short a time ago.