G'day all! Back from down unda and ready to continue the story, with the arrival of Bulma and the beginning of the grand adventure we all know and love.
Based on MasakoX's What If series "What if Gine went with Goku to Earth?", but a retcon with some changes of my own on how I think the story would have went down had Goku's mother escaped planet Vegeta with him.
Onwards!
DISCLAIMER: The following is a fan-based work of fiction. Dragonball Minus, Dragonball, Dragonball Z, Dragonball Super, and Dragonball GT are all own by FUNimation, Toei Animation, and Akira Toriyama.
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CHAPTER 3: LEGEND OF THE DRAGON BALLS
Gine was working the garden when Kakarot came running past her.
"Alright, Mom! Just finished chopping the wood, I'm gonna go get us some lunch!" He called out as he ran towards the woods.
"Be sure to get fish this time!" Gine yelled back. Kakarot waved in acknowledgement as he disappeared toward the river. He suddenly stopped in his tracks, and got into stance. But Gine already knew.
She kept pulling the freshly-grown rhubarb out as she heard commotion behind her as Gohan attacked Kakarot, and paid no mind to it. It was part of Kakarot's training, and had become a little game between them to see who could keep up their guard the best.
After a slight scuffle, they stopped.
"Not bad, boy!" Said Gohan as he emerged from the woods as well.
"Hah! Well nice try yourself, Grandpa!" Kakarot countered slyly.
"We'll I'll get you next time. No matter how slight or relaxed you may be, always keep your guard up." Gohan appraised.
"If there'll BE a next time!" Kakarot chuckled, then continued running off into the woods. "See you later, gotta get some fish!"
Gohan watched where Kakarot took off into the thick brush of the trees, and chuckled. He was indeed improving his defensive skills, and now he wasn't able to surprise him out of the woods like he used to. Kakarot was a fast learner.
He picked up the large basket of potatoes he hid while planning to jump his adopted grandson, and headed towards the house.
Gine sighed in contentment as she took a break from pulling the rhubarb. She leaned back from off of her knees and sat back on the ground, placing her hands behind her so she could look up into the blue sky. She closed her eyes and took a deep relaxing breath, enjoying the scent of a pleasantly warm spring day.
It was difficult for her to believe that eleven years had already passed since she and her son had arrived on Earth. The ethereal-like peace of mountain life had made time slip by so fast for Gine, enjoying every beautiful season and losing herself in the upkeep of their home while she watched Kakarot grow. She herself was pushing thirty-six Earth years now, but Gine looked barely a day older than when she landed here. Only her eyes showed any progression of her age, for they held the looks of a mature woman who had long since made peace with distant pains, but weary from the still linger shadow of her old life, and garnered wisdom from years of homesteading.
She sighed again after her short break, and was about to continue harvesting when Gohan came up behind her.
"What's with all the sighing?" He teased.
"Oh, nothing." Gine said fondly. "Just enjoying this gorgeously fine day."
Gohan's face crinkled into a wide smile. "A gorgeous day it is, indeed." He then looked curious again. "Though I sense there's more beyond that, since I noticed that you do this kind of thing whenever Kakarot goes off hunting or fishing."
He always had a way of knowing things, Gine thought. She sighed yet again, almost in acknowledgement to Gohan's observations.
"Well, in a way, I'm glad to have some alone time from him. Don't get me wrong, he's the greatest thing to have ever happened to me aside from making a life here; and I love having him here. But, he's grown up so much that he's reached a point where he's...trying, on a mother's nerves, I guess."
"I see." Gohan said, "He's been here his whole life and your starting to grow a little weary of his company."
That was putting it bluntly, Gine thought, also thinking that her straight-forwardness had rubbed off on Gohan over the years.
"Basically." She said. Gine leaned back and sat on the ground again, facing Gohan. "He's a very fine young man, but you know how energetic he can be."
"That is very true." Gohan acknowledged, he set the basket down and sat down with her too. "He's getting very restless I'd say. He ought to get out more often to burn off some of that energy of his."
"That may very well be. Back on Vegeta he'd be out on his own by now." Gine said, she pulled off her gardening gloves to sit in the grass more comfortably.
"But didn't you say he's years away from becoming an adult?" Gohan asked.
"Technically, yes." She elaborated. "Though he is not yet at an age to find a mate, he's old enough to be surviving on his own. Saiyans usually part from their families to become independent before they reach puberty."
"I see." Gohan nodded. "Us humans usually rear children until they reach the age they seek mates. But I guess the need for self-reliance is stronger in Saiyans."
"That's very true." Gine agreed, for it tied very closely for their desire for strength.
"Then I'll see if I can persuade Kakarot to get out more often, perhaps he can join me during another one of my trips to the village." Gohan offered.
"It sounds like a good idea." Gine said, but she knew even then that it wouldn't be enough. He'd been there once or twice before. He needed to venture out of his comfort zone to truly grow someday, but she didn't know exactly how.
This was something they've hardly discussed before though, as it almost bordered on the silent agreement that neither of them should bring up one of them leaving. Gohan had let them integrate into his life, but he had every right to say they should leave. Yet he didn't, and she didn't think he would. But who was she to judge what he thinks?
Gohan sensed her hesitation, almost as if he knew what she was thinking. Then Gine spoke before they could think further about that untouchable topic.
"And I've already decided that I won't force Kakarot away if he doesn't want to. But by the time he reaches his adult growth spurt, I'll make him leave whether he wants to or not." She said, then added "For his sake... and for the sake of our sanities."
Gohan chuckled in agreement. She meant what she said. Knowing Saiyan instincts, by the time they become teenagers to young adults and if they have been cooped up for too long, Kakarot will get wildly more antsy, maybe even violent. Saiyans by then will also need to seek out a mate, or else they'll become hostile. So she made a resolve to kick him out before puberty would take full effect of her son.
Her thoughts drifted back to the agreement, realizing what she just said almost echoed the idea of Gohan forcing them to leave after a certain time. She momentarily worried if she violated the agreement or if it was just her nerves. But she sat there uncomfortably.
The wind shifted. Then, Gine froze.
"Hm?" Gohan noticed her change in stature and alertness.
She stood up, her hypertoned senses picking up a strange sound coming from the direction of the road.
"Someone's coming." Gine said.
"Oh?" Gohan inquired tensely. They never had someone willingly come this far out to here before. Whoever it was, must be here because they were really lost, or...
Before he could ask further, Gine headed toward the source of the approaching sound. The awkward conversation already forgotten.
As she walked faster and faster towards the road, she heard a shriek. Then it sounded like Kakarot was shouting.
Gine's heart instantly doubled its pace in worry as she used her incredible speed to get to the commotion.
After rounding the hut, she saw the source of the clammer.
Kakarot was staring down a type of vehicle that had been flipped on it's side. Gine remembered that it was called a car from what Gohan had told her about the types of transportation on this planet.
"That was for trying to sneak up on me and steal my fish!" Kakarot yelled. A giant blue tuna lay on the ground nearby, at least he caught what he was told.
"Come on out and fight me, you monster!" He yelled at the car, his Power Pole out and he posed ready for a fight. It occurred to Gine that her son had never seen a car before.
Before she could call out to him, a wild-eyed human girl popped out from the side of the vehicle. She had blue hair and looked not much older than Kakarot.
"Huh? A human girl?" Kakarot said in confusion. He relaxed his stance and looked at her in confusion.
"GET AWAY FROM ME!" The girl suddenly yelled, pulling out a handgun and fired at Kakarot. He recoiled as the projectiles struck his head.
"KAKAROT!" Gine screamed. Her maternal instincts in full swing, she rushed toward her son.
When she reached him she instinctively shielded him from the girl in case she fired at him more, but saw that he was fine.
"Ow! Holy cow! What was that?!" He groaned, rubbing his head from where the ballistic projectiles struck him.
Her worry was quickly replaced with anger as she turned towards the girl in the car.
"Why did you shoot my son?!" Gine demanded.
The girl didn't respond. Her eyes were the size of dinner plates when she saw how fast this lady appeared out of nowhere with this kid. This made Gine angrier, and the last thing anyone should do was make an already pissed off mother defending her child even more pissed.
Faster than the girl could see, Gine punched through the side of the car like it was made of paper mache and snatched up the girl by the front of the pink dress she was wearing.
The girl yelped in terror as she was yanked out of her car by the strange woman who materialized from thin air. She tried to bring the gun to Gine's face but she swiped it out of the girl's hand, crushing it in her grasp without noticing it.
"WHY DID YOU SHOOT HIM?!" Gine yelled in her face.
The poor girl was frozen in fear, utterly speechless as her mouth was agape at seeing her handgun taken and crushed. Gine almost felt sorry for her, and feeling slightly bad for causing such duress to her, but she did attack them first.
Having enough of this girl trembling and not getting any answers, Gine moved her free arm as if she was going to strike her, hoping to get her to react.
The girl then threw her hands up.
"AHH! WAIT! WAIT! PLEASE! I"M SORRY! PLEASE DON'T HURT ME! I-I didn't mean you any harm!"
Gine stopped, glad her little bluff worked. She let go of the blue-haired girl, who stood there with her hands up in surrender.
"Well if you don't mean any harm, then why did you shoot my son?" She repeated her question. Speaking of which, Kakarot was on his feet again, by her side with his Power Pole out and ready.
"Yeah! What was all that for?" Kakarot demanded. The girl went even more bug eyed.
"AH! You-you should be dead kid!" She said bewildered.
"What in the blazes is going on out here?!" Gohan yelled as he rounded the corner of the hut, "Oh" he said with some curious interest when he spotted the girl.
"Well he's not! So why did you attack him?" Gine said to the girl.
The girl looked between her and Kakarot, still shaking the bewilderment from seeing the kid still standing from being shot in the head.
Coming to her senses, she said "It-It was an accident! This kid flipped over my car! I thought he was going to attack me!"
"You hit me with that thing!" Kakarot accused, pointing towards her flipped car.
"You came out of nowhere!" The girl yelled back defensively.
Kakarot yelled, "I thought you were trying to steal my-"
"ENOUGH!" Gine shouted to both of them, trying to quell the argument. When they both quieted down, she turned to Kakarot.
"Kakarot, say you're sorry for flipping this girl's car over and frightening her." She told her son. Kakarot looked at her in confusion, and she looked back at him sternly.
Knowing not to question his mother, he bowed towards the girl.
"I-I'm sorry." He said, not really meaning it.
Then Gine turned to the girl, "And you, apologize for attacking my son."
The girl looked indignant, but by this point knew better than to go against someone who looked like she could literally break her.
"I'm sorry too." She said.
Gine softened a bit. She still didn't trust her, but realized that she was just a weak human girl and is of no threat to them. "And I am sorry too, Kakarot here is a very nice young man, but forgets his manners sometimes."
The girl looked at her incredulously, then back at Kakarot. "Uh, yeah, sure. No problem."
Now with that out of the way, she decided to get further into what all this was about. Gine turned to the girl.
"Now then, why don't you tell me who you are and why you are here?" She ordered.
The girl straightened, feeling slightly better with her but still apprehensive. "Uh, well my name is Bulma."
Gine then extended her hand. "My name is Gine." She introduced herself. Bulma reluctantly shook her hand. Then Gine pointed towards Kakarot.
"And my son, Kakarot, you know already." She said. Kakarot waved sheepishly.
"Yeah, no kidding." Bulma humorlessly joked.
Then Gine asks the next obvious question.
"So, why is someone like you way out here, Bulma?"
Bulma answered without skipping a beat. "I'm actually here looking for the dragonballs."
"The what?" Gine asked.
Bulma dropped her backpack and reached in.
"These!" She said, pulling out two small orange orbs. Gine and Kakarot looked at them, then gasped in amazement.
"Hey, we have one just like those!" Kakarot said.
"Really?" Bulma asked excitedly.
"Yeah, we do." Gine answered, feeling curious. She never knew more of these orbs existed, let alone what they were called.
Bulma seemed to sense that Kakarot and Gine didn't know the importance of these things and they had it.
"Can I see it?" She asked them.
Gine was hesitant but Kakarot spoke up for her, "Sure!" He said warmly, already forgetting the tiff from earlier.
"It's up at our place." He pointed toward the hut and Gohan. "That's my Grandpa, by the way." Kakarot added.
"Oh, cool. Hello!" Bulma waved at the old man, and he waved back smiling warmly.
"Why don't you come on in? We were gonna have lunch anyways, so you can tell us about these dragonballs." Kakarot offered.
Bulma couldn't believe her luck. "Sure! Lunch sounds good." She said enthusiastically.
"Uh, but, Kakarot-" Gine started, but he had already grabbed the big fish he caught and they were all heading towards the hut.
She really had to pound in his manners better. He was inviting a stranger into their home who already had a fight from earlier.
Gine followed a bit further behind as they headed up towards the hut. She couldn't tell but felt something gnawing on her, wondering if was her nerves or something else about this girl...
Gine cleaned and cooked the giant fish Kakarot caught while Bulma chatted away with Gohan and Kakarot. She was feeling rather unsettled, since this was the first time they've ever had a visitor in their home.
She had seen other humans before during the trips to the village, but kept as low a profile as she could as she didn't want attention drawn to her. Too used to the hermit life and not wanting people to know they were not from this world. That and this Bulma gave her an air of having an ulterior motive for being here, since NO ONE comes here on purpose besides them. So Gine kept constantly glancing over her shoulder towards Bulma as she cooked.
When lunch was ready, Gine set the fish plates down on the table just as she was catching what Bulma was saying. Kakarot busied himself between eating the fish and listening to Bulma's story.
"And when you gather all seven of them, a magical dragon is supposed to appear and grant you one wish."
"Is that so?" Gohan asked, fascinated by the tale while Kakarot was far more enthralled. The other two dragonballs she had were on the table to show to Gohan.
"Yep!" Bulma said with absolute certainty.
"And what will you wish for if the dragon did appear?" Gohan asked, and Bulma smiled.
"A lifetime supply of strawberries!" She beamed. The three of them just stared.
"You must really like strawberries, I guess." Gohan said.
"Nothing better!" Bulma said, "They are my favorite food. It's always so difficult to get fresh strawberries in the city, they are all aged and sour without having to travel to the farmlands and pay so much for them. And there is just nothing better than the sweet taste of a freshly plucked homegrown strawberry."
"Well, I'll have to agree with you on that." Gohan chuckled before sipping his tea.
Gine didn't believe her. There was no way that was the truth, even if there was such thing as a wish granting dragon, why waste such a power on growing something so simple? But, she didn't seem to be lying. So what could it be?
Gohan looked over at Gine and noticed her apprehension, so he smiled reassuringly. Gine wanted to protest but relented, for she knew that if Gohan didn't feel concerned or believed something he was told, then so could she. But still...
"And if we give you our dragonball, what would be our cut? A shipment of strawberries every year?" Gohan asked.
"Naturally!" Bulma chuckled back.
Gine rolled her eyes, for the wish was not a lie, but just flippant. Bulma didn't really believe in the legend. She was just a spoiled city girl out looking for a little fun, so her coming here was just basically a scavenger hunt for jewels.
Gine was slightly embarrassed by being so suspicious of this girl that they practically manhandled for bumping into Kakarot, she was no threat at all. So she felt herself ease up a bit.
"Very well, then, I guess you could have it." Gohan said, he got up and picked up their dragonball from it's velvet resting place on the shelf. "I see no reason why you can't as there seems to be more like these." He said as Bulma took it into her hands gleefully.
"I have one condition though." Gohan said.
"And what would that be?" Bulma looked at him suspiciously, she wasn't going to agree with just about anything for the four-star ball.
"If the legend turns out to be true and the dragon does appear to grant you a wish, just come back so you can tell me about it."
"You got a deal, Mister Gohan!" Bulma said excitedly as she and Gohan shook on it, this was easier than she thought.
Gine didn't say anything. She didn't believe in the legend Bulma was telling, this was just some city girl out on what she thinks is an adventure. Judging from the way she was dressed, she looked poorly prepared to find those...'whatever she called them' things here in the mountains. And if she didn't have any other kind of weapons beside the gun she crushed, Bulma will likely get killed by a cougar or bear by nightfall if she went off on her own.
She was contemplating giving this little lady some advice when she noticed how Kakarot was listening very closely to every word Bulma said. Then, an idea popped into her head.
"Why don't you take Kakarot with you." She said without realizing it.
They all looked at her, wondering at her proposal.
"He knows the woods and the mountains better than anybody, he'll help you find the...what were they called again?" She asked.
"Dragonballs." Bulma answered.
"Right, dragonballs. He help you find them in no time if they are around here."
Bulma looked to Kakarot then back at Gine.
"Well maybe, but I don't think they'll all be out here. The two I found were several hundred miles apart, including the one you have."
Gine thought this new information over, but regardless if she needed him or not, she wanted to stick to her idea that her gut was telling her to do.
"Either way, you should take him with you. No offense, but you don't seem well prepared for an adventure."
"Are you kidding me?!" Bulma yelled indignantly. "I have a gun and capsules for your information!"
"And yet Kakarot was able to disarm you." Gine pointed out, this girl had a very poor understanding of how dangerous the wilderness was.
"But he could be your bodyguard in case you run into trouble. And besides, he needs to go out there and see a bit of the world."
Kakarot looked at his mom, confused. "I do?"
Bulma looked at his mom, "He hasn't been out much?"
"No, he's been here all his life. I do think a little adventure would do him nicely." Gine said.
Bulma looked to Kakarot seeking to know if it was true. "Is that true? You've never been anywhere?"
"Yep. Lived here my whole life." Kakarot answered.
Bulma looked to Gine and back at Kakarot. "Sure, why not? I could use a little extra protection and some company. And I'd be happy to show him the sights."
"The sights?" Kakarot asked, his curiosity peaked.
"Yep, there are all kinds of cool things to see in the world. Get to see the big cities, cross the deserts, and even see the ocean!" Bulma said.
"Really?" Kakarot said astounded.
"That's right." Gohan added. "You can go see all the far away places you read about in your books, and learn all about what life outside the mountains is like. You might even learn something new about fighting out there too."
Kakarot's eyes lit up with a wonderment that Gine had never seen from him before.
"Oh wow!" He exclaimed, and turned to his mom. "Can I really go with Bulma, Mom?!"
Gine sighed in embarrassment and relief. "I just told her to take her with you, of course you can go." She said calmly.
"ALRIGHT!" Kakarot jumped in joy, unable to contain his excitement.
"Then we have no time to lose, grab your stuff and lets get going!" Bulma declared. She thought that this kid should be fun to have around, but she won't need him once she got all the dragonballs, then she could wish for what she really wanted: the perfect boyfriend.
Kakarot hastily finished his lunch and grabbed his Power Pole, Bulma opened a capsule on the ground that made a motorcycle pop into existance. Kakarot was ready to leave but stopped.
"How long will I be gone?" He asked them in general.
Bulma thought and said, "Not sure, however long it takes to find the dragonballs I guess."
Kakarot looked to his mom for her input.
"I'm fine with that, just remember to not be gone for too long." Gine said.
"Okay!" He said, and ran up to his mom and gave her and Grandpa Gohan a hug.
"I'll be back soon!" He yelled as he jumped on the motorcycle behind Bulma, and rode off. He waved back at them.
"BYE!" They all said to each other, Gine watched them go until they were out of view...
Finally some alone time for once, she thought. But she couldn't help but have mixed feelings.
Gine was beyond excited that her son can have an opportunity to explore the world, but this was the first time he had ever ventured out on his own without her guidance. He needed this. But...
"He'll be fine." Gohan said, breaking her train of thought. Almost as if he knew what she was thinking.
"Yeah...I'm sure he will." She said uncertainly.
An empty nest was easier on the child than the mother.
Later that evening, Gine was pacing back and forth in the hut restlessly.
"What if he gets hurt?" She said, biting her knuckles. Her mind was in a whirlwind of worry. She had been thinking about nothing but what could happen to Kakarot out there all by himself.
"As I said, he'll be fine. He's a strong lad, you are just worrying too much." Gohan said, more concerned about Gine giving herself a panic attack than Kakarot's safety.
"Or what if he hurts someone? Like, what if he looks at the moon by accident?" She lets out the worst of her worries.
"I don't think that would happen. We've made sure of that, and he's never transformed since you came here." Gohan reminded her.
"But what if he forgets himself?" Gine said, not listening. "He forgets things sometimes, and what if he forgets its a full moon out and he does hurt someone?"
"So what, if he does?" Gohan said abruptly. Gine stopped pacing and stared at him, her mouth agape. That got her attention finally.
His face softened. "You said so yourself that Kakarot needs to do things on his own, right? Well, that includes his responsibility to not hurt others. You can't nurture him forever. This is something that he needs to do. You've pounded that lesson into him his whole life and he's turned out rather well. So I think its reasonable enough to assume he will be okay." Gohan assured her.
Gine stood there for a moment, then nodded reluctantly. "I guess you're right." She said, but it didn't do much to assuage her fears.
Gohan gently placed his reassuring hands on her arms. "I understand your fears, Gine. No amount of reassurances can make a parent stop worrying about their child, but in order to fly, the mother bird needs to trust her chicks that they are ready. This is as much of a test of growth for you as it is for Kakarot. You just need to trust him."
After a while, Gine finally let out all the tension she was holding in a deep shaky breath. Gohan was right, like always. She needed to trust her son to do the right thing. She made it her life's purpose to raise him properly, to be a good man of his own someday rather than just another battle-crazy Saiyan. And to do that would mean to do things the way humans did, all of this something no Saiyan mother has ever tried in history. She said so herself that he has reached a point where all of her raising has to be put to the test. He can't do that all cooped up, and she indirectly got what she asked for in the form of Bulma coming along. A part of her hoped something like this would happen later (despite how much she wanted it to get Kakarot out there), but as Gohan would say: the beauty of life is the unexpected.
"Okay." Gine said quietly, then smiled apologetically. "I'm sorry I freaked out."
Gohan joyfully hugged Gine and let her go. "That's quite alright. There is no need to continuously worry, my dear. It won't do you much good but stress yourself out."
Gine snorted sardonically. "Well I AM his mother, it's my job afterall to worry for him."
Gohan chuckled. "That's true."
Weeks later, Gine was outside the hut hanging up some laundry to dry, humming to herself.
As she finished smoothing out the cresses on some towels, she stopped humming. There was another sound. Another kind of humming she could hear, a strange puut-puut noise from the sky.
She looked high up to see a yellow streak heading straight towards them.
She tensed, not sure at what she was seeing should make her feel threatened.
The yellow streak arced sideways. It was a puffy yellow cloud leaving a contrail in it's wake, humming along like it was a moped. On the cloud was a dot, which (as the yellow cloud go closer) then grew to resemble that of a little boy on it.
"HEY MOM!" The boy called out from the cloud. She immediately knew.
"KAKAROT!" Gine exclaimed with joy, her son leaping from the cloud as it flew over them.
She held out her arms to catch him and he effortlessly landed in them.
"I MISSED YOU MOM!" Kakarot laughed and squealed in delight in her embrace. Gine hugged tightly as tears of joy threatened to fall.
"I missed you too, sweetheart!" She said, her voice slightly cracking. All the worry she had suppressed during his time away having resurfaced in force in the form of jubilation, that he had indeed returned alive and well.
"GRANDPA!" Kakarot called out as Gohan came running toward them.
"Dear boy, you're back!" He said joyously.
The three of them ended up in a large embrace as Gohan and Gine took in how much they missed him.
"So, how was your journey?" Gohan asked, as he released his embrace of Kakarot while Gine still kept a hand on his shoulder as if afraid of letting go of him.
"Oh it was amazing, Grandpa! We got to hunt for the dragonballs, fight some rabbit mobsters, put out a fire-"
As Kakarot recounted his journey rapid fire, his stomach growled angrily.
Gine laughed, knowing how important that sound really was.
"Let's have some lunch first, then you can tell us all about it!" Gine offered.
"YEAH!" Kakarot didn't need to be told twice.
So over lunch, Kakarot recounted the adventure he had in a jumble of names and places that Gine couldn't follow fast enough. But a couple names stood out.
"Ah, you met Ox-King?" Gohan asked Kakarot.
"I sure did. Is it true that you and him trained together under Master Roshi?"
"That we did! That was decades ago though." Gohan said wistfully. "So how is he doing nowadays?"
Kakarot paused to catch his breath from eating then spoke. "He used to be a warlord, but stopped when Master Roshi told him too. He now had a daughter and an entire mountain kingdom where he kept all his treasure. It caught fire and we tried to put it out, but Roshi saved their castle from the fire by doing a special attack that Roshi called the Kamehameha Wave."
"The Kameha...what?" Gine asks.
"The Kamehameha Wave." Kakarot clarified. "It's a sort of technique where you could channel your energy into a beam that can obliterate any obstacle you want it to. He put out the fire but destroyed the castle, but it worked. It was really cool, and even I got to try it after watching him do it the first time."
"You tried it?!" Gohan asked amazed.
"Yep." Kakarot said.
Gine was intrigued by how surprised Gohan was when Kakarot mentioned that.
"You mean, you really successfully performed the Kamehameha?" Gohan asked again, as if in doubt.
"Yeah." Kakarot said simply. "Though mine are nowhere near as strong as Master Roshi's, but I think I can be as strong as him someday if I practice more."
Gohan was flabbergasted. It was almost too good to be true, but Kakarot was not one to tell a lie.
It took his master fifty years to perfect that technique, and Gohan himself didn't master it even though he was his best student. Kakarot had apparently did it successfully just after seeing it once.
"I can show you later if you like." Kakarot offered.
Gohan smiled and said genuinely, "Now that, dear boy, I would definitely love to see."
"Cool! Finally I get to teach you guys something for once." He said excitedly.
This made Gohan chuckle and shake his head in happy bemusement. Gine was surprised how this type of knowledge unknown to her could make Gohan so jittery, so she hoped she could learn what this was too.
To think, this little boy from the stars had learned on the fly one of the greatest martial arts attacks and was going to teach them how he did it. Kakarot was truly full of surprises.
Gine then decided to ask, "Kakarot, what was that strange thing you were riding on the way here?"
"It was the Flying Nimbus." Kakarot said. "Its a magic cloud that can take you anywhere you want to go as long as you were of pure heart."
"Pure of heart, huh?" Gine said.
"Yep, so far only I and the Ox-king's daughter, Chi-chi, could ride it. Everyone couldn't sit in it and just fell through it."
Gine was facinated by this, and a part of her felt suddenly warm and happy at the notion that Kakarot was such an innocent enough soul to be considered "pure". She couldn't agree more that her boy was really something special. She couldn't help but feel a touch of pride too that she may have done a good job at raising him afterall.
"Oh, and by-the-way, Mom, the Ox-king is single." Kakarot said nonchalantly.
At first she didn't know what he meant, but when it sunk in, Gine's cheeks turned into several shades of red. Gohan was on the verge of laughing.
Gine fidgeted with her tea, trying to ignore the uncomfortable silence from Kakarot, as if he was waiting for her to respond.
"That's good to know." She said tightly, and refused to say anything more.
Almost did a good job at raising him, she thought.
Gohan couldn't stop grinning, but decided to bail Gine out and change the subject.
"Where did you get the Nimbus from?" Asked Gohan.
"It was a gift from Master Roshi." Kakarot said.
"AH! He's still keeping it real, eh?" Gohan beamed in nostalgia.
"He was your old martial arts teacher?" Gine asked, trying to keep this new conversation going.
"That's right!" Gohan said.
"And he said I can train with him if I want to!" Kakarot beamed.
Gohan looked very pleased. "That's very great news Kakarot! Roshi is very selective of the students he would take in, so you must have made quite a first impression on him." Gohan said.
"Oh yeah, we did alright." Kakarot said, completely ignorant of the fact that he bribed him with Bulma exposing herself to part him from a dragonball. But it worked, and Roshi did say he saw this boy had potential as a fighter.
"Was the legend true?" Gohan suddenly asked.
"Hm?" Kakarot asked, confused by the change in questioning.
"Did a magic dragon appear after you gathered the dragonballs?" Gohan clarified.
"Oh. Yes it did." Kakarot replied. "It granted a wish after it was summoned."
Gine was surprised, as was Gohan.
"Amazing! Well, what did you wish for dear boy?" Gohan asked.
"Panties." Kakarot answered simply.
Gine almost choked on her tea, and Gohan looked in horror.
"What?" Was all he could say.
"Oolong, the transforming talking pig I told you about earlier, he wished for some panties." Kakarot clarified. It didn't reduce the shock though.
Gohan shook his head. "Oh dear, sounds like something Master Roshi would do."
Gine looked horrified too, not wanting to dare ask what else Roshi would do. But he sounded like a complete pervert. And Kakarot was going to train with him?
But another thought entered her mind. The dragonballs really granted wishes?
"It saved the world though." Kakarot replied, breaking Gine's train of thought. She and Gohan looked at him questioningly.
"We weren't the only ones looking for the dragonballs. There was this little evil guy named Pilaf who wanted to gather the dragonballs to wish himself to be the emperor of the world. Oolong used the wish before he could so he saved the world." Kakarot said.
Gine and Gohan were amazed, this was a really strange tale. But, all things considered a magic wish-granting dragon wasn't outside the realm of possibility anymore, so anything could happen now. And not only had Kakarot got to venture out on his own but helped save the world.
But another question came to her mind.
"But, what happened to the dragonballs? What's stopping this Pilaf from wishing again to rule the world?" Gine asked.
Kakarot didn't waste a breath. "After Oolong made his wish, the dragonballs flew up into the sky and scattered away on their own. Bulma said that they scatter randomly across the whole planet, and they turn to stone for a whole year before they can be found again."
The details just got weirder, but at least that answered her question.
"So you'll search for them all over again?" Gohan asked.
Kakarot looked to him. "Yep, we'll go look for them again someday, and make a better wish next time."
Strange indeed.
"Well, strange but it worked. In either case, I'm glad you helped save the world." Gine said. She didn't expect to say those words over this particular lunch, or contemplate that the world was in such danger while she was going about her day. But she was glad if not overjoyed nonetheless, that her little boy, a Saiyan-outcast from where he came from, had saved an entire planet from subjugation. It definitely put to rest any misgivings about her upbringing of him, manners and social skills aside.
"I'm glad too!" Kakarot said, as he continued to munch on his dinner.
As Gine watched, she noticed something, then jumped to him in horror.
"Where's your tail?!" Gine demanded, she flipped Kakarot over, surprising him. She inspected her son's lower back and sure enough, there was a scabbed-over stub where his tail ought to have been.
"Um, well..." Kakarot said hesitantly, "It was cut off."
"What? Why?!" Gine demanded. She looked intensely at Kakarot, awaiting for his answer.
He looked at his feet, ashamed.
"W-we were held prisoner by Pilaf in his castle. There was no other way to escape. So..." He paused, trying to get the word out under the accusing stare of his mother.
"...so I had to look at the full moon." He admitted.
Gine took in a sharp breathe, she was terrified something like this would happen. But Kakarot continued.
"I went Oozaru so I could get strong enough to help us escape. I did break us out, but I got too out of control, they said. So they cut my tail off before I could hurt anyone." Kakarot finished, he was close to tears. Gine sat there in silence.
"I-I'm sorry Mom. I know you said I should never ever look at the moon. But, there was no other way out of there." He said, his voice almost choking.
Realizing the truth, Gine hugged her son tightly.
"It's okay, it's okay, sweetheart." She shooshed him before he could start crying.
"I'm not mad. In fact I'm actually very proud of you." Gine said, surprising Kakarot. "You saved your friends and no one was hurt. That's all that matters." Gine said to him. She did genuinely feel happy that her son's first transformation was out of a noble purpose and helped save the world. Sure he lost his tail, but until it grew back he wouldn't have to worry about looking at the moon for awhile.
Kakarot hugged her back, "Thanks, Mom." He said gratefully, feeling his heart lift from realizing he wasn't in trouble.
They parted from their embrace and Kakarot dried up his tears.
"So when will you head to Master Roshi?" She asked, changing the subject.
"I'm thinking I'll leave tomorrow, unless you want me to stay." He offered.
Gine was proud he offered to help them out and stay. For an instant, she thought of telling him to stay, that his brief stint out into the world should be enough. Afterall he saved the world (which is something almost no one could ever say in a thousand lifetimes) and lost his tail, so it should be enough new good or bad experiences for him. But found that she couldn't do that. As much as she missed him and her apprehensions of the world, she wanted to not hinder his growth as a person.
"No, you can go train with him." Gine said at last.
"YAY! Thank you Mom!" Kakarot leapt into her embrace again. But she wasn't gonna let him go that easily.
"But promise me you come back right afterwards, alright?" She demanded.
"I will, I promise." Kakarot assured her.
They finished dinner and Kakarot helped them out with their chores for the night, before leaving in the morning to go train with Master Roshi. In the meantime, he told her more of his journey so she got a better idea of what he said earlier, she was really fascinated by it all. By how he made new friends and seen new places, and grasped the state of human affairs enough to try and fight against forces of evil from armies to demons to mobsters. It almost made her envy him to go out and see it herself someday.
Kakarot was drifting off before long so she helped him to bed. She hadn't felt so calm since she first got settled in on Earth, so happy that he was home, even if it was just for one night.
She and Gohan went to bed soon afterwards, but Gine didn't go to sleep.
A part of Kakarot's story she kept thinking about over and over was burning in her mind.
The dragonballs. They really DID grant wishes. It made her wonder, could this dragon really grant any kind of wish or were there limits? She still found it really hard to believe such a thing could exist, but still, her son never lied to her. Or at least, not lie very well. But she trusted his judgement enough that the wish-granting was legitimate.
If that was real, she wondered, what kind of wishes could be made? Wish for eternal life? Going back in time? Or...she dared to think, bring people back from the dead?
Kakarot fell asleep before she could ask more about what the dragonballs could do, but she could always ask him later. But a part of her didn't want to. The part of her that had long-since grieved for the loss of the other two Saiyans most important in her life. That pain never went away, but had lessened to an aching memory during her time on Earth. It would hurt her heart forever, but it was a pain that Gine learned she had the strength to live with.
But now, with even this newfound and unimaginable slight possibility she would never have dreamed of bringing them back somehow, she was afraid that if those questions were not answered as she hoped, she would grieve as if they had died all over again.
That night after everyone was asleep, Gine wept quietly in her bed. She cried like she did after they first arrived on Earth, but now it was not from grief but from fear. Fear of her heart being ripped open all over again, and losing whatever will she somehow gathered to keep going. So she decided against asking about what those dragonballs can really do.
She hoped that, if Kakarot ever asked her to help him find them, she could have the courage to say no.
A/N: Ah, now that Kakarot's life has changed forever with going on the grand adventure with Bulma, Gine's life might be turned upside down with her now knowing about the dragonballs. What will she do with this knowledge, how will she find out about what they are truly capibile of, and will she act on it?
Find out next time on Dragonball Gine!
Also, the first real change from MasakoX's story on Gine will take place in the next chapter also, since this will not be just a retelling of his series, but it's own original timeline.
Hope you enjoyed it and see you in the next chapter!