Hello again! Sorry for the long wait as life has a habit of getting in the way, but here is a nice long series of chapters I worked on at once to make up for it! Now Gine is in for a little culture shock and how events of the Tien Shinhan Saga play out!

And for those that keep asking for hints about what's gonna happen next in the story: sorry, but no spoilers!

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.

DISCLAIMER: The following is a fan-based work of fiction. Dragonball Minus, Dragonball, Dragonball Z, Dragonball Super, and Dragonball GT are all owned by FUNimation, Toei Animation, and Akira Toriyama.

Please support the official release!

Also, read and review!

CHAPTER 6: BREAK A LEG!

"First match should be starting now." Oolong mentioned to a worried Bulma while he tried his hand at a vendor game.

"I just hope they get through it in one piece." She replied, her thoughts wondering towards her friends and the one she cared most about up against so many strange and scary fighters from all over the world. Over a hundred of them against her four friends, so many odds to get through, especially for Yamcha despite her confidence in him.

"Don't worry Bulma, Yamcha and the others will be just fine. They know what they are doing, honest!" Puar reassured, holding a drink as big as her.

"I sure hope you're right." Bulma sighed.

The gang had stopped by the food court to get something to eat while they waited for the preliminaries to finish up. Gine sat down with Gohan beside her and tried to focus on eating her food to take her mind and senses off of the masses of humanity around her. That and her lack of good sleep from the night before had her on edge.

She bit into a piece of breaded meat she had never seen before, the taste of acidic juices and unfamiliar tomato sauces took her aback after that one bite.

"What is this again?" She asked aloud.

"A hot dog." Replied Launch in her blonde form, she looked bored out of her mind from just waiting there. "Ya never had one before?"

"No, I haven't." Gine replied, unsure if that was a custom to know what this link of meat in bread was.

Launch starred at her for moment longer as if studying her. "Huh, first time for everything I guess." She said, and went back into starring into the distance.

Gine tried to keep eating, hoping she hadn't embarrassed herself for not knowing these things. Sure they were her son's friends, but Kakarot and her were not like them at all and garnered strange looks every now and then. Launch seemed like a nice girl, when she was her docile self and not her "blonde" self as everyone said to her clandestinely. She finished the hot dog. She thought to herself that the food here wasn't as good as the homecooked meals they made back home, but found it rather soothing in a place like this.

Trying to stay occupied less she be overstimulated by the constant drone of the people, she took in the surroundings. She had to admit that the change in scenery from vast unending forests and mountains to a very festive gathering of harmless humans seems to have some charm to it. But still...

"A little overwhelming isn't it?" Gohan asked her.

Gine could only nod as if he had read her thoughts. She had been on edge ever since they got up. "I can see just one thing that's enough to drive anyone out into the mountains." She said ryly.

Gohan nodded in agreement. "Though the World Martial Arts Tournament is a grand event to test out your skills in combat, the crowds can definitely get to you as they come from the world of non-fighters. They are just here for the entertainment rather than to learn. If it was just to be with like-minded folks then it would be more bearable."

Gine surveyed the crowd, seeing children begging parents for sweets, overly-fat men stuffing their faces with food, and rowdy types getting drunk on whatever humans pass here for alcohol. "I can definitely see why, too."

"So, where did that imbecile Turtle Hermit run off to?" Cackled a familiar voice approaching them, they all turned and saw who it was.

Gine groaned inwardly. It was that impudent little old man who called himself Master Shen or Crane, but came off as nothing more than an agitating nuisance rather than a Master of Martial Arts.

"In the ocean." Bulma shot at him. "Why don't you go jump in and find him?"

Crane hmphed. "Knowing him, he probably ran back home too embarrassed to watch his ill-advised pupils get crushed in the tournament." He laughed to himself.

"Oh be quiet" Bulma demanded angrily.

Crane stepped closer to her. "It's common knowledge. Roshi's boys can be beaten with one pinky."

Oolong and Puar gawked at him, in amazement and a twinge of fear as they believed him. Gine didn't, if anything she felt no respect for the man whatsoever.

Bulma stood her ground, "You're misinformed. Now please, leave me alone. Go!"

Crane ignored her. "I can tell by your posture that you're upset. It's tough to back a loser. Cheer up! You don't have to stay with Roshi's team. I could use someone like you."

Gine's tail twitched under her skirt, she couldn't get any more revolted from him. He reminded her all too well of the Saiyan Elites back on planet Vegeta that acted just like him, complete bullies to everyone around them and especially to those below their ranks, like her. They were the same kinds of people that pounded into her verbally, psychologically, and even physically that she was utter trash compared to them. Nothing even worthy of being scraped off their boots. The kind of torment and social ranking that cemented her in her place as the lowest of the lower classes her whole life as dictated Saiyan society, no matter how much she hated it.

But this wasn't planet Vegeta. This man had no right to harass her and her friends in such a way. And she wasn't going to let him dish out anymore verbal abuse to them. Gine knew she was far stronger than anybody present, and her Saiyan instincts were beginning to tell her to grind this insolent little Crane into a bloody smear on the ground to teach him some manners. And that thought was getting more tempting by the moment...

Gohan suddenly put a hand on hers. She snapped out of her reverie and looked at him. Without realizing it Gine had rose from her seat, but was stopped by his contact with her and Gohan shook his head discreetly at her to tell her to not act out.

"I can't believe I'm listening to you. You're wearing a crane!" Bulma continued to argue, her voice laced with disgust.

Crane feigned offense. "What?! What?! I can't believe you're mocking me. This happens to show the status of my power!"

Gine didn't know what to feel at that moment, anger at Gohan for stopping her from defending their friends or grateful for him preventing her from making a scene? Either way, she hesitantly let it go and sat back down.

"Sorry." She whispered as softly as she could to him. He squeezed her hand gently in acknowledgement. Gine mentally tried some breathing exercises Gohan had taught her to help herself calm down.

Crane looked over Gine, not giving her a moment's thought, and looked at Launch who seemed to have dozed off.

"Hey lady! Are you awake or what?!"

She didn't respond, and he stares at her breasts. "Ma'am? Hello?"

Launch suddenly woke up, enraged and somehow wielding a submachine gun.

"CAN'T A GIRL GET A MOMENTS REST?!" She yelled, and fired at Crane. It took a few seconds to empty the clip, but Crane's arms flew into a blur as he caught every single bullet effortlessly.

Launch starred him down still fearless. Gine and Gohan can do feats like this and were unimpressed. But everyone else looked at him slack-jawed in disbelief.

"Give Master Roshi this message..." Crane arrogantly ordered as he drops the bullets he caught to drive his point home. "He can best help his pupils by preparing for their funerals!" He then turned and walked away without another word.

They all sat there, unsure of what just happened.

"And I thought Roshi was bad!" Bulma broke the silence.

Gohan frowned at her. "My master may be a bit perverse but never treated people with disrespect and threats."

"True that." Turtle spoke up.

Gine let go of a breathe she didn't realize she was holding in from her exercises, and unclenched her fists that she so desperately wanted to drive through Crane's stupid face after mocking them for nothing.

Off to a great start, this tournament is. She thought to herself.

It took another two hours for the preliminaries to be over with and Kakarot rejoined them along with Krillin, Yamcha, and Chi-chi. They all breezed through the elimination round with no trouble and are ready for the main event. And it's about time too, after the incident earlier with Crane, Gine wasn't sure how to distract herself with the already overwhelming sensations of being in a strange place with large crowds.

She tried her hand at some of the vendor games for a little while with Oolong and Puar, winning lots of (quite frankly) pointless prizes meant for children. But she partook in it anyway to play along with her friends to make them happy and have a good time. But after a while she was getting bored out of her mind with such trivial play, even after seeing Launch shoot up a vendor. At least SHE was having fun.

"That's great! I'm impressed guys! I guess you did learn a thing or two from Master Roshi afterall." Bulma said, scarfing down a sugary snack. Gine tried some more of the food and found that the sweets were very delicious indeed, but too much so and couldn't eat them as much as the rest of them did.

Krillin looked around. "Speaking of Master Roshi, where is he?"

"I haven't seen him since it started."

"Wherever he is, I'm sure there's trouble." Said Turtle.

Bulma smirked. "It's kind of nice. I need a break from the old man every now and then."

"I'll tell you what you need. A napkin." Said Roshi out of nowhere and surprising everyone.

"And for your information, I've been hiding amongst the crowds, watching the elimination round. I come here to see my boys fight, not stuff my face with sweets!"

"So, did you like what you saw?" Krillin asked his master.

"Mhm, from what I witnessed, I'd say all three of you-"

"Three? HEY! What about me?!" Chi-chi indignantly.

"I'm sorry, all four of you have improved a great deal." Roshi said, flustered. "I think we have a strong shot of winning this title."

"Don't worry Master, we'll win!" Said Kakarot with such fire in his voice. Then the announcement came.

"THE CHAMPIONSHIP IS ABOUT TO BEGIN. WILL ALL COMPETITORS PLEASE REPORT TO THE TEMPLE AT THIS TIME?"

Bulma and Yamcha exchanged glances and hugged. "Good luck out there, baby." She whispered, Yamcha winked.

"SEE YOU MOM, SEE YOU GRANDPA!" Kakarot called out as he left for the temple. "Good luck!" They called back.

"It's on guys! Maybe the rest of you can find a good place to catch the action." Krillin said.

Oolong looked sly. "With Launch here, anything is possible. She's good at making room." Then gestured towards her.

"Follow me boys and girls. My friend and I will find you the best seats in the house!" Launch declared as she pulled out her pistol. Everyone in sight of her, the gang included, was horrified.

"ALRIGHT PEOPLE, LISTEN UP! I want this path cleared out on the double!" Launch barked at the crowd around them and fired her gun in the air as well. "Lets go! Move it!"

Everyone fled as they marched toward the arena. Gine was too embarrassed and kept her head low. Did Launch not known un-excessive measures at all?!

At the arena itself, Gine was astonished by the sheer number of people packed into one place to watch someone fight. Never in her life had she seen so many live bodies at once, not even the entire population of planet Vegeta on its last days where every Saiyan was recalled. Her hyper-tuned Saiyan senses were overwhelmed by the vast overlapping sounds and scents of so many varieties of people here. She suddenly felt a wave of anxiety and panic overtake her. She didn't want to be there, but far away in the mountains back in their cozy little home on Paozu. Right now.

She held Gohan's hand even though she was eager to sprint the rest of the way to the arena. She was glad he didn't notice her hands were shaking.

Gine set aside her thoughts of wanting to go home as best she could, for she wasn't about to run away from this just because she had gotten too used to living in isolation from the rest of humanity. She was there to cheer her son on, and by the Gods that's what she was going to do.

Roshi had slipped away quietly from them as everyone gathered by the ring. Gine didn't say anything and pretended not to look as he went off to go change into Jackie Chun.

The rest of the gang took notice and sent Oolong and Puar out to search for Roshi, eventually coming back without him and Oolong battered for looking into the women's bathroom.

"What if Master Roshi isn't hiding? I wonder if something bad happened to him?" Launch asked, back to her peaceful self.

"Hello ladies." Came that loathsome familiar voice of Crane. Gine immediately forgot her anxiety of being there and looked toward where Crane's voice came from. She saw his crane hat poking above the crowd like a swan on water. Gine would've found it funny if it weren't for Crane.

"I heard you lost a turtle in the crowd. I Hope I didn't step on him." He mocked.

Bulma glared at him. "If that was an attempt at some cleverly veiled threat, you failed miserably! You'd better not have anything to do with this!"

"Hmph! I'm in the dark the same as you." Crane admitted.

Oolong crossed his arms, the bruises he sustained for peeking flared up in pain. "I'm sick of looking, I'm staying."

Crane looked at Oolong in mock pity. "Come on, life's too short to be sour. I'll find him for you."

Huh? They all look at him and at each other amazed. But Crane walked off before anybody could say anything.

Gine looked at where Crane went, and turned to Gohan. "What's with that guy?" She asked.

Gohan shook his head woefully. "I have no idea. Master Roshi never mentioned he had a friend like him before. But I guess I can see why he would never talk about him."

"With the way he acts, I bet." Gine commented, then she looked out onto the elevated square slab of white tiles that served as the ring. "Hey, look." She pointed.

The tournament staff wheeled out the roster for the finalists who were going to fight in the tournament itself. They scanned the lettering from their first row seats and read the fighting order.

First match will be Yamcha against someone named Tien Shinhan, then the second match was Pampet against Jackie Chun, the third was Krillin against Chiaotzu, and finally the last fight was Kakarot against Chi-chi.

"Only three strangers for our five friends to get through." Gohan said as he read the roster. "Guess one or more of them will have to fight each other, so this should be interesting."

A buzz grew in the air as the last of the spectators came into the arena, with the roster now visible for everyone they knew the first fight was drawing near.

"Quite a crowd." Turtle observed, Oolong snorted.

"Yeah, and Roshi's hiding in it somewhere."

Bulma looked confused. "It doesn't make any sense for Roshi to hide from us."

"That's true. Especially when Launch got us such great seats!" Puar added.

"Huh? I did?" Launch asked innocently.

No one answered, and looked somewhat nervous. Now this was something Gine was rather curious about.

"Yeah you did." Gine spoke up. "You fired a gun in the air to scare people out of our way to get here."

Launch looked surprised. "I did that?" She looked down at herself, as if unbelieving she could act so tough. "I don't understand. How is that even possible? I don't even like guns!"

Everyone stared at her scared while Gine looked as confused as Launch.

"Could've fooled me." Oolong said to himself.

Gine pressed further. "You don't really remember? While you were blonde?"

"Err, while I was blonde?"

Gine wasn't sure why Launch could not even know her own hair color. "Yes, your hair turned blonde and you had guns on you until you sneezed and returned to your peaceful self."

"When I sneezed?"

Everyone shrieked in horror, Bulma was trying to motion Gine to quit before she accidentally set off Launch to change.

Launch looked thoughtful. "I guess... that makes sense, I always seemed to feel like I've blacked out whenever that happens and end up in bizarre situations."

"And no one's told you this?" Gine asked.

"No."

Gine looked at her with a new sense of understanding of Launch, and then a new sense of disappointment at how her own friends could take advantage of her like that.

"Thank you, Launch." Gine said, deciding to end her line of curiosity there and let Launch digest that new revelation of herself on her own. Gine glanced at Bulma disgracefully and knowingly, for she had an idea that Bulma, as sweet and sincere she may be, was not above exploiting others. But Gine kept those thoughts to herself.

Bulma guiltily tried to distract everyone from that and herself. "Oolong, can you do us a favor and go take another look for Roshi."

"Aw, but the match is just about to start!" The pig complained.

"Don't worry." Crane suddenly spoke up from behind them. Gine whipped around at him, startled. She was starting to get really infuriated by his sudden appearances as much as with his ridiculing.

"I'm handling it. In fact, I just spoke with the sponsor." He said.

"What did you do?" Bulma asked, unsure.

Crane chuckled in reply as an announcement came on the tournament ground's PA system.

"Attention. A family is asking for help in locating their senile, old-as-dirt grandfather. Their words, folks, not mine. He is described as being short, fat, and bald. This fits the description for half the audience. Oh! Did I say that on mic? Uh, anyway, his family says he closely resembles an ugly turtle. So, if you have any information on his whereabouts, please contact an official."

Words failed Gine at this display of public indignation, but Bulma tried. "What's with you?! That's not even a close description of Master Roshi. He's not our grandfather either!"

"I don't think it's right to call him a turtle like that." Turtle said with some hurt in his voice.

Crane feigned innocence, but he was a terrible actor. "Don't blame the messenger. I can't help it if all of Roshi's qualities are bad."

"He's got a point. The old man is creepy." Oolong joked.

"OOLONG!" They all glared at him.

Before they can argue more, drums began to play. The crowd suddenly grew quiet as the main event was about to begin. Crane slipped away to a spot not far down to their left and didn't leave from there. It must have been his spot to watch the tournament.

Gine kept looking at him, revulsion running through her at seeing him while the rest of the gang focused entirely on the opening of the tournament itself. Gine somehow broke free of starring down Crane and focused on what's in front of her instead.

A blonde haired man in a fine suit and slick sunglasses stepped out on the ring with a microphone in his hand.

"Welcome to the show! I'm your host, are you ready for this?" He asks the crowd. A collective "Yeah" resounded throughout the arena. The sudden sharpness of the announcer's voice amplified by the microphone made Gine wince.

"Alright then! Ladies and gentlemen, the moment you've all been waiting for, the Twenty-second World Martial Arts Championship!"

The entire audience went insane as they cheered. Gine's nerves screamed at her too as the cacophony of noise was so loud to her Saiyan hearing that it physically hurt her head.

Gine placed a hand over one ear to help dampen the sound and focus through the noise and the anxiety flowing through her. So many people in one place making loud noises for just a fight, and she was rather annoyed by the more rowdy ones that dotted the crowd nearby and here and there.

The announcer continued. "Many of you are looking at me with those adorable, clueless faces and saying: "Hey, what's this about?" Some of you may already know that we started with a hundred and eighty-two competitors who came to vie for the championship title and the prize of five hundred-thousand zeni. But that's ancient history, because the massive horde has been whittled down to eight finalists who are appearing here today to fight for you! That's right! And I guarantee the fights you're expecting are going to be spectacular!"

"I've been waiting to see this forever!" Puar said, excitedly.

"Enjoy it while it lasts." Crane said from his spot. "It won't take long for my team to win the title."

"Tell me something, Shen, do dream in color?" Bulma asked him dead serious over the announcer.

"It's time to lay down the law. Each match will proceed without a time limit and without interruption! The fighter loses only if he or she is thrown out, steps out, or gets knocked out for at least ten seconds! Sounds simple enough?"

A loud "Yeah!" came from the spectators without missing a beat.

"Then without further delay, let's begin the first match right now with Yamcha battling against Tien Shinhan. Here we go!"

"Here they come!" Bulma exclaimed with excitement, pointing towards the ring entrance. The crowd went crazy as Yamcha and his opponent, Tien, step onto the arena. Gine saw that it was the tall, three-eyed bald man that was with Crane when they first arrived. Gine instinctively glanced in the direction of the aforementioned Martial Arts Master to see that he was grinning madly, as if he knew something no one else didn't. She dearly wished she could just march over there and beat whatever he knows out of him.

"Good luck, Yamcha!" Puar cried out, and everyone gave their best wishes too.

"When you bring together such talented warriors as these, there are bound to be some interesting stories. In what will astound trivia buffs for years to come, nearly half of today's competitors are from the same house. Yamcha is one of three pupils representing the Turtle Hermit, Master Roshi, in the championship round. Tien Shinhan represents the Crane Hermit, Master Shen. Judging by the reputations of their instructors, these warriors should put on quite a show."

Everyone got more restless somehow, as if the mention of these two Martial Arts masters was the ultimate show that no one should miss. Gine was almost uninterested since as far as she knew, no human could match up to what Saiyans could do; and the feats of fighting sh had seen in her life would put anything here to shame.

She spots Kakarot watching from the wall with Krillin, Chi-chi, and that doll looking boy. Now she knew where to find him.

The announcer stepped closer in between Yamcha and Tien. "So now that we all know each other, what do ya say we get to some action!"

Yamcha looked Tien in the eye without blinking. "I was born to fight. You have no idea who you are messing with."

"Does it matter? I'm still going to win." Tien boasted.

"Now who has a sense of humor?" Yamcha taunted back.

Just fight already! Gine almost wanted to shout. She wondered where that thought came from.

A gong sounded, as if hearing exactly what was on her mind.

"Match one, begin!"

The audience suddenly cheered as the action was finally underway. Yamcha gets into stance. "I'll start off real slow Tien. You just try and keep up with me."

"Hmph, do what makes you feel good, Yamcha. It's your funeral." Tien smirked, his voice laced with malice.

"Go Yamcha!" Bulma cheered for her partner. "Do your best Yamcha, you'll win!" Puar echoed.

Both fighters got into stance and locked eyes.

Yamcha charged first and sprung at Tien with a jump kick. Tien deflected it and responded with a lightning fast barrage of finger crane strikes that Yamcha dodged expertly and swiftly. Yamcha broke free from the relentless attack and leapt high up, coming down with another kick that Tien blocked with crossed arms. Yamcha then backed away before Tien swept down for a low kick only to jump over Yamcha and land behind him, going for an elbow hit to the ribs but Yamcha blocked it and escapes backward.

Gine watched their moves with mild interest while everyone gawked at how fast they were. But to her they were easy to follow, almost like slow motion. They seemed like rather competent fighters for humans, and seemed evenly matched but she could notice the pattern of Tien's moves being more based on aggressive misleading and cheap shots while Yamcha was almost entirely defensive. Sure enough, Yamcha started to take more hits and trying to evade Tien's attacks. After taking the fight to the air, they looked beat already when they landed.

"Time's up! Wolf Fang Blowing Wind Technique!" Yamcha suddenly declared, Tien looked amused at this.

After a series of movements, and the flashes of a wolf, Yamcha went after Tien with some kind of energy running through him. He seemingly punched Tien in the arm that used to block the attack with but it seemed to cause him pain, and with this distraction Yamcha takes advantage of the momentary laps in his opponent's guard by hitting some hard blows to Tien's exposed stomach that made him instinctively clutch where he was struck. It was not enough to put a dent in Tien as he kept standing, but Yamcha leapt high and landed a heavy drop kick on Tien's chest that sent him skidding across the tiled floor of the ring. Gine was a little impressed, he actually made some progress in weakening his opponent.

Then he made the dumb mistake of doing the same move again just moments later. "Wolf Fang Blowing Wind Technique!" Yamcha yelled, going after Tien to strike in the same places. Gine almost wanted to shout out to him not to do it, but decided against it as she wondered if it would be cheating. Plus he did such a stupid tactic that any warrior should know, that he almost deserved to lose the brief lead he had in the fight. Sure enough, Tien had seen what the technique could do and found a way to adapt to it. He stand where he was, and after some heavy grunting he turned red and bulked himself up. Yamcha struck him with his special attack as hard as he could, but Tien took the blows without even flinching.

Yamcha looked at a loss, his best attack shrugged off like it was nothing and realized his error too late. He was also starting to look tired as Tien had not expended much energy during the fight.

"Fine! Then I have no choice!" He gets into a stance that Gine thought was very familiar, as she had seen her son do it many times. Bluish light started to glow in his cupped hands.

Huh, guess he knows that attack too, she thought.

"Ka...me...ha...me...HAAAAAAAA!" He fired the blue energy shot at Tien, but he just stood there with his fingers pointed together.

The Kamehameha Wave stopped just short of Tien, then unexpectedly, it flew right back at Yamcha! He launched himself into the air just barely in time to dodge his own attack, but Gine saw Tien jump behind him before Yamcha did.

With a single brutal kick to the head, Yamcha is sent flying down into the arena, striking the floor hard and out cold. Gine felt sorry for him for some reason, even though he proved to be an inadequate fighter.

Then, Tien deliberately knee dived on Yamcha's leg. Gine watched and heard the bones breaking in it in painful slow motion.

Gine thought she should feel utter disgust at Tien. But kicking your opponent while he was down had been witnessed by her too many times in her life to even register. Bulma wheeled around and clutched Gine hard, crying into her shoulder loudly.

The announcer looked shocked at this display of brutality, but stuck to the match.

"Yamcha is out cold and out of commission with a broken leg. Though this was a low thing to do to an opponent, it appears that Tien Shinhan is the winner!" The crowd went crazy, but some looked really uncomfortable at what they just saw.

"It-it's okay, Bulma. He should be fine." Gine awkwardly tried to comfort her. Bulma didn't react to her and kept weeping. "It's only a broken leg." Gine said simply.

Bulma suddenly stopped crying and looked up at Gine, her eyes wet but wide in shock. "ARE YOU SERIOUS?! WHAT KIND OF HEARTLESS ALIEN ARE YOU?!" She practically shouted into Gine's face.

Gine felt her blood run cold for a moment at this sudden change, and a sudden rise of panic at having to deal with that little tid-bit of information.

"THAT GUY JUST FREAKING BROKE YAMCHA'S LEG!" Bulma yelled, and stormed off toward the wall where Kakarot was to see if she could tend to Yamcha. Kakarot looked just as angry at Tien. Gohan watched the whole exchange wordlessly as he saw how Gine looked completely unsure what to make of that outburst.

"They couldn't be this concerned over an injury, could they?" Gine asked Gohan disbelievingly.

"Humans are not as impervious as Saiyans are, Gine. Surely you must know this by now."

"I know, but, they think it's the worst thing you could do to someone on the battlefield. It was a very viscous thing to do but that Tien didn't outright murder Yamcha or take his leg off entirely, and even that's tame compared to some of the things I had seen my fellow Saiyans do to helpless fallen opponents. " She said back. Gohan sighed through his nose grimly, seeing her point but she missing his entirely. But they had these kinds of conversations before, since the day she and Kakarot first arrived on Earth...

"I guess there are indeed far worse things imaginable one could do to torture a defenseless foe, with the things you have told me." Gohan remembered some of the stories Gine told him in her more somber and emotional moments, recounting her most horrible nightmares of things she has seen and forced to do as a Saiyan warrior before becoming a cook. Things that made even a seasoned martial artist like him shudder.

"But humans are not a warrior race like the Saiyans. We learned to fight but we are not born for it. So it's unnatural for us to see acts of unwarranted brutality." He explained calmly.

"Huh." Gine said thoughtfully as she looked back at Yamcha, Kakarot and his friends were gathering him up while Tien simply walked away basking in the victory. "I thought they'd be more upset by how Yamcha lost the match, given how he made that grave mistake of using his signature attack repeatedly."

"I thought the same thing too in regards to the fight. But you must understand that in the world of martial arts we don't cause harm to each other out of spite or sport. We fight only for spiritual growth and self defense. And not causing undue harm is especially true in self defense. As we fight with honor, and treat our enemies the way we'd want them to treat us."

"Why would you ever want to do that?" Gine asked him disbelievingly.

"Because it's the right thing to do." He said it as if it was as true as two plus two equals four. Gine looked at Gohan with a quizzical look as if he just spoke gibberish.

"Even in the heat of combat with an enemy who has sworn to kill you and all you cared about, no matter what?"

Gohan nodded. "Yep."

"Even if they wouldn't give you the same courtesy as you would for them?" Gine pried.

"Yep, and that's exactly why we would. Because we are not them. We show them that we can be kind and forgiving to someone that may never had experienced kindness at all. That there is a better way to enlightenment and being the best without crushing someone's soul or skull."

Gine looked away uncomfortably, seeing what Gohan was getting at. Sure humans are weak and were never meant to be the warriors as Saiyans were, but humans embraced compassion. It was a trait almost unheard of among the Saiyans, and was for all intents and purposes a joke or curse to toss around. That compassion and mercy were weaknesses that will get you killed or exploited. That power was the true virtue of all things, to rise to the top and purge the weak. She had this pounded into her countless times, that no matter what, if she wasn't strong enough she was dead. And the kindness of strangers was a mere fantasy that didn't exist or ought to exist at all. But had she not herself experienced it from this very man? The one who took her and her son in when they had nowhere else to go? He had not killed or exploited her, but had gave them a second chance at life even after causing him so much trouble. It went against everything she was raised to believe but she embraced that fully in what it could do for her and her son. She owed her life to Gohan, and would defend him to her dying breath.

Then it clicked. She never entertained the idea that it could be extended into combat. For Saiyans always believed it was kill or be killed, and that causing pain as part of fighting or not was inconsequential. But she always wondered what those on the receiving end of those killing blows or torturous interrogations felt or thought of in those moments, begging to be spared or shown mercy. And that those on the receiving end who escaped would go on to swear revenge on them and hunt them down, and the Saiyans retaliating in kind. And so on and so forth on this viscous cycle. If they had shown them empathy, had tried to give them the chance at having a better life, or forgave those that wronged them. Would they be her friends as she is to Gohan? Maybe the Saiyan race would've had allies or been benefactors to the universe, and maybe would not have been...

Then she stopped, "Even if that someone was Frieza?" She asked, her voice distant.

Gohan didn't say anything. He remembered what Gine had told him of the tyrant that ran the galaxy and destroyed her people, her planet, and her family. Someone so irredeemable, so evil, and so unimaginably powerful he may as well be a god. Would he spare his life if he had the chance to end him for things he would have done like he did to Gine?

His silence was all Gine needed to know, and shut that train of thought down, convinced. Yes, compassion is definitely something that could save countless lives from unnecessary violence, but there are some who are definitely less deserving of forgiveness than others.

Puar had changed into a magic carpet to fly Yamcha to the nearest hospital and the gang followed them.

"We should probably go to the hospital and check up on them." Gine said, their previous conversation seemingly settled. But Gohan could sense that this was a topic that they have a long way to go still. As vastly different as Saiyan and human cultures were, there are some things that are just universal.

"I'm sorry I let you all down." Said Yamcha, dejected. He lay in his hospital bed with his leg set in a cast and him surrounded by all of his friends. Kakarot there beside Yamcha and his mother and grandfather behind him.

"Don't be sorry, babe." Bulma said. "You did your best and that's all that matters."

They all did their best to comfort him after such a degrading and painful defeat. Gine almost blurted out about how he should not have used repetitive tactics for his opponent to use against him, but decided that it was something Gohan would consider too inconsiderate or inappropriate for this kind of situation so she just said "You fought well."

"And besides..." Krillin chimed in. "It's not you we should be angry about, its that dirty rotten Tien."

"Yeah!" Chi-chi echoed. "It was a low blow to kick you while you were down! If anything he should have been disqualified for doing something like that."

"Sadly, the tournament has some very loose rules about that." Gohan said ruefully. "That's why I stopped fighting in them long ago when they stopped caring about little honorable things and focused more on the drama in the ring." He added, Gine listened to him intently.

"That's very true, one sad thing about the tournament I wish they could change." Roshi admitted. Everyone seemed forlorn that such a thing could go unpunished.

"Don't worry about him Yamcha, I'll make sure he learns his lesson." Kakarot said, this got Gine's attention.

"No. No, Kakarot. It's not worth it. That Tien's a ruthless man."

Kakarot grinned in the mischievous smile. "I know."

Gine didn't like this, as she still believed that the injury inflicted was a very minor cause for vendetta and tried to dissuade them from this. "Yamcha, you've had a long day. It's time you got some rest."

Yamcha looked hesitant, but relented. "Alright..." Then turned to Kakarot. "Kakarot, fight! Do not let him win the title!"

"Don't worry, he won't!" Kakarot reassured. Gine sighed. But there was a part of her deep down that told her that she should not let this kind of injustice slide, and that they should give that three-eyed freak his comeuppance. She still thought that her talk with Gohan had nothing to do with it, but that same little voice was saying to let Kakarot fight for his friend. And let no unjust act go without an answer.

They all went out to eat later that night, with Puar bringing Yamcha some food from the restaurant so he could enjoy what they were having too. Gine was utterly touched by how well they treated him and stuck with him even if he was useless to the tournament now, and with giving him some decent food instead of the horrific spoiled stuff they serve there. Gine was even more aghast at how humans managed to survive at all using such primitive medical practices as she had seen in the hospitals. If only they had healing tanks, she thought, and Yamcha's leg would be fixed up by now.

Kakarot scarfed down his dinner faster than usual, and by usual it was by the bowl-full per gulp.

"Kakarot, don't focus all your energy on one adversary." Kakarot looked up to Roshi warning him. "There are plenty of matches to be fought before you have the chance to take on Tien. Concentrate on the now."

"I'll try Master." Kakarot said with a mouthful of food, and was quickly elbowed by his mother.

"Don't talk with your mouth full dear." Gine chastised.

"Sorry" He replied, his mouth still full and the lesson ignored. Gine was about to chew her son out more when her anger got redirected and amplified elsewhere. Kakarot followed her gaze and scowled.

Crane, Tien, and that unsettling-looking doll/boy took a seat at a table right next to them. Their gazes not breaking until a waiter came up to him.

"Bring us the best dishes you have to offer!" Crane boosted, deliberately loud. "We're here tonight to celebrate the flawless victory of my star pupil, Tien!"

Now this was just getting ridiculous, thought Gine.

"Tell us, how does it feel, Tien... Knowing you decimated Turtle's prime fighter?"

"Crushing Yamcha was as easy as clenching my fist. It was no real challenge." Tien gloated.

"He was a coward. He was completely unprepared." Crane laughed mockingly.

Gine was seething internally, this insolent little old man coming here to deliberately humiliate her son's friends in public AND call one of her friends who fought well enough, a coward, one of the worst curses you could ever toss around a Saiyan... was a whole new level of arrogance she hadn't seen in a very long time. And the more he laughed the more she wanted to get up and ram her fist through his face and paint the wall with his brain. She could do it...

"Stop laughing!" Said Kakarot as he stood from his chair, Gine and everyone looked at him. "At least Yamcha is honest."

Gine was so proud of him standing up for his friend, even though he was still talking with his mouth full.

Tien got up, as if preparing to defend his master if need be.

"Kakarot, this isn't the time or place to fight." Roshi warned. Gine wondered why, and felt almost hurt, that her son's master would deny her son's Saiyan privilege to defend his friend's honor. Oh, then remembered sourly that any fighting among the competitors outside the tournament ring during the event would get them all disqualified.

"Please, don't make a scene." Bulma pleaded.

Tien and Kakarot stared each other down for a good long minute.

"I'll go wash my hands." Kakarot broke the silence and walked away. They all, except Gine, let out a breath of relief at a fight avoided.

Crane and his student's meals arrived shortly. "Tien... eat hardy. Your technique today was flawless." Crane then spoke over his shoulder towards Roshi. "Unlike some competitors."

Roshi got up and slid next to Crane. "If you got something to say, say it to my face."

As soon as Roshi sat down, Crane mockingly howled "Ew, I can't stand the stench of a loser! Waitress I demand another table at once!"

Roshi snapped and wheeled around to face Crane. "You fowl nuisance! Why don't you get a real hat?!"

"Got one, thanks!"

"That one squawks!"

"Hey! What's that on the floor? Did you lose another tooth?!"

"At least mine are real!"

"They're real alright. Real ugly!"

"Oh nice one. Where did you get that joke, from your stupid hat?!"

Gine lost her appetite as the two masters squabbled like school children. Humans... she thought wearily.

Gohan eyed Gine. He saw that she had crushed her metal utensils in her hand without noticing, curling it into a fist while giving Crane a murderous glare he had seen before. The look of someone on the verge of snapping and delivering a killing blow.

Earlier Gohan was starting to worry about how he noticed Gine would be acting so strangely irate around Crane, knowing how strong she was and how sensitive she had been to ridicule given her history. He never knew Master Shen or how Roshi knew him before, and was unsure of just how cruel the Crane Hermit could be. He eyed his star pupil Tien too, thinking of what he did to Yamcha, the talk from earlier...

Perhaps bringing her to the tournament may not have been a good idea afterall. But he decided to keep that thought to himself, hoping things will get better tomorrow.

There we go! Sorry it took awhile to get here but rest assured I have already worked through the saga and working on the final drafts for the next couple chapters so they should be up in the next couple weeks. Now we got to see Gine introduced to the crowded World Martial Arts Tournament, cultural differences between humans and Saiyans, and some deep seated issues that makes her have a problem with Crane. What could all this mean? Tune in next time on the next exciting episode of Dragonball Gine!

Hope you all enjoyed it and I'll see you on the next upload!