This chapter starts with a time skip to progress the story forward; I have to admit I was a little lazy in writing that portion.

Without further ado:

Chapter 12: Our Hero Arrives?

With an opportunity to make Gohan stronger, he and Krillin head out to see the Grand Elder Guru, leaving Bulma to sulk around their new hiding spot with her only duty is to guard the dragon ball.

But a slip of control on the usage of their ki resulted in Vegeta sensing it. He would find them soon enough and when he did he'd make them pay. With only one of the dragon balls in his possession, he raced after them.

~o.O~O.o~ Skipping to make the story go along faster~o.O~O.o~

No one liked this. Working with someone you once tried to kill or saw as your enemy but there was a bigger, worse enemy for them to deal with right now: The Ginyu Force.

With no time to waste they rushed over to where they had left Bulma and the four-star dragon ball. With all intentions of leaving her there, while taking the ball she'd gone through surprising length to protect. The bluenette would not be left behind.

"Hey wait for a second!" But Krillin, and to her horror Vegeta right behind him. Gohan was about to take off too, but she quickly grabbed him by the shirt.

"Come on Bulma let go, we're in a hurry," he whined looking off after the two men who were quickly fading into the distance.

"No you don't, you're taking me with you guys,"

"It's dangerous,"

"What isn't on this planet? I refuse to be forgotten and left behind again, might I add!" She huffed with a glare. "Now you're taking me with you, or else," the last part reminded him of his mother. Whatever it was, sent shivers down his spine. "Besides if you don't take me, I'm telling your mom!"

"Oh Bulma please don't, I don't even know how I'm going to explain all of this to her!"

"So I'm coming, right?" She grinned victoriously.

With a sigh, he nodded.

It took her less than a minute for her to have everything in her bag. Hooking his arms under her armpits, as it was pretty much the only way to carry her, they took after the other two.

"So what's going on? Why is Vegeta, of all people, with you guys?"

"Apparently there are some really bad guys coming to the planet…" he trailed off.

"So the only way to beat them is to team up," he nodded even though she couldn't see. "Well with Goku nearly here I'm sure you guys will wipe the floor with them!" She seemed so sure, but inside she was terrified. This hadn't been part of the plan, all they wanted to do were bring back their friends, and now it was like playing roulette but instead of bullets it bad guys, it was all about which one would kill the other first.

This was so unfair.

"Why'd you bring her Gohan? It's too dangerous," Krillin sighed from beside him. They'd caught up to them rather quickly.

"It doesn't matter, the Ginyu force has already landed, and they're right behind us! We need to get to the dragon balls and make that wish!" Vegeta yelled back before speeding up.

"Alright, let's go Gohan," and then Krillin speeds up.

And like that, they raced forth with Bulma releasing only one scream, a new best if she said so herself.

As soon as they had arrived where Vegeta had hidden the dragon balls, this so-called Ginyu Force landed between them and their wish. Being the average human that she was, Bulma cowered behind Krillin and Gohan. Aside from the small green one, each one looked as if they could easily crush her skull with a simple flex of their muscles.

At least she wasn't the only one scared, but then again they could sense out power levels so they could make out what these guys were capable of.

It was the green one that struck first.

He grinned while he babbled, all four of his eyes looking at Vegeta.

"What the hell is that ugly thing!?" She screamed.

"I'M NOT UGLY!"

"The green one? They call him Guldo," Vegeta sighed; she could practically hear him rolling his eyes. Apparently, Vegeta had a history with the Ginyu force, did that mean they might have a chance?

"I'm not ugly, and just for that, I'm going to beat you to an inch of your life. Frieza, after all, didn't specify what condition to bring you back in," he laughed. God, it was annoying.

"Just shut up already and attack so I can finally kill you!" Vegeta seemed confident.

"I'LL KILL YOU!" before he could attack the four-eyed toads was picked up from behind.

The big lug talked in a slow drawn out tone, making Bulma question his intelligence. "Guldo, Frieza wants him brought back alive, remember?"

Turning away Guldo huffed, and the purple one stepped forward.

"Come on Vegeta, just hand over the dragon ball and come with us. There's no need to draw this thing out; it's pointless to fight the inevitable,"

"GO TO HELL GINYU!" Faster than Bulma could fathom Vegeta had thrown the Dragonball and one of them had caught it and in the midst of it they had also stolen the ball Krillin had been holding.

How could they stand a chance against these lunatics?

~Bulma's Perspective~

The Ginyu force had treated as a game, and it pissed her off to no end. How dare they take such joy in trying to kill her friends! The bastards! And now she was next, going to die because she wanted to come along.

'Oh, Goku where are you when we need you!?'

He appeared before her in an instant as if having heard her cry for help.

Blue eyes glossed over as she took in the sight of her orange-clad hero. Her heart leaped into her throat; she could barely breathe as her body shook. He was here; he'd made it just in time to save the day.

Choking on a sob, she threw herself at him, her arms wrapping around his neck to bring her closer to his muscular chest. Burying her face into the crook of his neck she took in his woodsy musk that was as simple as he was. Sobs racked her body in a mix emotion that she couldn't quite understand.

His strong arms wrapped around her gently, tenderly even, while rubbing her back in a soothing gesture.

She was happy to see him and, yet she was sad; he hadn't come for her. He would never come to her rescue because he would never be hers; his heart belonged to someone else.

She froze. Did she want him to be hers?

"Are you alright Bulma?"He pulled away looking down at her with his bright ebony eyes and a small smile that took her breath away.

Biting her lip, she looked away before finally stepping out of his warm arms. She immediately felt empty. But now was no time for her emotional turmoil, the others were in need of his help. With him here everything would finally turn in their favor.

"They need your help," She urged avoiding his gaze while pointing to his son and friend that lay battered only a few feet away.

She watched his back as he helped his son and then their friend and finally the one they had once called an enemy.

Gohan groaned as he faintly heard the words of a man that sounded so much like his father. Even the gentle caress of his large callused hands was familiar. "Gohan it's a senzu, you need to eat it," he tried to, he couldn't move, couldn't see past the pain that ignited his body.

The man muttered something along the lines of a broken neck before speaking to him once more. "I'm going to feed this to you," a small bean slipped through his lips while the man made him chew before rubbing his throat forcing him to swallow the hard and slightly bitter thing.

It came slowly. The burning turned to pain, then to aches, and finally nothingness leaving him with a feeling of being light. Everything came back slowly, he could feel the dirt beneath him and the strong, overbearing ki that stood next to him, finally his eyesight came back. It was slow and blurry, but after a few blinks, the dark figure looming over him became that of his father.

"D-Dad?" Tears came to his eyes at seeing his father. He came, he made it, he was going to save the day. Just like the hero he'd always thought him to be.

"I didn't believe you were going to make it." He cried softly, throwing himself into his father's welcoming arms.

Goku gave a breathy laugh as he hugged his son back lightly patting his back before. "I'll always be there when you need me. You've gone through a lot Gohan; I'm so proud of you for protecting Bulma and fighting as hard as you did," Gohan looked up at his father with wide eyes. How could he be proud of him when he'd been so useless?

Goku stood, his eyes sweeping over the two other injured men his eyes lingering on Vegeta, he was bleeding heavily from several wounds, seeming to be somewhat alive. Whatever reason was keeping him alive, he was grateful he wanted nothing more than to fight him and test his abilities against someone could be able to match him blow for blow.

"That's the guy we were fighting," Gohan pointed to the man standing across the way his leotard chard and bruised face with a smile full of broken teeth.

Walking over to Krillin he saw the man was in better shape compared to Gohan and Vegeta. "Sorry to make you wait. Here's a senzu bean,"

"I don't know whether to be happy or sad new one sad?" Krillin happily took the Krillin had been given senzu beans in the past that his senses came back fairly quickly and he jumped up feeling ten times better and his wounds all healed.

"It doesn't matter how much better we get they'll just beat us down again. Not even you can beat these guys Goku. They're just that good," he sighed, already defeated.

Goku looks over his shoulder at the saiyan. He already knew most of the situation from when he'd "felt" it from Bulma and Gohan.

"Even Vegeta was helpless against them, even with them once being allies-" Goku cut him off.

"I already know,"

"How?"

Goku shrugged. "I got this feeling, you know, when I touched Bulma and Gohan,"

Krillin looked up at him like he was crazy.

"I know everything! All the way from the struggles you face getting the dragon balls and how Vegeta became somewhat of an ally. He may not have turned for the better, but he helped and will hopefully continue to help us," Goku grinned before he gave a sideways glance to Bulma who stood just a few feet away. "I'm glad you kept her safe. I don't know how she would fare on her own so thank you for protecting her and being a good friend,"

"How could you tell?"

"I don't know," this made Krillin's sweat drop. "Either way since Vegeta help I guess I could go give him a senzu bean," looking and feeling the bag Goku gave a heavy sigh. "Vegeta!" he yelled and threw the last one at the saying prince who was quite a ways away from them. The saiyan prince caught it with ease even in his injured state.

"Eat it," Goku yelled.

Vegeta did as told and the amazement on his face almost made Goku laugh.

"Are you insane Goku! I guess you want him fighting alongside us but-" Krillin was cut off.

"No that's not it. I want to finish the fight we started on Earth,"

"What do you mean by finish? You don't mean, you want to fight that monster again?!" but he didn't get an answer.

Gohan even looked up at his dad in a mixture of amazement and confusion. Did his dad want to fight Vegeta again like how they fought back on Earth, to avenge the death of his friends?

Goku walked away leaving them behind him "I'll take care of them by myself," stressing the last part, he didn't want anyone interfering with this fight after all he wanted to test his new strength.

"You don't know what you're saying!" Krillin yells at him.

"Daddy don't do it please!" Gohan yells at him as well.

"Goku," her voice came as a whisper while her hold on his hand was firm. He stopped looking down into her sapphire eyes that look so sad and yet so confident. He could see in her eyes that she had the utmost confidence in him, that she believed in his abilities and would support him and his desire to fight. "Please be careful Goku these guys are bad news,"

He gave her a small smile and gently squeezed her hand. At that moment there was an odd sensation of wanting to kiss her, to thank her, using his actions. She had always been his best friend and not having her around would have left him alone in the woods never knowing the thrills of adventure, going purely on instinct he kissed her temple. "Don't worry I'll be fine,"

Walking away, her fingertips lingering on his hand. And as much as he wanted her by his side, he had a job to do. He needed to finish this fight to protect her and everyone else.

They seemed powerful enough to offer him a challenge, but at the same time, he didn't doubt his ability. He would win somehow or another; he would win.

~Our Unlikely Pair~

Vegeta's brow furrowed as he watched Goku walk away, his shoulders square and his entire body just radiating with confidence. 'Some things... Odd? Why is he so calm doesn't he realize he's going to lose? The three of us couldn't even defeat them, how does he think he alone can beat them? Why doesn't he show any anger or fear or something!?'

Then he remembered something far back from his childhood. A story of a warrior that no one could defeat.

The story was as old as the saiyan race itself. Every thousand years or so, there would appear a warrior; unlike any other who could take down any opponent and rise above the others like a beacon of light. Everyone, even his father, and his entire race thought it to be a myth, something impossible to achieve.

And yet here stood Goku: a human saiyan. He took out Recoome in one hit.

It made Vegeta's blood boil. It was unfair and hurt his pride. There was no hope for him; his desire to be stronger seems pointless compared to how easily Goku had achieved greatness.

How was he to avenge his mate or people when he couldn't even defeat the Ginyu Force?

"Curse him," Vegeta growled under his breath.

There was a moment in which he thought maybe it was a lie, that it was his imagination, that the man before him could not be something of legends.

But it was no trick it was no technique it was just one blow that took down not one but three of the Ginyu Force. He surpassed any Saiyan strength in their records; he was a different warrior from the one that he fought on Earth. What kind of training had he gone through between their battle on Earth and now that made him be almost a Legend?

Could he be the Legendary Super Saiyan?

The gasping breaths of Recoome and Burter solidified the answer to his question. For the moment at least.

No.

No warrior would allow them to live after what they'd done, and let another escape to warn an even more fearsome enemy. Goku might be strong, but he was an idiot with a soft heart. And it would be his downfall.

Vegeta then took upon himself to give the final blow; he wasn't going to risk fighting them again.

~o.O~O.o~

It would inevitably cause Goku problems, just because he granted mercy to an enemy did not mean they would run and hide. For when Jeice escaped, he ran, right to his Commander: Captain Ginyu. This fight would affect all the fights after it today.

This Ginyu character looked far different compared to the others, though they'd all been of different species, he just held himself differently. It wasn't so much confidence that he'd win but being confident in his knowledgeability and awareness of his abilities.