HIDDEN ADVENTURE

After nearly a whole day of traveling on Kinto'un, Goku and Chi-Chi are practically on top of the next Dragon Ball. They soon arrive at the Karin Sanctuary, and are met with the sight of RRA soldiers digging up and searching the land.

As they watch this, unbeknownst to them and the soldiers below, two people are watching from a safe distance: Bora and his young son Upa. Upa is revealed to be holding onto the four-star Dragon Ball, and asks his father why they don't just give it to the soldiers. Bora responds that the RRA will just use it for evil, and that they must keep it safe.

Goku and Chi-Chi exchange a glance, then both grin and jump off of Kinto'un, ambushing the soldiers. It takes a few minutes, but by working together, the duo easily takes out the entire group, either by knocking them unconscious or sending them running. Once it's all said and done, Bora and Upa step out, surprised but grateful.

When Goku sees the four-star Dragon Ball in Upa's hands, he becomes overjoyed and asks for it. Bora can tell that this boy has no evil intentions, and tells Upa to hand it over, much to Goku's delight. After several ups and downs, he finally has his grandfather's treasure back.

Bora and Upa cook some food to thank them, and as the four of them eat, Chi-Chi notices the giant totem pole-like tower nearby; it's so tall that she can't even see where it ends, no matter how hard she looks. Chi-Chi asks about it, and Bora explains that it's the Sacred Tower of Karin. Legend says that the tower extends to the heavens, and that anyone who can climb to the top with their bare hands will find a hermit master living at its summit, and if one drinks the Chikara Water proffered there, their strength will be multiplied many times over. Bora and Upa's tribe have been guarding the tower for many generations.

Goku and Chi-Chi are in awe, and the wheels start to turn in the former's head. Once they finish up their meal, Goku declares that he wants to climb the tower, out of desire to get stronger and protect his friends, much to the surprise of his companions. He asks Chi-Chi if she wants to accompany him, but upon getting another look at the tower again, she nervously declines, saying she doesn't think she'll be able to make the journey and that she'll probably just slow him down.

Goku merely shrugs and, after giving the four-star ball to Chi-Chi for safekeeping, jumps onto the tower, swiftly climbing up and disappearing in no time at all. Chi-Chi, Bora and Upa wish him luck, still amazed at the boy's skills.

OoOoOoO

In another part of the world, Jasper and Rose (still shapeshifted into birds) are on their way to the next closest Dragon Ball, when a familiar voice suddenly calls their names. They stop in midair and turn to see Turquoise flying towards them. Jasper and Rose are surprised yet happy to see them. They all land, with Rose and Jasper reverting back to their normal states, and Turquoise defusing into Lapis and Peridot.

As Peridot stores the seven-star Dragon Ball in her gem, and then works to pull her Limb Enhancers out, Lapis talks with Rose and Jasper, telling them about the underwater cave. When she mentions the RRA soldier they fought, both Quartzes freeze up.

Rose explains that they fought as patrol of RRA soldiers, causing Peridot to groan. "Great, we gotta deal with more of these clods," she grumbles out, finishing putting on her Limb Enhancers.

The four of them look at their radars, and decide to head to the next closest Dragon Ball. Rose and Jasper shapeshift back into birds, Peridot hovers using her Limb Enhancers, and Lapis summons her water wings again. They quickly head out, hoping to get ahold of the Dragon Ball before the RRA can.

OoOoOoO

Back at RRA headquarters, Commander Red notices that another one of the Dragon Balls has suddenly disappeared from their radar (cannot be detected while they're in Peridot's gem), and now only five are appearing on the screen. This only further infuriates him, making him wondering what kind of technology these people are using to hide the Dragon Balls, when Black informs him that Tao Pai-Pai has arrived.

Tao tells Red that he'll do whatever he pleases, but only if he receives a payment of 50 million Zeni. Even though it surprises Black and annoys Red, they agree.

As they're negotiating fees, General Blue enters the room, looking a little worse for wear but still as fiery as ever. Red coldly reminds General Blue that his orders were to bring back the Dragon Balls, and that those who cannot complete their duties will be executed. However, since General Blue has served the RRA well in the past, he's willing to give him a chance to redeem himself…if he fights Tao and wins.

General Blue gladly accepts this offer and faces off against Tao, scoffing at the idea of the latter being a 'legendary assassin'. But Tao is unphased, and easily kills General Blue by stabbing his tongue through his skull. Red and Black are shocked, but the former is pleased with Tao's skills.

Black gives Tao a description of the two children and the 'strange people' hunting down the Dragon Balls, and Red mentions that two of the Dragon Balls disappeared close to another one. Tao claims this will be an easy assignment, and effortlessly travels there by throwing a pillar in that direction and riding it.

OoOoOoO

As twilight starts to fall, Goku stubbornly continues his climb up Karin Tower. He's exhausted and has almost fell off a few times, but refuses to give up. Sure enough, as the sky darkens, he spots a structure at the top. He scurries up, and gladly enters the platform supporting the palace at the top.

Goku takes a moment to catch his breath once he's inside, then explores for a bit. He eventually finds a door leading to stairs, which takes him to a big round room with no walls, just railing and a ceiling supported by pillars. And standing in this room is a large white cat holding a wooden staff.

The cat congratulates Goku on making it to the top, and introduces himself as Karin, the Cat Hermit. Goku starts to explain that he's here for the Chikara Water, but before he can say why, Karin cuts him off and uses his chi to read Goku's mind, much to the boy's surprise.

Since his intentions are pure, Karin agrees to give him the Chikara Water, but on one condition. The Chikara Water is located in a flask, but in order to prove that he's worthy of it, Goku must rely on his own skills and wits to retrieve it from Karin. Goku agrees, and thus begins a long game of keep away with the Chikara Water flask.

Goku's still sluggish, but Karin gives him a single Senzu Bean, which can heal wounds, give someone vigor, and allows them to go 10 days without eating. With that, Goku's back up to full power and continues to chase down the flask.

OoOoOoO

Yamcha, Bulma, Apache and Arale have continued their search for the next Dragon Ball, which ends up being annoying, as they constantly have to fight off RRA soldiers, and it's getting extremely close to nighttime. Yamcha's still bitter about his argument with Bulma and refuses to speak with her, only focusing on finding the Dragon Ball.

They eventually come across the five-star ball, located on the lawn of Penguin Village High School. But as soon as Yamcha picks it up, Tao suddenly arrives; he crashes the pillar into them, which the group of four narrowly avoids in their shock. Tao lands gracefully and introduces himself, saying that he was hired by the RRA and that he was hired to kill anyone who interferes with their works.

Yamcha and Apache immediately drew their weapons, while Bulma runs to hide around the corner of the school, and Arale continues to look confused. Yamcha and Apache attack Tao, only to be knocked around with little effort on the assassin's end. Despite each attempt to fight back ending with more and more wounds, they both refuse to back down. And even if they tried to run, they'd never be able to get away from Tao.

After several rounds of back-and-forth, Apache activates her weapon and charges at Tao with it. But Tao grabs the weapon with two fingers at shocking speed, rendering Apache helpless as she can't move the weapon, no matter how hard she tries. Tao grows bored of this and throws Apache high in the air, then sadistically asks if she wants her weapon back and throws it at her. The weapon impales Apache through her torso, reducing her to smoke instantly and her gemstone descending rapidly.

Though shocked, Yamcha manages to catch Apache's gem before it can hit the ground. In a quiet fury, Yamcha asks Arale to hold Apache's gem and keep it safe, which the girl happily agrees to do so. Yamcha summons his whip as he glares daggers at Tao, and doesn't hesitate to attack him. But just like last time, Tao basically dances around his attacks, giving Yamcha more injuries while he remains untouched.

Yamcha ends up collapsing, exhausted and wounded, and the whip vanishes as Tao mocks him. Tao then points a finger at him, which starts to glow a golden color, but before he can fire the attack, a pink shield suddenly spirals towards Tao. He jumps out of the way before it can hit him, and everyone looks up to see Jasper shapeshifted into a giant bird and carrying Rose on her back, Lapis, and Peridot flying towards them. And all four of them look furious.

As they land, with Jasper shapeshifting back to normal and Rose helping Yamcha stand up, Peridot aims a green energy blast at Tao from her Limb Enhancers. "Not another step," the green Gem snarls, a look of bloodlust in her eyes.

Yamcha manages to warn the Gems about Tao's abilities, but they attack him nonetheless. But like every attempt before, despite the Gems' best efforts, none of them are able to even touch Tao. During the fight, Apache's gem suddenly glows in Arale's hands, much to the girl's amazement. Apache Tears reforms, and quickly figures out what's going on and rushes to grab her weapon.

After what feels like hours, as the sky turns black and the stars appear, Yamcha finally manages to land an attack on Tao with his sword, though it's just a single scratch on his cheek. All this does is annoy Tao, and he fires a powerful Dodon Ray at Yamcha. It hits him in the chest before he or anyone else can do anything about it, spending burning pain through his body and is powerful enough to send him flying, disappearing out of sight in barely a second.

The Gems and Bulma are horrified. Apache's the first to snap out of her shock, and quickly remembers that Arale is still here. The monochromatic Gem turns to the purple-haired girl, and tells her with a sadistic smirk, "Arale! I think this man wants to play a game with you!"

Arale, who was under the impression that this was all a game and was waiting for her 'turn', excitedly rushes in. She surprises Tao, as she's faster and stronger than Yamcha and the Gems, managing to hit him quite a few times, much to the Gems' astonishment. He eventually becomes vexed and hits Arale hard enough to send her crashing into the school. Tao picks up the five-star ball, which had been dropped in all the chaos, saying out loud that this must be what the RRA was looking for, and uses the same pillar from before to fly back to RRA headquarters.

Arale walks out of the rubble moments later unscathed, surprising everyone around her. That's when they start freaking out. But Peridot's shock quickly turns to fury. She pulls up a holographic screen with her fingers, revealing a map with a single blinking dot on it.

Before anyone can ask her about it, the screen vanishes and she demands that the others to follow that assassin. "Those Red Ribbon clods went too far," she snarls darkly. "I'll go find Yamcha. But the rest of you…Find those clods! Beat them within an inch of their lives! AND HANG THEM UP BY THEIR ENTRAILS!"

Peridot doesn't wait for a response from them, as she immediately flies off. She pulls up the holographic screen as she does so, and speeds up once she locks onto the blinking dot's location. After several months, she's glad she hid that tracking device in Yamcha's jacket.

Using one of the radars, the group of six heads out. Lapis leads the way with her water wings, while Rose and Jasper shapeshift again and carry Apache, Bulma and Arale on their backs.

Ready or not, it's time to take on the Red Ribbon Army head-on.

OoOoOoO

Back at Karin Tower, Goku continues his pursuit of the Chikara Water flask. Karin mentors Goku as he does so, teaching him to focus on reading his opponent's movements instead of just reacting. He even tells Goku that Roshi was the only other person to successfully climb the tower and drink the Chikara Water, much to Goku's amazement.

Karin suddenly freezes in the middle of everything, saying that he senses something rapidly approaching them. Goku turns in the direction he's looking in, and sees something flying towards the tower. Something that looks oddly familiar…

That 'something' ends up crashing into the tower and landing several feet away, and is revealed to be an injured and unconscious Yamcha. Goku's surprised to see his friend and rushes over to him to shake him awake. He succeeds, but Yamcha's in a lot of pain, mentioning that his chest really hurts.

Karin feeds him a Senzu bean, which heals his injuries immediately, but Yamcha stills says his chest hurts. Curious, Goku pulls down his friend's shirt collar to look…and his eyes widen.

His gem is cracked.

Since a Senzu won't fix it, Goku remembers something about 'healing tears' and asks Yamcha about it. Just like the last time he needed to make himself cry, Yamcha ends up biting his lip hard enough to draw both blood and a few tears. Goku catches the tears and drips them onto his cracked gem…

…But nothing happens.

This worries both Goku and Yamcha. Goku asks his friend what happened, and despite his pain, Yamcha manages to tell him about the fight with Tao. Just as he finishes his explanation, Karin hears a thud behind him, and turns to see a green woman aiming a crackling green energy blast just inches from his face.

"Step. Away. From. My. Baby!" The green woman growls, looking ready to blast the Cat Hermit at any second.

Karin jumps out of the way, and Peridot rushes over to Yamcha, dropping to her knees and cradling him in her arms. She looks terrified when she spots his cracked gem, and comes close to panicking when she learns that his Healing Tears didn't work.

That's when an idea strikes Goku: they can use the Dragon Balls to heal Yamcha's gem.

Peridot thinks that's a brilliant idea, and after hearing that three of the Dragon Balls are safe with Chi-Chi at the bottom of the tower, tells Yamcha she'll be right back, then jumps off and flies down the tower. Goku asks Karin if he can try getting the Chikara Water later on, to which Karin agrees to, and the boy follows Peridot on Kinto'un.

Goku and Peridot land back on the ground, surprising Chi-Chi, Bora and Upa. Peridot stores the three Dragon Balls in her gem, and Chi-Chi locates the one that Tao took on her radar. Goku and Chi-Chi say goodbye to their new friends, and fly off on Kinto'un alongside Peridot.

Back up on Karin Tower, Yamcha struggles to find relief in his pain. All he can do is lean against the podium, fading in and out of consciousness, and every move he makes only exacerbates his agony.

And as he starts to slip into unconsciousness again, for just a moment, he hears a quiet, soothing voice echoing in his mind.

"Yamcha…"

OoOoOoO

Tao arrives back at RRA headquarters and hands the five-star ball to Red, but not before receiving his 50 million Zeni payment. Tao immediately heads out, saying he has more important things to do. Red's pleased with the results, but when he looks back at their radar to prepare the next step, three of the Dragon Balls suddenly vanish, which further angers him.

Before he can figure something out, one of the soldiers (in a plane guarding the base) radios in, claiming that he's spotted several flying objects, but is cut off by a crash followed by screaming, and the line immediately goes to static. Shocked, Red radios all his nearby soldiers, ordering them to eliminate the 'flying objects' the soldier just mentioned.

But none of them get the chance to do so. Outside, the group of six easily destroys any planes that come their way, and don't hesitate to start their rampage the moment they land in the base.

While everyone else is busy beating up soldiers firing at them, ripping apart planes and hovercars with ease, and collapsing entire buildings around them, Bulma tries to cling to Lapis, angrily reminding the blue Gem that she's not strong like them. Lapis thinks about this for a moment, then a lightbulb practically appears above her head.

Lapis takes Bulma through the base, and several injured soldiers and destroyed rooms later, finds what she's looking for: the weapons vault. Lapis cheerfully tells Bulma to grab whatever tickles her fancy, then runs out of the room to continue fighting outside.

Oh, they'll get the Dragon Ball, alright. But before that, a little bit of chaos is in order. They just want to get the message across: you mess with one of the Crystal Gems, you mess with all of them.

But it's not just soldiers they encounter. Throughout the base, they find several more corrupted Gems being used as the RRA's tools. This only adds fuel to the fire, as they quickly poof and bubble each of the monsters, then turn their attention to those who were just using them. Needless to say, it doesn't end well for them.

In the midst of the fighting, as Red and Black head to Tower 8 to keep the Dragon Ball safe, a bright light suddenly shines. And the soldiers look to see a new, giant being. She is the fusion between Jasper and Rose Quartz: Golden Beryl.

Equal parts beautiful and dangerous, Golden Beryl makes quick work of the soldiers around her and easily destroys everything in her path. As this is happening, Bulma steps out of the weapons vault with a cocktail of weapons either strapped to her back/hips, or in a bag hanging off of her shoulder. A light machine gun, a rocket launcher, grenades and flashbangs…Though she's scared out of her wits, Bulma gives any RRA soldier coming at her hell.

After chucking a tank several miles away, Lapis spots something coming towards them, which she instantly recognizes as Peridot, Goku and Chi-Chi. Lapis is happy to see them, and Peridot gladly joins the carnage around them, mercilessly blasting any soldier unfortunately enough to get in her way.

Goku and Chi-Chi, meanwhile, manage to locate the five-star ball and bolt towards Tower 8. By working together again, they defeat the soldiers who attack them and start to climb their way up.

In the top room, Black tries to convince Red to just abandon the Dragon Ball and retreat, saying that those kids and strange women are just too powerful. Red stubbornly refuses. And that's when he says it…

"Curse it!" Red barks, practically glaring at the five-star ball on the table before him. "I was so close, and then these brats snatched everything from me! If they hadn't interfered, I would've been taller by now!"

Black is dumbfounded for a moment, and asks Red what he means, saying he thought they were after world domination. Red snaps back that he was tired of being short, as it made him unpopular with the ladies. Black is appalled; everything they've suffered, slaved over and risk their lives for…

In his rage and disgust, in the midst of Red's rant, Black takes out his pistol and shoots Red in the middle of his forehead, killing him instantly. He declares that the Red Ribbon Army will rebuild under a new commander: Commander Black.

Within minutes, Goku and Chi-Chi crash into the room. Black tries to be civil and asks them if they want to gather the Dragon Balls with him, and rule the world alongside him. The duo immediately declines, and Black attacks them. They make quick work of Black, proving for the umpteenth time that they're not to be underestimated.

Black is forced to pull out a capsule that turns into a Battle Jacket (a giant mecha suit) and climbs inside. Black continues to attack Goku and Chi-Chi, now much stronger than before and actually giving the duo some trouble.

But as soon as Black takes this fight outside, something lands on top of his Battle Jacket. He looks up to see Apache Tears standing on top of the suit's glass dome, her weapon activated and a crazed look in her gray eyes. "Hello!" she exclaims jubilantly, raising up her weapon.

But before she can bring it down, Black tries to punch her with the mecha…only for her to jump up at the last second, causing him to punch himself in the face. Apache, having been caught by Lapis in midair, laughs loudly and manically at this.

Frustrated, Black rockets up higher in the air, and fires a missile at Apache and Lapis. Before it can reach them, Goku jumps up and kicks it away, causing it to crash into and blow up a nearby mountain.

Black is horrified at his strength and tries to fly away. But he doesn't get away. Because with an excited shout, Arale jumps up and flies straight through the Battle Jacket, destroying its mechanics and causing it to explode.

The deed is done. The Red Ribbon Army has finally fallen.

OoOoOoO

In the aftermath of the destroyed headquarters, the group gathers together. Peridot extracts the five Dragon Balls from her gem and adds them to the one Chi-Chi grabbed from Tower 8. They now have six; just one more to go, and then they'll have their wish.

Goku reactivates his radar, but nothing shows up. The others try with their radars, only to get the same results. Bulma figures that they just broke them in all the fighting. Peridot proposes that they pick up Yamcha and head somewhere safe, so she and Bulma can repair the radars.

Bulma pulls out the capsule containing her plane and everyone boards it. Apache asks Arale if she wants them to take her back to Penguin Village, but the girl declines, saying she can get there on her own. And she just runs off, leaving a dust cloud behind and disappearing from sight in just a few seconds, much to the amazement of the others.

"I don't think I'll understand that kid," Jasper sighs.

With that, the group takes off, following Peridot's directions towards Karin Tower.

OoOoOoO

In the rubble of one of the many collapsed buildings, an old man is seen kneeling next to the body of a young man. A large man with reddish-orange hair, who was killed when the debris fall on top of him, and whose head is now being cradled by the old man.

As tears fall down his face, anguish and vexation coursing through him, the old man glares furiously at the receding plane. At that moment, Doctor Gero swears vengeance on Son Goku, Chi-Chi, and the Crystal Gems.

OoOoOoO

As the sun starts to rise, the plane finally approaches Karin Tower. Trying to be as gentle and careful as possible, Rose carries a still unconscious Yamcha onto the plane and lays him down in one of the seat rows.

Everyone except Goku and Peridot are shocked to see the state of his gem; this only intensifies the guilt that Bulma feels. Once he's in, Bulma flies the plane to the first place she can think of: Kame House.

Hopefully they'll be able to find the last Dragon Ball soon…and hopefully, Bulma can make up for what she said to Yamcha.

OoOoOoO

In his unconscious state, Yamcha feels like he's floating somewhere between dreams and reality. He keeps hearing a muffled voice, but can't make out what it's saying; he can't move or speak, and it's hard to see anything around him.

After a few minutes, he feels a hand gently work through his hair. It's comforting…and he hear that same mysterious voice from before, now much clearer, and speaking in that same soothing tone.

"Yamcha…I'm here…"

He tries to turn to the source of the voice, his mind foggy and feeling like it's swimming in molasses. And though he can't fully make it out, he swears he sees a bluish-purple figure next to him…

That takes care of the Red Ribbon Army Arc. Up next: Fortuneteller Baba!

This is my final post of 2021. Hello, 2022! Happy New Year, everybody!

Yeah, I decided to spare Bora and instead have them use the wish to repair Yamcha's cracked gem. It was sort of a decision I made up on the spot as I was writing this part. And sadly, Goku didn't get to drink the Chikara Water this time, but he'll come back around

Dorito Mom for the win!

Tao didn't get the beatdown he deserves this time around. But rest assured, this won't be the last time we see the ruthless mercenary. And yikes, I keep forgetting how much death and destruction there is in early Dragon Ball

And yay, I finally get to write some mother-son bonding between Yamcha and Holly! I'm planning to include more of these in the future, so look forward to that

Thank you so much for taking the time to read this! God bless you and have a wonderful day/night/whenever you read this!

Golden Beryl

Gems: Jasper and Rose Quartz

Appearance: 30 feet tall. Large, strong and curvy build. Sunset-gold complexion with golden-brown markings similar to Jasper's. Voluminous, messy, slightly curly marigold-colored hair that ends at her hips. Four eyes; top eyes are amber with pupils, and bottom eyes are black. Plump limps with peach-colored lipstick. A mix of Jasper and Rose's facial features. Golden-colored gemstones.

Outfit: Strapless, dark goldenrod-colored top with a six-point star cutout on her navel. Long black pants. Amber-orange boots with darker toe caps. Elbow-high, milky-brown fingerless gloves. An open kimono-like robe with a medium-to-dark butterscotch color gradient, long sleeves, and ends at her knees with multiple layers that resemble rose petals.

Voice Actor: Meredith McCoy (sounds like Fujiko Mine from Lupin the 3rd: Dead or Alive)