Disclaimer, in case it wasn't obvious. I don't own Dragon Ball, Dragon Ball Z, or really any other property. Thank you.

The Long Road

Chapter 23: Controlling the Past

Videl:

Looking ahead, all Videl could do was watch as the short, black haired man walked into the ring with Jewel. It was very, very obvious that Krillin was going to win this fight. Firstly, she knew of him through the Crane school, as an enemy of her mentors, that Krillin was trained in the arts in a way similar to herself. She also knew, that Jewel was not. The confidence both fighters exerted was very evident, though the shorter participant's was overwhelming. He didn't even seem interested.

Of course, as soon as the fight began, it was over. It was a single punch from Krillin that knocked out Jewel. It was hard to hide her own surprise, even knowing the outcome of the match. It was only in a blur of motion that she caught how fast the shorter warrior was. If it weren't for her training, she wouldn't be sure she could have followed it at all.

"Way to go Krillin!" Son Goku shouted.

While the short warrior made his victorious walk back towards the waiting area, Videl couldn't help but turn her gaze towards the other warriors.

The one's whose reactions she was looking for were the Sons themselves. She now knew the name of her attacker from all those years ago. The arrogant beast was named Gohan. While he did seem to carry himself a bit differently now, she could still see him for what he was. Every time their eyes met, she felt the hair on her body blister and she felt her blood chill. He seemed utterly impassive to the result of the fight. When he turned and looked at her again, she saw the monster of her nightmares stare at her. The eyes were different then they were before. In her mind, she remembered them as sadistically entertained, and almost hungry.

Now?

They looked somehow hollowed, like there was a piece missing. It was strange she felt she could even notice this. It didn't diminish her hatred in the slightest, but it did confuse her. Part of her always expected him to be locked in a space and time, as if in the moment where she was helpless. Before her was the same creature as before, but time had passed for him. Life had moved on, leaving her feeling behind somehow. She was trapped in that moment still, somehow, but he wasn't. It'd been an uneventful moment for him.

Only when she saw him for the first time in years, and only when he saw Pan, did he realize anything had even happened. She had been so irrelevant to him he didn't even recognize her. It wasn't that she wanted to be remembered even in a positive light, but she wanted him to at least know that when she beat him, she avenged herself and her honour. Her disappointment at who he was left a bitter taste in her mouth, and it made her hate him even more.

"Don't chant for the midget when all he beat was some pitiful human. If he needs that much positive reinforcement, he shouldn't be in the tournament at all," Gohan scolded Goku.

Before anything else could be said, the shorter warrior returned to the fighter's area. Within a few seconds of that, the warriors known as Ma Junior and Shin were called to the arena. Neither of them looked human at all. She knew full well the big green one was in fact, King Piccolo. Both of them had to have incredible power, and so she wanted to see this for herself. If she could follow what they were doing, she would know she'd come into her own. Confirmation of her own power was something she needed right now.

The room became tense when the two warriors just stood there, neither moving in the ring. Something was stopping the fight, and she didn't know what. A brisk wind started to pick up, blowing the green warrior's cape back. Did anyone else know what was going on?

"Come on Piccolo! Attack!" Gohan shouted.

The other warriors looked uncomfortable, all of them. Finally however, within a few more seconds, King Piccolo turned away from the shorter warrior, looking nervous, before stepping out of the ring, conceding the match in an instant without a single punch being thrown. No one could quite believe it, it was obvious given how speechless everyone was. Videl's own eyes followed the long walk of defeat back from the ring for the green warrior. For a moment she was almost too stunned to hear anything until she recognized that Son Goku and Son Gohan were talking with him.

"What happened out there, Piccolo?" Goku asked. "Is he really that strong?"

"I don't know, but I do know that his power is different from anything I've felt. He knew everything about me as well. I felt paralysed," Piccolo finally admitted.

There was something Videl noticed immediately. A stiff calm had overtaken her attacker. Gohan looked livid. For what she didn't know.

"So he plays mind games?" Gohan asked, his voice barely concealing just how angry he was.

As soon as the purple man walked through the gateway, Gohan grabbed him by the front of his shirt and lifted him into the air. Every figure in the room immediately made motions to begin the process of intervention.

"You cowardly, mohawk wearing little shit. Do you think this is a game? The whole reason the Namek came here was to test himself and you just spat on that you little rat," Gohan spat, his facial features rife with contempt and anger.

"Gohan, calm down!" Goku immediately ordered.

The room almost quaked for a moment. Even Videl could feel the power being almost radiated outwards. When the big creature that escorted Shin, Kibito, walked over to the scene and reached out his arm, grasping Gohan's shoulder, the sense this entire place would explode into violence became very real. Preparing herself, Videl took steps forward, trying to think of how to best intervene if things got violent, or more violent rather.

The tension in the room seemed to heighten as the purple skinned man spoke.

"I can assure you Gohan, I did not break any rules. Please release me, others are awaiting their match," Shin said calmly, clearly not intimidated.

"Gohan," King Piccolo then said. "We'll talk, it's... fine... don't worry about it. You've got your own match to worry about."

"And for our next match, we have Pintar fighting a former World Champion, Tienshinhan!"

The tension in the waiting area immediately went down several fold as Gohan turned to look at the others, still holding onto the little man. He then looked at her as well, narrowing his eyes for a brief moment. Looking at one another for a few moments, Videl looked straight back at him, her own features defiant.

Within a second, the purple skinned man dropped feet first to the ground.

"When I get into my match with you, little man, I am going to break you," Gohan assured.

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Finally her turn came about. Pintar took nearly 10 minutes to be taken out of the ring by several medical professionals. The match had only been 60 seconds, yet he had been the longest contestant in the ring so far. Tien had utterly annihilated him. Still, Videl knew that it was her turn to show everyone what she could do. Every fight so far had been uneventful, outside of demonstrating the intense power of Ki energy. Now it was her turn.

Spopovich, and his huge, overly muscled frame, stepped out of the fighter's area first, his bulky frame moving past the gateway into the arena. For some reason he looked almost inhuman in that moment. The strange M tattoo on his forehead made her unnerved as well. Still, she'd learned to move past such idle intimidating qualities in her training, she had to focus on technique, and she was willing to bet the lumbering giant had little in that regard.

Before she made her own motion to move out, she heard something from her side.

"... So," Gohan started, looking uncomfortable. "If things in the ring get uncomfortable, consider quitting. You've got a kid watching in the stands after all, right?"

The nerve of this bastard, as well as the arrogance and presumption, reached whole new levels. Scowling hatefully towards him, Videl left nothing hidden on exactly how she felt. Every moment of humiliation and anger made itself apparent in her face.

"I'd rather die in the ring then give in," she spat back to him. "Don't talk to me. I don't want to hear a single word from you."

With the words left in her place, Videl stormed out of the waiting area, walking briskly towards the ring. Every step felt more and more liberating, as she walked towards the moment she'd trained all this time for. All the time she'd left her daughter for, and all the people she'd cut ties with, it was all for this. Once she was in the ring, she let her body assume her stance as she sized up Spopovich, who assumed a stance she'd almost expect a wrestler to take. This wouldn't take long if that was the case. She could slip out of most holds, or reverse them. What was key was keeping her body as fluid as possibly, and then stiffening only at the exact moment to strike.

"And now, let the fourth match of the World Martial Arts Tournament begin!"

The ceremonial gong was sounded, and both fighters remained still for a moment. Sliding her own foot forward as she prepared to attack, Videl spotted six weaknesses in Spopovich's stance, each one easily able to be exploited. With a blur of speed which shocked her adversary, Videl moved in under his defence, slammed her knee into the side and back of his left knee, before grabbing his arm and flipping him over her shoulder.

Landing neck and shoulder first, the huge man slammed into the stone arena floor before she quickly twisted his arm, trying to dislocate it. There was no cry of pain, and she almost thought he was unconscious for a moment before the arm started to not only resist her own grip, but overpowered it. Releasing his arm a moment later, Videl flipped backward to get distance from her hulking monster as he found his feet again, slowly rising from his prone position.

Quickly assuming a defensive stance, Videl kept her senses all focused on him. She didn't like this.

Flexing his arms and scowling furiously at her, Spopovich cracked his neck from side to side. Without any warning, he launched at her at incredible speed. It sent a wave of force rushing past her before he even arrived. Barely able to manage a defence, Videl weathered his first attack. A huge strike from his right arm came crashing down on her just as she brought her own arm up to block. Focusing her energy into the limb, she strengthened herself. Much to her opponent's shock, and her muscle's dismay, she held her ground, holding his arm in place with a trembling limb. For a brief moment she saw the shock on her face.

Stepping into him, she gave him no time to follow up, uppercutting him in the chin with a violent flash of motion. Focusing her energy into the attack, it even lifted her off the ground. While Spopovich's body listed, barely standing, she spun in the air, letting her left leg out into a spinning kick which caught the giant in the chest. It was a terrible cracking sound when it landed, before booming around the arena. Falling back and impacting the hardened ground, the giant lay there unmoving for several moments.

Videl landed on her feet, looking at the fallen foe. When he didn't move for another second, she finally smiled to herself, and felt relieved. She'd not even come close to revealing her real power, and she'd overcome him rather simply. Raising her hand in victory, she looked to the audience. Her eyes searching for her daughter and mentors. The excited little girl in the fifth row was barely visible, but she could make her out. Excitement ran through her veins before she heard the sound of her opponent rising again.

Slowly turning, she noticed him getting up, this time faster then before. Grinning, the beast wiped deep red blood from his lip, chuckling before assuming his stance again. In the air around him, Videl could barely get the sensation of ki being gathered, and it wasn't her own. With more impressive speed then last time, her opponent blasted towards her.

Reacting by channelling her own power, Videl slipped in under his movements, sliding before his legs before grabbing the back leg and pulling it up, tripping the giant. Landing face first into the white surface below them, the crowd itself winced. Pulling him up quickly, before he could freakishly rise again, Videl decided to end the fight as quickly as she could.

Focusing her energy, a white aura burned around her, grabbing him by the neck and crying out as she pulled up, she flipped into the air while holding him almost effortlessly, before driving him head first into the ground in a massive DDT, his legs and body airborne above him even after his head planted into the ground. Pulling away, the huge body flopped against the arena a moment later. There was shock in the crowd, and in Videl, almost fearing she did real damage.

"What a manoeuvre! Let's hope Spopovich survived that incredible!... Oh my, he's moving!"

It was like watching a corpse get up. When he rose again, Videl once again gave him no time, going on the offensive. This time, she decided to not hold back. Aura blazing around her, she launched into him, moving forward at lightning speed. When her fist collided with his arm, just as he moved to block her attack, she saw a flashing purple aura now around him. The air around them became unbearably hot for a moment. Not willing to let herself be shocked, Videl immediately moved in with another strike, aiming for his neck. It was quickly parried away, and in a blur of motion the two collided again, this time with their legs. Slipping under a punch, she moved in with her own kick, only to find him having blocked her again.

Finally having enough, Videl rolled back and focused her energy into her palms as he moved to pursue.

"Dodon Cannon!"

A violent bolt of energy escaped her hands, blazing through the air before making its home in Spopovich's chest. The high pitched sound it made before exploding almost caused her to close her hands over her ears. A huge blast exploded in the middle of the ring, sending a smoke plume straight up into the air. Breathing heavily, she pulled herself up. The smoke expanded a moment later, and the giant came charging out, his body looking slightly worse, but hardly damaged. Now she was stunned.

Spopovich's giant elbow crashed into her head, sending her down immediately and skidding along the surface of the ring. Before she could get up, he'd already grabbed her leg, flipping her through the air and slamming her back first into the ground. A terrible gasp of agony escaped her as she felt the wind blast out of her body. The idea of losing hadn't entered Videl's thoughts at all, but pain was now very real for her.

Before he could pull her back up, Videl kicked his hand away, rolling back once again. Jumping into an attack, she pushed herself forward again energy sparking around her before driving her own elbow into his face in response to the attack on her. Just as his body lifted off the ground from the impact of her attack, Videl followed it through the air, flying after her. Spinning about several times, she drove both her knees into his abdomen, sending him into the ground, this time cracking the solid stone below. If the Dodon Cannon didn't finish him, that meant he was going to rise again.

Landing on his chest, the smaller framed fighter began to punch the down's fighter in the face rapidly and viciously, each blow sending the huge monster's head each way, blood spitting out in each direction, bloodying the once clean ring. Bringing her arm down again to continue her assault, shock filled her own blood as he grabbed her arm at the wrist. Looking down at him, the scowling brute made struggling, furious sounds, barely able to control himself. Lashing out at him with her other arm, she found it too was caught.

It felt unreal, like somehow this was all a dream she could just wake up from. What kind of fighter just took this kind of punishment and kept on going? Trying to free her hands yielded no results. Before she could think of anything else, his bald head came up, slamming into her face and nose. Blood immediately shot from her own nose, and she felt herself lose all sense of balance. When he shoved her back, she couldn't even find her feet properly she felt so disoriented.

With the horrible side kick came a moment later, the female warrior felt her shoulder hit the ring's tough surface first, before she skidded back.

"I can't... lose..." she muttered to herself.

Sheer willpower brought her back to the world. Struggling at first, but reaffirming her stance a moment later, Videl found her feet, and found her courage. This wasn't a fight she could lose. She was stronger then he was, she was the strongest warrior in the world. Protecting the Earth was her job, she was going to be the world champion. Her father the fake would no longer assume that role. Gohan, the Saiyan monster, was not going to deny her victory. But most of all, this giant pile of muscle and bone was not going to stop her.

"I'll never give up. You hear me?" Videl shot at him.

The huge grin she got in response told her everything she needed to know. He thought she was some kind of joke. Anger swelled like it never had before, her energy spiking around her as she prepared herself. The most dangerous techniques of her masters came to the fore of her mind, and she decided to use them in that moment. Nothing seemed to slow this monstrous brute down, so lethal techniques may do the job.

Without any further thought, Videl took off again, this time doing more then just ensuring the end of the fight. Both feet shot towards the knee she'd assaulted earlier, slamming into the knee and causing it to bend backwards, clearly dislocating it. A stiffened cry was held in the huge man's throat, and Videl followed through for the kill. Flipping into the air in front of him, she backhanded him in the face, before spinning further and letting her leg out. Forcing all of her energy into her leg, and arching it towards his jaw, she felt her foot make solid, heavy contact a moment later. Bone and muscle protested and snapped, causing his head to spin around backwards.

Landing on her back a second later, Videl blinked in horror at what just happened.

She killed him.

No... no no no!

A fatality meant elimination. But she'd thrown everything at him before to no avail, why was he suddenly mortal now? It didn't make sense.

"My goodness! It looks like Videl has indeed defeated Spopovich, but at the cost of the match. This kind of violence is not condoned by the World Martial Arts... What?"

Fear.

Fear swept through Videl as she saw Spopovich grab his head, and snap it back into place in one quick, powerful motion. What the Hell was this thing? Some kind of demon? Just how could he do this? His power couldn't be real.

After his head was finally back to where he clearly thought it was meant to be, he started to move towards her again. Videl had no motion she could make, still too shocked by what was happening. This was just too unreal, it didn't make any sense. Pain however, was very real, and made itself known when he once again struck her. Having grabbed her by the shoulder and punched her in the stomach, Videl coughed spit forward and leaned over the arm. Struggling to do anything, she barely was able to look up in time for yet another fist to come crashing down on her.

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Pan:

Things had gone so right at first. It was everything her moment had promised. She would get into a fight in the ring, and win easily. Excitedly Pan had been cheering while sitting between the two men, even getting up at several points and standing on top of her chair shouting. Every time her mommy appeared to be winning, meant a greater chance that she'd finally carry through with her promise. After all of this, she'd be there more.

But things started to change. The big mean man she was fighting kept getting back up. Even when her mommy hit him so hard that he should have been killed, he got back up. Even when his head twisted on backwards, he just put it back, and kept going. Now things looked very, very bad. Every moment the fight continued, she saw her only parent beginning to get pummelled. Screams of pain started to escape the ring finally. They didn't just echo around the arena, they echoed through her mind.

Watching in a teary shock, Pan saw her mother try to strike back after several moments of complete humiliation, only for her arm to be blocked, then snapped. A shocked gasp escaped the little girl, before her heart started to race at seemingly a million miles a minute. Her mom was in trouble, big, big trouble. Turning desperately to the two men she was with, she saw them looking very stiff and uncomfortable.

"Help my mommy!" Pan begged. "She's hurt! She needs help!"

"We cannot," the part metal man remarked. "No one may interfere with these matches once they begin."

"I don't care! Help my mommy!" Pan urged, her voice sounding more desperate.

Powerlessness began to flood her as neither would do anything. If they wouldn't help, she had to. Moving to run, she just found her arm grabbed.

"Be still child, you will not leave this place while the match is still happening," Tao then informed her.

Tears welled in her eyes again, looking down at her captured wrist before looking towards the ring.

"Mom! Mommy!" she screamed, just in time for her shocked eyes to see her mother take a blow the head, and not get back up.

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Videl:

The ragged body lay there, no longer able to get up under her own power. Her arm was broken, badly, and she felt several ribs in the same condition. It was everything just to stay conscious now. Blood trickled down her face as she tried to move, tried to do anything. Even now, she knew she couldn't give up. She'd given up so much to be here, at this time. She'd sacrificed years of her life for this. There was only two options, victory or death. The thuggish monster had not even tried to throw her out of the ring.

Seconds later, her thoughts were cut off as his huge hand came around the top of her head, pulling her into the air. Barely able to open her eyes to look at him, she felt him punch her in the stomach. Involuntarily, her body flexed and moved, blood coughing up from her stomach. Another blow came, and then another. Each hit finally broke down any semblance of consciousness around her mind. Everything was just pain now. It felt like her body was shutting down.

Finally, another huge blow came, but just as his head released her head. Flying across the ring, skidding and rolling several times, she flopped lifelessly at the edge of the ring. No noise could escape her but the pained hissing and panting from her wounds, followed by coughs of blood. Barely even able to open her eyes, Videl heard something faint amongst the crowd.

"Mom! Mommy!"

Pan.

In the audience, her daughter was watching this. The little girl she was meant to protect. She was going to die in the ring, and her little girl was going to see it.

Before she could make a single motion further, a huge foot came down, beginning to grind her head into the ring. Pain became too much, a panicked, pained cry shrieked from her lungs. She was completely helpless, just as she'd been completely helpless before. Tears of anguish began to form at the edge of her eyes.

Then, suddenly, a voice broke through the pain, and the world itself seemed to freeze.

"Hey, idiot!"

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Gohan:

It was amateur level fighting at its best, as far as Gohan was concerned. With his arms crossed, he watched the match with an idle interest at best. The real thoughts he had rested with the matches he knew he'd have ahead. The first one being Vegeta's punk kid, and then either his father, or Vegeta, followed by the little mohawk warrior and his idiot friend. All of them were going to crumble in front of him, he was planning out each battle already, trying to play out their strengths and weaknesses. Next to him, Piccolo stood there, and next to Piccolo stood Goku. The three of them looked on, with the two irrelevant bald humans as well.

"She's really impressive," Krillin said. "Look at her go, if this were back in our first days of the World Martial Arts tournament, she just might take it. Did you see that blast?"

"Yea, she's pretty good. But that big guy just doesn't slow down," Goku responded.

And he was right. Watching the fight, it was like watching the tide go out. The girl clearly had the upper hand at first, and slowly the balance shifted. It went from an easy fight, to a desperate struggle. The girls' technique and tactics all made sense, but it was like dealing with an unstoppable force for her. No attack was enough.

It tickled his Saiyan side's fancies certainly. The bloodlust in the ring was enough to make his own battle-lust rise. What had started as a pointless match now held much more meaning. But it was quickly turning lethal as well. When her arm broke, and her started coughing up blood, Gohan presumed she'd just quit.

That didn't happen.

Instead the beating continued, and now she was left screaming in pain in the ring. It was almost a squeal even. It was uncomfortable to listen to, but he'd seen worse... he'd caused worse. Watching it slowly unfold was unnerving, but nothing worse then what he'd seen. The other warriors were all tense, save Vegeta.

"Mom! Mommy!"

A voice broke through the horrified crowd, one which he could hear very clearly and understood perfectly. It was the little girl he'd met earlier... the woman's daughter. The little girl with the tail who seemed so interested in him. The little girl he knew full well was his daughter. His daughter was in the crowd? That meant she was watching this whole travesty transpire. Immediately his own mind shifted gears, and as it did, something uncomfortable, hidden for years inside a traumatized section of his childhood, slowly began to come forward.

The ring disappeared, as did the crowd and the arena.

Gohan was inside a very cramped, small space pod...

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Sitting quietly in the pod, two terrified eyes looked ahead as he wrapped his arms around his legs. His daddy was going to get him out of there, he had to. Minutes earlier he'd heard the big mean man, Raditz, talking with his daddy and someone else, and now they were all fighting. No one was tougher then his dad, so he was going to beat up the big mean man and take him home. When he got home, his mommy was going to be waiting for him, and she'd give him a big hug.

But fear started to move in now as well, because his daddy hadn't come yet, and he could still hear things out there... things which... which weren't good.

Another scream broke through the pod as he heard his daddy crying out in pure agony. Shaking, Gohan began to realize his daddy was getting hurt. The cries were mixed with laughter from the big mean man, and occasionally the other man's voice. Explosions and other loud noises broke through several times, but nothing was like those screams.

Looking up, Gohan saw a shadow approaching the pod, the door hissing open. Hope sprung forward for a brief moment as he tried to make out who it was.

When Raditz stepped forward, preparing to enter the pod, his hands covered in blood, Gohan felt the world slip away into terror and pain.

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Breathing in sharply, Gohan felt himself trembling for a moment as he continued to look out at the ring. It wasn't just some girl getting killed out there, it was the mother of the daughter he'd met for the first time today. A little girl who was watching her mother being beaten to death in the middle of a ring, and no one was doing anything about it. No one was helping, everyone was just standing by because of some foolish rules. But worst, he was standing aside as his daughter heard and saw her mother die.

He would have given the world for someone to have rescued his father while he was in that pod. For the first time in his adult life, he remembered it so clearly it was like it was yesterday. The sounds plagued him, just as he heard Videl shrieking in agony.

Turning his head, he looked at Goku, realizing just what he must have gone through. The idea that he somehow was a substandard warrior, or hadn't done his best, seemed distant to him now. Without even realizing it, Gohan reached out, grasping his shoulder.

"Gohan?"

For once, Gohan found himself unable to find words. Instead, he just nodded, before swallowing heavily.

Stepping forward, Gohan slipped past Goku, and only exchanged glances with Piccolo, who seemed to know what he was thinking, only nodding to him quietly.

What was happening in the ring was over. It stopped seeming surreal, and started to push at the boundaries of his reality. A quiet, simmering anger began to surface under his features and mind. Who the fuck did this big piece of trash thought he was? Trying to kill the girl in the middle of the ring with his daughter watching? Fury began to evolve from this simmering anger as his lip curled with anger. Almost without realizing it, Gohan was approaching the ring, having already started to walk down the stone path, passing the announcer.

"W-what are you doing?" the blond haired, sunglasses wearing announcer asked.

"Ending this," Gohan remarked, stepping onto the stone steps into the ring.

"Hey, idiot!" Gohan shouted, announcing his presence. "Stop, now."

Turning about, the hulking monster just started to chuckle. "Stop? But the match isn't over yet. You don't decide that. What are you going to do if I don't stop?"

Anytime Gohan had met a weaker, lesser being in his life, they'd been smart enough to listen to him. Or rather, most of them did, because those that didn't didn't have an opportunity to be asked again. Nothing good came of violence, at least Gohan had started to feel that way... until right now.

"If you don't stop? I'll kill you."

That was enough to catch his attention. Spopovich didn't relent, but did stop his immediate crushing of Videl's head. It was clear behind his eyes he was calculating what his chances of winning a confrontation between them was.

"I would like to see you try," finally the giant chuckled, before reasserting pressure on her head, this time clearly to finish her off, and be disqualified himself.

The status of the match didn't matter anymore.

In a blur of motion so fast the crowd couldn't follow, and neither could Spopovich, Gohan slammed his fist into the beast's gut. Standing completely still along with the huge figure, Gohan slowly pulled his fist from the stomach of the muscle bound man. A wheezing noise could be heard from lungs of the victim of his attack. His chest heaving, Spopovich barely stepped back, his eyes widened with real, true pain. Before he could make another move, Gohan round house kicked him, sending the hulk flying back and violently slamming into the ring.

Turles's teachings started showing through in his combat priority.

I should break his back for this.

"Alright, that's enough!" the announcer declared. "Spopovich is now the winner and-"

"Shut up," Gohan snapped. "I'm not done yet."

This piece of shit was going to pay for what he'd undoubtedly put his daughter through.

A panicked look crossed Spopovich's face when he found his feet.

"How does it feel to be powerless? How does it feel to know that I'm going to crush the life out of you, and leave you to die in front of all these people? You're not nearly as bold when facing a superior opponent, are you?"

Unrestrained rage exploded from Spopovich and the deranged man snarled, before charging him at full speed, a purple aura trailing him. The aura flickered violently, mimicking the intent of its master.

"Stupid human," Gohan said, before smirking cruelly and dangerously.

The cruel words expressed just how cruel Gohan's attack was to be. Blocking Spopovich's predetermined failed punch, he quickly dislocated the arm without any effort, before slamming his fist back into Spopovich's stomach, this time even harder. The force of the blow sent shockwaves throughout the ring, and a gust of wind out for several hundred feet. It was impossible for his huge foe to hold back the pain anymore. Falling to his knees, Spopovich whimpered, before vomiting in the middle of the ring, coughing up purple fluid, blood, and food into the middle of the ring in one vile heave.

With uncontrolled, shaking hands, Spopovich grabbed Gohan, barely able to even hold on weakly. Forcing his head up to look at him, Gohan viciously backhanded the huge human, causing the massive warrior to slam into the ring head first. Pulling him back up by his shoulder strap, Gohan grabbed him by the chin and forced him to look at him.

There was still the problem of this being an open space, and the problem that he had a match coming up after this. He may be disqualified still just for doing this, but he'd definitely be disqualified for slaughtering the pig as he deserved in the middle of the ring.

"I have a match coming up after this, which is the only reason why I'm not going to rip your heart out in the middle of this arena," Gohan told him in a harsh tone. "But let me make this very clear. If you so much as look at me funny, or do anything I judge as out of line, I'll fucking kill you."

Spopovich's eyes looked almost dead he was so afraid at this point.

"Understand?" Gohan snapped, looking for the response he wanted.

"Buu... hoooow?... 'm... I..." the once hulking figure of Spopovich couldn't even string a sentence together he was so afraid, only further enraging Gohan.

This cowardly sack of low grade flesh had managed to do all this?

"I said do you understand?! You worthless, bald headed wretch!"

It was then that Gohan sensed Goku approaching the ring, as the terrified human still feebly clung to him, trying to push him away. Releasing him, the huge fighter collapsed to the ring, breathing in with panicked breaths still.

"We're done for now," Gohan informed the warrior, before sneering at Spopovich. Pulling him into the air by grabbing him by the legs, Gohan flipped the giant once before kicking him in the ribs, feeling them bones nearly buckle under the restrained force of the blow. Flying out of the ring helplessly, the large man landed in front of Yamu.

"Keep his leash on. Or the next time I'll put him down."

Turning his head, Gohan saw the still prone form of the woman he'd briefly... met... five years ago. Walking over to her, he looked down at the absolutely wreck below him and just looked at the announcer, before looking back at her.

"Gohan, what just happened?" his father asked, looking concerned. "You can't just interfere in people's matches! You're going to be disqualified!"

"I will be participating in my match shortly," he informed the bewildered announcer. "I don't care if you disqualify me. I'm fighting in my match regardless."

Kneeling down next to the prone, agonized woman, Gohan tried to understand if she was even aware of her surroundings. Without asking her, he slowly collected the broken body into his arms, hearing her whimper once before picking her up.

"Where do I take her?"

"U...uhm... yo-you-" the announcer stuttered, further irritating the Saiyan.

"I am not in the mood for anymore stuttering," Gohan quickly cut in, his voice sounding strict. "Tell me now."

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Author's Notes:

I've just began to write Chapter 24. Which is going to be a Goliath of a chapter to write. It's going to focus on Gohan, and Trunks, as well as their fight. I've got plans for a chapter very reminiscent of chapter 16, and I've got another one like this to write in the future. I realized just how important the Trunks vs. Gohan clash is going to be, so I'm really going to invest a lot in this next chapter. It will take me a while to write, but it's going to hopefully be among my better work. We get to explore Trunks, as well as Gohan, and we get to see both their pasts as all this plays out. Expect to see both perspectives, expect to see both lives, and expect to see one Hell of a fight.

Unless I totally fuck it up! *Laughs*

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Reviewers:

ShadowLDrago:

Can't go over power levels I've not decided yet, but don't worry, the Supreme Kai is no push over. :)

xDevil-Childx:

If things go the way I want in the writing process, the next chapter will blow you guys away. :)

Wild-Dog84:

I see this obsession with Mister Satan, and really just plainly no get it. The Z fighters really want Herclue to take the credit, as they'd rather not. Him taking the credit is bad, don't get me wrong, but it's not as bad as people think of it as. He's a bit of a jerk, and could be a better parent and ect, but I dunno, I don't hold that kind of resentment towards him. I'm not even sure how big of a role I'll have for Mister Satan in the story, we'll have to see.

DBZ Fan the First:

Thanks :)

Perfect Carnage:

Point them out in a private message and they'll likely get fixed. :)

:

Gohan's not... able to be a father really, not yet. He still doesn't get it. But the fact that he is a father, biologically, to Pan, will play heavily in his development.

Guest1:

Take a guess who was stronger, lol

po:

O.o?

Killi:

Everyone is assuming things will play out like the Canon. Don't worry about Powerlevels and what not, worry about the story. Trust me, you'll enjoy it more that way. :)

Though Dabura is totally wicked strong *cough* lol

I:

I think Babidi offers people things. The real question is, what could he offer Gohan?

Guest2:

No, Gohan killed Future Tien. Future Tien, who was Trunks' mentor. He brutally killed him in front of Trunks in fact, slowly.

ShMikeX:

The change in the timeline subtly offset several things from happening on time, when Trunks went back in time. It's like the wrong insect dying 100 million years ago or something, and totally changing what something would look like today if it had lived.

Sirius Potter:

Things will be complicated, in regards to Gohan, Pan, and Videl. But don't worry, it'll be delightfully twisted and warped. And tragic.

Dr Blue22:

And don't expect an exact copy from the Manga/Anime... this is dramatically different then any Buu saga you've seen before. :)

Guest3:

I hope I can get the next chapter out in under a month, but it may not be out until the tail end of March. I'm hoping its out in under 30 days. But it's going to be a REALLY tough chapter to write.

RedHunter87:

You're going to get to see a monumental confrontation next chapter, and others over the next 6 chapters. It'll be great, I promise.

Eveline:

Well, I hope this chapter surprised you. :)

Mangahero18:

I try! It's really hard to keep these updates frequent right now. Hopefully once April rolls around I can start hammering chapters out more quickly.

RoxaShadow:

Hopefully this chapter satisfied you a bit more. And if you're looking for really eventful, watch how the next two chapters unfold ;)

Anj3lik:

I really tried hard to make the character and the setting as authentic as I could. I've read some really poorly executed "Saiyan/Evil/Abducted" Gohan stories. I can assure you that this one is not one. In a lot of ways I'm inspired by the fact he is a flawed character. Even while doing the right thing, Gohan stumbles, he struggles, and he falters, but he finds his way eventually. :)

asweetlilpixie:

As demonstrated, Krillin and Tien? Much stronger. Lol

Maesde:

Sadly, people don't always get what they deserve. Trust me, Gohan vs. Trunks will be hopefully one of the best pieces I've written to date. It's why I've decided to promote it to a "Chapter 16" level event. It's big, and it explains a LOT. Expect flashbacks, fighting, dialogue, and inner turmoil!

Dharshan:

Who said Gohan was wholly good? Gohan is much better then he was, and he's redeemed a bit. But he's still plagued by massive flaws in his personality. He's damaged goods, and still 'evil' in some respects.

Saiyan Princess ChiChi:

A very humbled thank you for the kind review. I think The Long Road is probably my best story right now, though I absolutely love The Catalyst as well. I love the ideas behind The Perfect Monster, but I've yet to really have the time to devote to it to finish it.

I can say in regards to Pan/Videl? Things may get better, before they get worse. Or they may get worse, before they get better. But I'd personally be just as interested in keeping an eye on another character mentioned...