Ch5 - Welcome Back Goku

Vegeta sensed the battle occurring on Earth with little difficulty between his training with Kakarot. Luckfully, things were occurring as normal. He could sense Future Trunks' ki burning brightly before Frieza's was snuffed out. Kakarot was too distracted with the training to notice what happened. He was also too focused on training to notice the inner turmoil within Vegeta. Could he find a better fight out in the universe in the past, or would he rather stay to fight Cell again? He doubted he could find an admirable fighter out in the universe, but if he'd stay that'd affect the timeline. Such a dilemma!

"Alright, that's enough. We've got about an hour to clean up and change," Vegeta grunted as he sensed they were about an hour away from Earth. He had lent Kakarot one of his saiyan uniforms to train with in order to not rip up the unique Yardrat uniform.

"Hua?" Kakarot stood straight before exclaiming, "Woah! Frieza's gone! I'd been so focused on training I didn't even notice! Man, I wonder who could've been strong enough to take 'im!"

"Enough stalling, idiot. Go get cleaned up for your welcome home party or whatever. We'll be landing in about one hour," Vegeta ordered and Kakarot quickly jumped to do as instructed. It was so foreign that it was Kakarot who was following orders and not Lettiche who was the same age last he saw her. It felt so strange to know the woman he'd come to know wouldn't be born for another 22 years.

After both saiyans cleaned themselves in the ship's sink and put on their fresh Yardrat armor, Goku anxiously pumped himself for his return. He'd been away from Earth for a very long time and was excited to see how much his friends grew during the time he was gone. He was also excited to find out who destroyed Frieza once and for all.

As soon as the ship landed, Goku almost ripped the door off its hinges as it opened so he could stand out and see his friends waiting outside. Wait a second, his friends were all gathered outside his, er King Vegeta's, ship? Yeah, Goku counted: Gohan, Krillin, Tien, Choutsu, Yamcha, Puar, Bulma, Vegeta, and Piccolo. Wait, and one more he didn't recognize.

The man voiced his confusion, "Hua? Hey, guys!" and was met by cheers of: "Yeah! You made it! Alright Goku! Welcome back!" Goku recognized his son's voice calling, "What took you so long, Dad?!" They were all there happy and smiling away. What happened with Frieza and how did they know where he was going to land? Plus, how did they know that he was coming at that very moment? Did King Vegeta let them know? No, that wouldn't make sense since King Vegeta never talked about Earth, or any planet for that matter.

Goku fully walked out of the ship and joined his group of cheering friends a few yards away, "Hi, guys. How in the world did you figure out that I was gonna be here?"

"This guy told us!" Bulma announced, pointing at the youth that Goku didn't recognize. "He's a mystery man. I think he might be a fan of yours."

"He knows all about you, Daddy," Gohan added happily.

Goku looked the seventeen-year-old up and down in confusion, "Hua? But, how?"

His confusion shocked the group and Bulma spoke, "He knew the exact time and place of your arrival, Goku."

This made Goku even more confused. Had King Vegeta arranged with this strange boy? He was always so quiet about himself, so it wasn't impossible that King Vegeta had some secret rendezvous with this kid. But then again, King Vegeta seemed so alone that the old saiyan having friends didn't seem very likely.

Finally, Goku replied, "That's impossible. We've never even met."

Bulma blinked, "Well, that's what he said, but he must have been tracking your ship in outer space."

"Really?" Goku's brain fired on all cylinders with that comment with his hand cupping his chin. If this kid didn't know him, then how could he have known his location? Did King Vegeta actually know this guy? King Vegeta did seem very adamant that he couldn't stay on Earth. Maybe he had some business with this kid and said to meet up on Earth since that's where Goku was going? Maybe…? But then again, how could the youth have tracked the ship in the first place? Surely he would've been able to sense the kid! He gave off a strong ki so it wasn't likely he would've missed it passing by like Frieza did!

Goku gave his response, "I don't know. Frieza tried to do that, but I could sense his energy level as he passed. He sure was in a hurry to beat me home. But my gosh! What in the world happened here you guys?! Who defeated Frieza?! You, Piccolo? Or was it you, Vegeta?"

The saiyan studied the two strongest people he knew on Earth and neither seemed to be close to Frieza's power yet. Piccolo replied, "Neither of us did. It was this guy. He did it with ease. He turned into a super saiyan and picked him apart."

Goku's eyes grew wide in surprise, "What? A super saiyan? I can't believe it! That's outstanding! Can you imagine?! A super saiyan at his age?! Fantastic!"

The other saiyan standing outside the ship yelled in frustration, "Hey! Aren't you forgetting something?! You, your son, and I are the only saiyans still alive!"

"Well, if he says he's a super saiyan, then that's good enough for me. And besides, that's not true!" Goku light hearted-ly replied.

"Oh honestly Goku! You take things way too lightly sometimes," Bulma sighed.

"No I don't," Goku defended.

The young Vegeta burst, "What do you mean that's not true?!"

Goku cringed as he realized his mistake, and itched at the back of his head. Oopsie, oh well. No harm in talking about him, right? The saiyan honestly stated, "Because it isn't. I've been training with someone. He's still on the ship."

"You what?!" the prince yelped as he realized the powerful presence on the ship.

"I can sense him! Woah! How could I have missed it before?!" Krillin cried out what the other ki users were thinking.

"It's unreal," Piccolo gulped.

Confused looking between her friends, Goku, and the ship, Bulma asked, "What is it you guys?"

Tien answered, "This power. It's just as strong as this kid. And I get the feeling that's not even close to what he's capable of."

Confidently, Goku stated, "Yup, yup! He's super strong!" and turned towards the ship behind him. He then yelled out, "Hey! King Vegeta! Why don't you show yourself already?!"

"WHAT?!" Vegeta choked with bug eyes. It couldn't be his father, but the name was intimidating none-the-less. King Vegeta, Vegeta's father, was killed by Frieza ages ago so there was no way that his father was somehow alive. This had to be an imposter!

"I've told you before, Kakarot, not to call me that. And I said I wasn't staying on this planet, either," the voice of the warrior came as he revealed himself. He did indeed look an awful lot like Vegeta, but also different enough that Vegeta knew for certain that it wasn't his father. The biggest teller being that his father would be over a foot taller than the man that stood before him now.

Gohan gasped, "He… Kind of looks like Vegeta."

Yamcha added, "Woah, another mystery saiyan? What are the odds?"

Vegeta grit his teeth and demanded, "I refuse to believe you're my father, so just who do you think you are?!"

The warrior responded directly to Vegeta, "No, I'm not your father. Merely related, that's all. It's not something I'd wish to explain." That answer didn't sit well with the younger saiyan, but no further words were spoken as they stared into each other's eyes. Almost daring the other to speak or to see just who was going to break into a fight first. The tension grew thick.

Then, the warrior broke eye contact to glance at the woman among the group. Bulma blushed at the new attention. He was older, but she was well aware of the intentions of old men. Master Roshi was a handful all on his own. But this seemed different somehow. Like he was committing her appearance to memory. She'd thought it was probably for old man reasons, but she didn't say a word as she let him look her up and down. It was only for a second, but it felt for a lot longer than that to the both of them. It was weird and mysterious. It made Bulma curious just who this man actually was.

"Boy," his voice came, making Bulma jump and look towards the young warrior next to her. "You had something to say?"

The kid's face turned puzzled. How could this weird guy know he had something to say? The teen didn't know of any strange saiyan that joined the group in the past. What's going on here? Well, all the same, he'd better say what he had come for.

"Goku," the teen said after shaking his head from the confusion. "Can I have a word with you?"

"With me?" Goku confirmed.

"Yes, just the two of us," came the response. The kid pointed across the plateau and began walking in the direction.

To the group's confusion, Goku willingly walked with the teen and looked more serious, "Alright, then."

Yamcha outburst, "What? Hey! What is this guy trying to say?!"

Goku assured, "It's okay guys. I'll be right back."

With that, the two saiyan flew across the plateau to speak privately. Much to the group's anxiety as the strange King Vegeta stood with them in their group near Bulma. Yamcha made sure to put his body between them. Something about that old man made Yamcha feel protective of his girlfriend. The staring was weird and rubbed the bandit the wrong way.

"I really like the outfit Goku and this new guy are wearing. It's really cool!" Bulma decided to break the silence of the group.

The older saiyan looked back towards the woman and caught her staring at him as he had done her. Her cheeks instantly blushed at being caught and he turned back to the others across the plateau grumbling under his breath, "Tch, vulgar woman."

Not liking what was going on, Yamcha interrupted, "Hey, how did you know that guy had something to say to Goku like that?"

The man stiffened and his tail around his waist flicked in annoyance. He replied, "I'm not out here for conversation, got it? Now quiet down and let the Namek concentrate."

Everyone turned to Piccolo who simply narrowed his eyes at the mysterious man and crossed his arms without a word. The rest stood puzzled as to what the man meant. Their confusion was quickly erased as Goku transformed super and the power ripped wind across the plateau.

Bulma gasped, "What's going on, guys?! Goku has blonde hair! How wild!"

Gohan informed, "He just transformed into a super saiyan."

Tien exclaimed, "How could he generate that much power?!"

Yamcha agreed, "Yeah, I know! It's mind boggling! Goku's on fire!" The bandit added as the mystery boy also burst into flame gold light, "Man! Look at those two! Hardcore!"

"What is that guy up to?!" Tien questioned as they stood helplessly across the plateau.

Vegeta couldn't stand the sight. Two super saiyans stood before him. And another with similar power without even needing the technique. They were all mocking him! Spitting right in his face! His heritage be damned! It only grew worse as the two engaged in a show of power. The older teen using his sword that he'd used to slice Frieza into pieces moments ago was blocked by a mere finger by Kakarot. Their power burst around them at the display and with each gust of wind, it shattered the daiyan prince's pride.

"Man… Goku…" Tien gasped at a loss just as the rest in the group.

The kid sheathed his sword and Yamcha added, "Yeah. He's spectacular."

Tien agreed, "No doubt."

A deep burning rage filled Vegeta as he grumbled, "Blast you, Kakarot."

The older saiyan remained a statue, unaffected by the display, and annoyedly stated, "Tch, if you keep yapping you won't get to hear what they're saying."

Vegeta questioned the older saiyan before him. How the hell did this man know that the kid had something to say? And now he's saying they were supposed to listen to the conversion that was obviously too far for anyone to listen in? It botched Vegeta to no end that this man seemed to be hiding something. He was a mysterious saiyan with no name besides that of his father's and he was somehow all-knowing? The prince had heard of a saiyan going mad after an encounter of a species of psychic creatures, but he'd always just assumed that was a single case!

"You know something, don't you?!" Vegeta demanded once more. But he was met with silence as he felt Kakarot's eyes linger on himself from across the plateau.

The quiet lasted for a while before Bulma broke it, "Man, for two people who don't know each other, they sure got a lot to talk about."

Krillin nodded, "But hey, talking's not bad. It's a lot better than fighting."

Gohan added, "At least he doesn't have his sword out anymore."

The short bald man joked, "Yeah, and your dad put his finger away too."

The break in silence disturbed the older saiyan as he grumbled to himself, "And they just keep talking. Nakek's better get all this 'cause I'm not repeating it if he doesn't."

Yamcha, being the only person close enough to hear the older saiyan, looked to the man confused. What did he mean? The bandit looked anxiously over to Goku and the teen before asking, "What's the big deal? They look like someone just died over there."

Only seconds later and the teen pointed in the direction of the group and Goku fell over laughing hysterically. What was so funny? Even the older saiyan seemed to have heard the joke as he gave a snicker. And Piccolo gasped audibly as well.

Vegeta exclaimed appalled, "That guy just pointed his finger and Kakarot fell down!"

Bulma looked between the two across the plateau and the older saiyan, stating, "I could'a sworn I heard Goku call my name."

As if to add more to the situation, Yamcha randomly sneezed. Bulma responded instinctively, but as soon as he recovered, he asked, "Hey, that guy's looking over here, isn't he?"

Loyally, Puar responded, "Yeah! It looks like he's smiling."

It appeared as though the conversation was coming to a close as the older saiyan suddenly announced in a rush, "Namek, you got all that?"

After a moment's pause from the surprise of being addressed, Piccolo nodded, "Yeah."

"Good. Then I'm off," the man said before sprinting back to his spaceship, capsulizing it, and flying off after the mysterious teen who just left without a word to the others. The group were so surprised at the sudden action that they didn't notice how the ship was capsulized.

Behind him, King Vegeta could hear Yamcha complain "Man, they didn't even say goodbye!" along with Krillin's confused exclamation, "I didn't know they were in kahoots!" Just before the older saiyan could pass by Kakarot across the plateau, the younger saiyan questioned, "King Vegeta! You're going too?!"

"You're on your own now, Kakarot! I've got business to take care of!" King Vegeta responded. Just before he was out of range, he'd spoken to the only person that could hear him in warning, "Namek, be sure they're ready for a lot more than just two androids."

The Vegeta of the future knew he was asking for trouble by adding that side note to Piccolo, but he had already interfered more than he should have. At least if he gave them warning of Cell, then whatever changes that came from his own mettling would hopefully be less of a problem for them. After all, the limit of three days in the Hyperbolic Time Chamber was simply a bluff as he'd spent far more time in there than a measly three days. If they had to face something, they could simply train until they were ready in there. It'd worked every time they had access to the room before.