"Dragonball AS: 32nd Budokai Saga"

Chapter 34- "The Tournament"

By- Tiny

It was a warm, crisp summer day on the planet Earth and everything seemed right in the universe at that moment. Bird's chirped in the early morning sunshine and furry little creatures scurried about in the forests, just as they would on any other day of the year. It was a beautiful setting, just perfect as far as most people were concerned.

The only disturbance in this fresh, new day were the yells and cries of an intense, yet friendly match going on at Mt. Paozu. A small group of figures, four older and four children, were sparing at super human speeds and with unbelievable force. Blow after blow rocked the mountainous terrain as they met their mark, shaking the very foundation upon which everything stood to the core.

"C'mon Goken, you can hit harder than that!" Goku snickered, "I expect you to do much better than this if you plan on winning the tournament next week!"

"But your so strong, Grandpa!" the eight year old whined, "You can't possibly expect me to beat you!"

"No, he wants you to try harder and push yourself," Goken's cousin, Medon, smirked, "Then again, if your too weak to handle it..."

"I'll show you weak!" Goken growled, flashing to the first Super Saiya-jin level, "The hard way!"

The two eight year olds charged at each other fiercely, both at the first level, and drew back to punch each other. They were no more than a foot away from each other when a pair of rough, strong hands came in between the two and pushed them away from each other. Both boys looked up to see their great-grandpa, Bardock, holding them back while he himself was in the second stage.

"You two need to cool yourselves off!" Bardock growled, "If you let your anger and frustration get in the way of your judgment, then you'll both lose to more level headed and weaker foes. You really want Bikini to kick your butts?"

"She might do that anyway!" a raspy voice chuckled from below, "After all, I trained her personally and she is a princess!"

"Don't be so cocky just before the tournament, Vegeta," Raditz chuckled, "After all, your grandson is a bit stronger than Bikini and is a superb tactician. Your not picking favorites, are you?"

"Of course not!" the prince growled, "I'm just confident in her, that's all!"

"That's right!" Bikini spat, "I'm a tough one!"

"Sure kid, whatever you say," Gohan laughed, ruffling the girl's hair, "Are you going to be competing in the matches as well, Vegeta?"

"Kakarot will be there, so of course I will be in attendance," Vegeta smirked, "The question is will you be taking part in the matches?"

"Yes, I will," Gohan nodded, "So will Raditz, Goten, and the kids. Grandpa has declined and said he'll just be a spectator."

Vegeta eyed the oldest of the Saiya-jin there, who was playing with the four young children, and smirked. Bardock had come so far in such a short space of time on Earth, as had all the Saiya-jin, and it was refreshing to see them lightening up for a change. It reminded Vegeta a lot of how he was when he first came to Earth from Nameksei, where it had all started.

"Earth to Vegeta!" Gohan clicked his fingers, "Are you even awake in there?"

"Silence, fool!" Vegeta growled, smacking Gohan's hand away, "I was just...thinking."

"Well, we'd better get on back home before the ladies get worried," Goku coughed, "Why don't you come with us, Vegeta?"

Vegeta watched as the eight members, both young and old, of the Son family took off into the morning sky towards their home. He knew all too well that they were going to have breakfast at Goku's, meaning that Chi-Chi had been cooking. Drool dripped down the corner's of the Saiya-jin's mouth as he thought about it, drifting off until a slight tug at his pant's caught his attention.

"Grandpa, I wanna eat at Goku's house!" Bikini beamed, "Can we please?"

"Sure princess," Vegeta smiled, lifting off, "Why not?"

The day of the 32nd Budokai was a busy day for both the Briefs and the Son family, since it was mostly their families that were competing. Ever since Hercule's announcement that he didn't beat Cell and retirement, the Budokai had lost some of it's former splendor. That was something that the Z fighters intended to remedy...

Goku and his family had arrived about an hour before the start of the matches so they could sign up and the spectators could get good seats. Much to their surprise, everyone was already there and most of them were seated in the stands, save a few of the more adept fighters. Goku was pleased to notice that Ubuu had turned out to fight, as had Yamcha's son and the Kurudo-jin Ice. Even Piccolo had decided to take part in the match ups, meaning they were all in for a great time.

"Can you believe we're back at the Budokai arena?" Bulma giggled, looking at Chi-Chi, "Do you remember the first time we came to one of these?"

"Of course I do!" Chi-Chi smiled, "That's the same day that Goku agreed to marry me and it wasn't much longer afterwards that we did. How could I ever forget that?"

"Wait a second!" Chive gasped, "You and my son were engaged at a fighting tournament? No wonder he married you!"

"Will you guys pipe down up there?" Marron grumbled, "They're getting ready to start the Junior Rounds."

All eyes fell on the center of the Budokai ring, their jaws dropping at the sight before their very eyes. Standing there in the center of the ring, dressed up in a well tailored black suit and blue shades, stood Bardock. In the Saiya-jin's hand was a microphone and a bunch of info cards, which he threw into the air and blew to pieces immediately.

"What the hell is he doing down there!?!" Vegita growled, "And dressed in that suit no less! It's gotta be ninety degrees out here!"

"The old announcer retired a few years ago and Bardock volunteered to take his place," Chive snickered, "It'll work out better this way, since Bardock can actually follow the fights!"

"I hope so, cause even we'll probably need a narrator!" Rhubra giggled, "Our children are just too fast for us to keep up with anymore..."

"Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to the 32nd Tenkachi Budokai!" Bardock roared into the microphone, "Is everybody ready to get this thing started?"

A loud chorus of cheers rang throughout the stands, which were so jam packed that and extra five rows had needed to be installed to hold all the people that had bought tickets. The sound warmed the Saiya-jin man's once cold heart and he continued on with his announcements.

"Sounds like a yes to me, so let's get started with the Junior Competition!" Bardock smirked, "This year the Junior Competition will consist of three rounds: the quarter finals, semi-finals, and the final round. The winner of the final round will be awarded with a chance to fight against the winner of the adult competition."

As Bardock spoke, the eight finalists in the Junior Competition stepped out onto the arena floor. All eight were the children of the Z fighters, not to mention all of them were Saiya-jin, and the crowd roared with anticipation of the upcoming battles. After all, they promised to be very good with eight Saiya-jin competing.

"The fights will go in this order," Bardock announced, "Goshin vs. Boxer, Bikini vs. Goken, Berge vs. Kimuchi, and, finally, Medon vs. Apio! So let's get started with our first two contestants!"

The crowd cheered as all but two of the competitors departed from the ring, making way for the upcoming fights. Goshin looked a little worried, knowing that he was the weakest of the new generation, but didn't let it show. He had even honored his great-grandfather by wearing the traditional Son colors, orange and blue, in a gi that Piccolo himself had fashioned.

Boxer, on the other hand, looked excited at the prospect of fighting someone so close to himself in power and skill. He too was honoring his lineage, as he was decked out in a suit that resembled Vegeta's outfit during the ordeal with Buu. It brought back many memories for the Saiya-jin prince and he was proud to see his grandson wearing his colors in the matches.

"Our two competitors are both good friends and are also the descendants of many legends of this tournament," Bardock continued, "Goshin is the great-grandson of former champions Son Goku and Hercule Satan, as well as the grandson of Son Gohan, the man who defeated Cell. Boxer's background is also legendary here at the Budokai, as he is the only grandson of the great fighter, Vegeta!"

Boxer and Goshin both moved into stance as the crowd cheered, throwing confetti and waving signs around as the two prepared to do battle. Boxer's bluish-black hair waved as a slight breeze blew by, as did Goshin's own hair, which he had cut to look like his grandpa's. Fire danced in the boy's eyes as they stared each other down, studying the stance each was using and looking for flaws, as Bardock jumped out of the ring.

"Let the first round begin!" Bardock screamed into the microphone, "FIGHT!"

In the blink of an eye the two boys were at each other's throats, throwing punches and kicks at each other faster than the normal person could follow. Luckily, Bulma had created a special screen to watch the fights with so everyone in the stadium was watching the screen as the two boys went at it. Jaws dropped as the sonic booms from the force of the boy's blows as they connected, but the Z fighters watched with little effort and great amusement.

"It's simply amazing how powerful they both are," Goten smirked, "And they haven't even started trying yet!"

"They are something else," Piccolo chuckled, "Reminds me of you and Trunks when you were that age."

"We weren't this powerful at that age," Goten sighed, "This new generation though...they have the potential to be stronger than all of us!"

"Indeed they do, Goten," Piccolo nodded, "Indeed they do...."

NEXT TIME: The 32nd Budokai has gotten off to a flying start and the crowd seems to be loving every minute of it, and this is only the Junior Division! Will Goshin or Boxer win the first match of the tournament and, more importantly, who will win the whole thing? Also, how much power do these new kids possess? Find out in the next installment of Dragonball AS!!!!!!