Chapter 12: Third Day of Serious Training and a Harsh Punishment
Pearl and Kenshiro both groaned when they heard Soon knock on the door. "Come on, third day. This will be the last one," Soon stated. "What?" Pearl said as she got dressed in a purple gi with black belt and her weighted clothes. "I thought he was going to train us for a week," Kenshiro said as he also got dressed and they went to the living room to see Soon already making his 'Protein Shakes'. "Soon-sensei, you're not training us for the whole week? Why?" Pearl asked. Soon turned to her after pouring out the 'Protein Shakes' and told her, "You three have surpassed my expectations. Just keep on training like I've been training you, and keep pushing yourselves, and I'm sure you can be my equal. That's why, you don't need me leading you, you three can do well enough without me." "Thank you, Sensei!" Pearl, Barit, and Kenshiro all yelled and bowed to him before taking their 'Protein Shakes'. "Now then, consider today to be something of a test. After our exercises, I want all of you to do three Parallel Quests each, alone, and finally one together. And Pearl, while the boys do there Parallel Quests I want you to bring your Scouter today in case you have to visit any Time Rifts. Sound good?" Soon asked.
"Yes, Soon-sensei!" Pearl said, "I feel so strong now, I'm sure I won't take too long if I do have to visit any Time Rifts." The three roommates and Soon took time to stretch and Pearl put on her Scouter before they went outside and started running. Barit was having trouble at first with adjusting to his weighted clothes, but quickly adjusted and by the final lap just barely was behind Pearl. "Now, Barit will do three thousand extra exercises," Soon said. Once again, they all went through the exercises, and Pearl was actually first to finish all of the pushups, situps, jumping jacks, burpees, and squats, all the extras she did before were finally paying off. Once Barit finished his exercises, Soon had the three roommates assume the horse stance and then used Namekian Materialization to make TEN ton weights appear over them. Pearl barely caught hers and kept her stance. "Hold them as long as you can," Soon told them as he then assumed his own horse stance and lifted his hands, and Materialized one two- hundred-ton weight into each hand, and clearly struggled to hold them up.
"Remember," Soon said after an hour, and Pearl felt like her body was starting to squish, "First person to stop has to do an extra thousand pushups, with a five-ton weight on them." "WHAT!?" Kenshiro yelled, and the ten-ton-weight he was holding dipped a little before he righted himself. Soon nodded, and Pearl saw that he had sank down to his ankles in the dirt. "Yes, remember that," Soon said as sweat poured off his face. Pearl swallowed and focused on pouring power into her muscles, she wasn't going to be doing anymore extra exercises! Another hour passed, everyone was drenched in sweat, and other Time Patrollers were watching their contest, some were even making bets. Pearl saw Praxtic, the green half-Saiyan bastard, actually starting a betting pool! "Praxtic! The Hell you doing here!?" Barit yelled. Praxtic smiled at the Namekian and said, "You kidding? I want in on this action! And plus Merch let me take a break, and Yuki's nowhere to be found, so I figured I might as well make some cash!"
The three roommates and Soon all looked at Praxtic. Soon said, "So, you're the one that gave them the Interdimensional Cable Box, and Kenshiro and Pearl's weighted clothes." "Yep," Praxtic said, "I gotta say, you're a lot more badass than your other counterpart, man, how much is weighing you down now, total?" Soon grunted and said, "Four-hundred-tons!" The Time Patrollers all cheered and said, "KEEP ON DOING IT SOON!" "I LOVE YOU SOON!" "YOU'RE THE GREATEST NAMEKIAN THAT EVER LIVED!" Steam shot out of Pearl's arms as she struggled to keep the weight up, and other Time Patrollers cheered, "Keep going Kenshiro!" "Keep going Pearl!" "I got two thousand Zeni riding on this Barit!" The roommates all struggled to keep it up, even with their power, this was still 20000 pounds they were holding, and that was nothing compared to the 800000 pounds Soon had all together! Kenshiro suddenly yelled out as his ki aura burst out, and then went inside him, and his muscles exploded out, obliterating his shirt and gi top to the cheers of the watching Time Patrollers.
"Barit and Pearl! Don't even think of transforming! Or Kaioken! Or Futten!" Soon yelled at them, "This is a test!" Soon groaned after yelling this, but still held firm. Pearl screamed out as she shot out more steam, struggling to hold strong. Do you want my help again? Pearl recognized The Voice from yesterday. YES! I NEED MORE POWER! Pearl internally screamed. Use your anger! Let it fill you! The Voice said. Pearl focused on all the things she was angry about, it wasn't much. She was angry at Lord Slug, and Turles, Mira, and especially Towa for messing up the Timeline. She focused her anger at them and how they were trying to ruin the world, and power started to build. After five minutes of this, Barit yelled out, "I CAN'T HOLD IT ANYMORE!" Barit quickly threw down the ten-ton-weight he was holding, and fell down on his back. Pearl grit her teeth, and saw as Kenshiro finally shrank down to normal size and then tossed his weight down as well, then fell on his butt. Pearl's body was screaming as she slowly set her own weight down, then collapsed on her back.
Time Patrollers all groaned and cheered as the winners collected their earnings from the losers, and Praxtic had a big smile on his face as he walked up to Pearl, "Thanks a lot Pearl! I made two million zeni off this! By the way, you got any panties you don't need?" Pearl looked at Praxtic and took a deep breath before standing up and grabbing him by his collar and pulling his face a few inches down to her level, "If you take any of my clothes, I will turn you into dog food! And I won't use Majin Magic to do it!" "Got it! Understood! Yes Mistress! Won't happen again!" Praxtic quickly said. Pearl let the half-Saiyan go, and watched as Soon put down his weights. The Namekian glowed as he raised his hands to the weights and they all disappeared. "Alright, Barit does an extra thousand pushups, while Kenshiro meditates, and Pearl," Soon activated the Capsule and set up the Binding Pole, "Do all six bands this time. After thirty minutes, Pearl will meditate, Kenshiro will do the bands, and Barit will spar with me. After that, Barit will get the Binding Pole, and Kenshiro spars with me, understood?" "Yes sir!" Barit said, "But, why doesn't Pearl spar?" Soon looked at Pearl proudly as she put on the bands and said, "She was the last to give up between the three of you, so she gets a break, besides, she'll probably do a lot of fighting if she has to go to any Time Rifts."
Soon made the heavy weights from yesterday appear in front of the Binding Pole, and said, "Begin!" As Kenshiro meditated, Barit struggled to do his pushups with a five-ton-weight on his back, and Pearl struggled against all the bands. It took her ten minutes to reach the weights, the three-hundred-pound ones were still a challenge for her, especially with all six bands pulling her back as she went through her martial arts. The one on her neck was the biggest pain as she went, she was certain that if not for her Majin Physiology she would have choked to death before now. Pearl grunted as she struggled to keep going, she was still tired from holding the weight above her head, her legs felt like they were almost too weak to keep going. It was with a sense of relief that Pearl sighed as Soon yelled, "That's enough! Switch!" Pearl put the weights down and walked away from the Binding Pole. Kenshiro stopped her and gave her a light peck as they passed each other, "You're doing great babe." "Thanks Kenny," Pearl smiled, then walked a few feet away and assumed the Lotus Position and started meditating.
Who are you? Inner Pearl asked, searching for The Voice. A part of you, The Voice said, One that was very weak, before now. All Majins have something like me inside them, but few can use what I have to give. Pearl felt sorry for The Voice and said, Thank you for helping me so far. I hope that we keep doing this. The Voice chuckled and said, Oh, I hope so too. More than you realize. For the rest of her time meditating, Pearl sensed as her power continued to grow and thought to herself, I should have Kenny, or Barit, measure my power with their Scouters tomorrow. I bet I'm at least at six digits now!
Pearl's head was swimming so much with thoughts about how strong she was becoming that it came as a complete surprise when her Scouter beeped. Pearl opened her eyes and checked, it seemed she was wanted on Frieza's Spaceship. "Soon-sensei, I gotta go, Time Rift," Pearl said. Soon nodded, "Just in time too. You go on then, I'll get these boys in shape." "Thank you! See you soon," Pearl said. "Good luck Pearl!" Barit and Kenshiro said as Pearl ran to a nearby robot and had him teleport her to the platform where the Time Rift for Frieza's Spaceship was located. Pearl tapped the glass dome and as soon as she could got into Frieza's Spaceship, Dodoria was waiting for her. "I was wondering where you were. It's about time, I need all my men for this," Dodoria said.
"What do you need me for, Dodoria-san?" Pearl asked. Dodoria answered, "Unfortunately, the Frieza Force has its share of pests… Like Zarbon and his soldiers…" "Yes sir," Pearl said. "Zarbon'll probably come for me. I want you to guard me and strike back! Got it?" Dodoria said. "I understand!" Pearl said, just as Dodoria and three of his men came around the corner. Dodoria turned to face him and said, "I'm the only aide that Frieza needs. I'll rid him of your annoying presence, Zarbon!" Zarbon smiled smugly at Dodoria and flipped his hair, "Well… I could say the exact same thing about you, Dodoria. Frieza doesn't need your ugly face at his side." Zarbon's soldiers attacked, and Pearl quickly intercepted them. The first one went down easily with a quick combination of punches, but the second and third ganged up on Pearl and blasted her away with their ki blaster cannons.
Pearl was barely hurt though, and blasted a second one away with Bomber DX before finishing him off with a Vanishing Ball. "See? You've got what it takes. Now keep plucking that turkey!" Dodoria encouraged Pearl as he and Zarbon clashed. Pearl looked at the last soldier, and saw that he was charging at her. Pearl easily dodged his attacks before grabbing him from behind and bashing his head, then stretching back and slamming her knees into his back, sending him face first into a wall. Pearl then flew behind him and put him in a choke hold. "Just give up, and I won't hurt you anymore," Pearl told the soldier. "Yes, okay, I give up!" the last of Zarbon's soldiers said as Pearl let him go, and he flew off. Pearl turned to see Zarbon had transformed, and was pounding Dodoria hard.
Pearl Instant Transmitted behind Zarbon and unleashed Dodoria Blaster into him, and followed up with dozens of ki balls. Zarbon was sent skidding on the floor of the Spaceship and he looked at Dodoria, "You're actually serious. You'd kill an ally for your ambition? You traitor!" Dodoria smiled and said, "I am Frieza's true right hand man! You betray him by defying me!" Zarbon spat out blood and said to Pearl, "Get out of my way. Why would you fight for his sake?" Pearl shrugged and said, "I gotta do what I gotta do." Pearl then blasted him with Bomber DX one more time, and Zarbon transformed back to his original form. Zarbon glared at Pearl and said, "How could a worm like you defeat me!?" Dodoria laughed and patted Pearl on her back. "Alright Zarbon, listen up, I'll spare your life, but only if you agree to serve me," Dodoria said. Zarbon sighed, then stood up, and bowed to Dodoria, "Very well, I shall serve you from now on."
Dodoria laughed and walked away with Pearl, "Good work, soldier. Keep that up, and I'm sure that you'll go far." "Thank you, Dodoria-san," Pearl said. As she headed out she passed Appule and said, "I'm not sure how much I like working for Dodoria." "I suggest keeping that to yourself, unless you think you can take him," Appule warned Pearl. "I guess, but then again…" Pearl said, and left Frieza's Spaceship, and got another alert of her Scouter, this time from Guru's House. Pearl returned to Conton City, then had the robot on the platform teleport her to Guru's House. Pearl quickly went inside and went to Nail. "You need me, Nail-san?" she asked. "Frieza's soldiers are looking for the Dragon Balls again. Their violence knows no bounds and they're attacking indiscriminately. Are you ready?" Nail asked. "Yes I am!" Pearl told him. The two of them flew off, and quickly saw who they were up against.
"Dodoria," Pearl said, and the Time Rift version of him looked at her, "Do we know each other?" "I guess not," Pearl said. Pearl cracked her knuckles as Dodoria yelled, "Kill them all! Don't let a single one get away!" "As you wish," Pearl said, and charged up her ki. She then Instant Transmitted between Dodoria and his soldiers. "What!?" Time Rift Dodoria said as Pearl blasted out all around her with her ki. By the time she was done, the Namekian Time Rift version of Dodoria and all his soldiers were dead as could be. Pearl looked around her, then looked at her hands. "I'm so strong now! Yes! The day after tomorrow, the day after tomorrow, I'll go back to Namek, and I'll win!" she said. "What are you talking about?" the Time Rift version of Nail asked. "Nothing!" Pearl quickly said, "Just…talking to myself!" Pearl and Nail quickly gathered the Dragon Balls and returned to Guru's House.
"We managed to put a stop to their destruction. It's all thanks to you. Keep up the good work," Nail congratulated Pearl. "Thank you, Nail-san," Pearl said. Pearl's Scouter went off again, and she saw that she had to head to Hercule's House. Pearl had the robot teleport her to the right platform and touched the glass dome. She spotted Hercule first and he laughed, "Good work on the last challenge! You finished even quicker than I expected! Well, here's your reward." Time Rift Hercule gave Pearl 2000 Zeni, which she accepted. "Don't get cocky now," Hercule warned, "You didn't think the test was finished already, did you? I haven't even seen the full extent of your abilities yet. You see, I'm still not totally convinced that you're fit to be my bodyguard, so here's another challenge, perform 6 quests!" "Alright!" Pearl said, then saw Great Saiyaman beckoning to her.
"You're late, Great Saiyaman 3! We've got an emergency to attend to!" Great Saiyaman declared. Great Saiyawoman picked up where he left off, "Some evildoers have shown up! We've gotta take'em out!" Jaco then chimed in, "I'd love it for Earthlings to protect the planet themselves, but if I'm being honest, this time is a little different. Thing is, it seems some of my spaceship parts are over where the bad guys are, so I've got no choice but to lend a hand." "It's not a drill this time around. This is finally a real mission! Just remember everything you've learned so far and you'll be victorious, I promise!" Great Saiyaman encouraged Pearl. "There's no time to lose, let's get going!" Great Saiyawoman said, and the four of them all flew off to the city. Pearl saw who was attacking, and thought to herself, Time for a real challenge now… The Ginyu Force.
The four heroes flew in front of the Ginyu Force and assumed their poses. "Great Saiyaman is here! Hah!" Great Saiyaman announced. "Hyaah! And Great Saiyawoman!" Great Saiyawoman announced, "Great Majiwoman, here to stop evil!" Pearl said after her. "Super Elite Galactic Patrolman Jaco on the case!" Jaco announced. The Ginyu Force all assumed their pose as well and yelled, "We are the GInyu Force!" "Why does it have to be the Ginyu Force? My luck is just pitiful…" Jaco grumbled. The heroes and villains then charged forward, Guldo attacking Pearl first. Pearl dodged his ki blast, then hit him with Vanishing Ball in return. Before he could get up to counter, Pearl kicked him back, and hit him with another Vanishing Ball, then Instant Transmitted behind him and finished him with a fast kick. "Great job, Saiyanewb! Show them what you're made of!" Great Saiyaman encouraged as he clashed with Captain Ginyu.
Jaco was having trouble fighting Burter, and Pearl quickly charged up her ki and hit the larg blue alien with Dodoria Launcher, allowing Jaco to finish him off. Pearl turned and saw as Great Saiyawoman defeated Jeice with Justice Rush, sending the short red alien flying. "Eraser Gun!" Recoome yelled, and hit Pearl dead on. Pearl barely got up in time to block Recoome's kick. Pearl punched him back then kicked him in his chin, and Recoom answered by blasting a barrage of blue ki balls right at her. Pearl was hit with more than she expected, but recovered in time to see him charging up for his Ultra Fighting Bomber. Pearl didn't let him complete the attack, and kicked him as hard as she could, right in his groin. The large alien looked at Pearl with eyes bulging out of his skull and grabbed his crotch. "How…could…you?" he asked with a much higher voice. "Like this," Pearl said, and kicked him as hard as she could in his jaw, knocking him out.
Pearl saw as Great Saiyawoman joined the fight against Ginyu, the leader of the Ginyu Force didn't stand a chance against Gohan and Videl's combined might, and was soon sent slamming into the ground below. "How could this be!?" Ginyu groaned. "Though you're my foe, hat's off to you," he said, then passed out. "Our teamwork has won the day!" Great Saiyaman said, "Huzzah!" He and Great Saiywoman struck a pose, and Pearl saw Jaco digging through some rubble, and pulling out a part of some kind of machine. The four of them returned to Hercule's House and Great Saiyaman congratulated Pearl, "That was a great job! Keep up the good work!" "I will," Pearl promised, and left the Time Rift, right as her Scouter went off again. "Alright, Majin Buu's House, and then that'll be that," Pearl said and jumped off the platform to Conton City below, taking time to collect as much food as she could find. She passed the Time Machine Station and saw on the big screen that Barit was battling against Turles in a PQ. "Which one is he on?" Pearl asked Kenshiro, who was also watching. "His last one for the day, 'The Saiyan King is… Who?'" Kenshiro answered, "After this it's my turn." "Good luck," Pearl said as she went to a nearby robot and had him send her to Majin Buu's House.
Pearl went into Majin Buu's House and was immediately greeted by Niboshi. "Hey!" the little Majin said, "Me pick up lots of things! You give me food before, so now you get best thing me found!" Pearl smiled as Niboshi took out an outfit that looked just like Piccolo's and said, "Thank you very much, Niboshi-chan." Pearl took the outfit and folded it up, "I'll make sure to take it with me after I see your Daddy and Big Brother." Niboshi smiled at Pearl as Ichigo then ran up to her. "Hello! Me find something for you!" Ichigo said, and handed Pearl 100 Zeni. "Thank you, Ichigo-chan, I got lots of food for all of you," she said, and laid all the food down. "Thank you!" Majin Buu said as he and his children dug in. The food wasn't even one third devoured before Buu said, "Buu full! Buu can make more family now!" Majin Buu glowed with pink energy and concentrated before saying, "Come on, new family! Buuuuuu!" A flash of light and a puff of pink smoke later there stood a small blue Majin child whose tentacles were like a crown with red eyes and full lips, wearing a sleeveless jacket and black shirt with jeans and grey gloves and boots and a blue scouter. The Majin child laughed and said, "Me! The amazing Senma! Boom! You ready?! Where the bad guys!?"
"No bad guys here, Senma-chan," Pearl told the newly born Majin, "Just your family, and a lot of food for you all." Senma looked at the food and started digging in with the rest of them. "Thank you!" "Buu needs to think of way to thank you," Majin Buu said. "It's alright, Buu-san. I'm just happy to help," Pearl told him as she grabbed the outfit Niboshi gave her and left. Pearl left the Time Rift and headed straight to her apartment to drop off Piccolo's outfit before heading to the Time Machine Station. She saw Kenny on the big screen, fighting against Dodoria, Zarbon, and a Great Ape Vegeta at night in the Mountains. "Simian Battlefront," Barit said as they watched. "Hello!" The two roommates looked and saw the Supreme Kai of Time was walking over. "Hello, Supreme Kai of Time-sama," Pearl and Barit both said, and bowed to her. "Don't bother with all that," the Goddess said, "I just wanted to see how your training is coming along."
"Very well," Pearl answered, "In fact, after I rest tomorrow, I'll be ready to continue with my mission." "Good to hear," the Supreme Kai of Time said. The three of them and other Time Patrollers watched as Kenshiro activated Kaioken Times Twenty and then used Chain Destructo-Disc Barrage to annihilate Dodoria and Zarbon. Kenshiro then flew full speed into Great Ape Vegeta's stomach, knocking the wind out of the massive beast, before deactivating Kaioken and blasting him with a Death Ball. Kenshiro then grabbed Great Ape Vegeta by the tail and lifted him up before slamming him into the ground, defeating him. "Whoa, Soon's training really is working," the Supreme Kai of Time said as Kenshiro flew to the Underground Lake in the Mountains. "Well, well well," Turles greeted Kenshiro, "You put up a good fight. But for how long, I wonder?" Kenshiro smiled at Turles.
Turles ate a fruit from the Tree of Might and powered up, flying right at Kenshiro. Kenshiro however stood his ground, and before anyone knew what happened, Kenshiro's right hand shot out and four of his fingers struck Turles's forehead. "Hokuto Shinken," Kenshiro said, "Gekitsui Shi!" Turles fell back rubbing his head and yelled, "The Hell did you do to me?" "Goodbye," Kenshiro said, and then Turles's head exploded! The watching Time Patrollers all gasped in shock at this, and the Supreme Kai of Time stared in disbelief as Kenshiro returned to Conton City. "Holy shit!" one Frost Demon yelled. "What the Hell was that?" a female Saiyan with red skin and green hair yelled. Kenshiro smiled smugly and said, "That w-" "NOTHING YOU NEED TO KNOW!" The Supreme Kai of Time interrupted as she ran straight up to Kenshiro. "What the Hell were you thinking!?" the Goddess yelled as she jumped up and grabbed Kenshiro by his ear, and dragged him off. "Supreme Kai of Time-sama! What are you doing!?" Pearl yelled. "This doesn't concern you, go back to your training. That's an order!" the Supreme Kai of Time yelled, dragging Kenshiro behind her, the purple Earthling could only say, "OWOWOWOWOW!". "What just happened?" Barit asked. "I don't know… But I guess… I better just do what she said," Pearl told him, then went to the Parallel Quests and chose the tenth one, 'Saiyan Survivors'. In a flash of light, Pearl arrived at the Pod Landing area.
There she spotted Bardock, accompanied by two Saibamen. "What planet are you from?" the PQ Bardock asked. "This one," Pearl answered as the Saibamen attacked. "Whatever," Bardock said, "I'll destroy you right away…" "I doubt that," Pearl said as she defeated both Saibamen in a single blow each. Pearl quickly blocked Bardock's own kicks and blasted him back with Bomber DX. "Why you little!" Bardock started, then smirked, "Not bad at all!" Bardock summoned a blue ki ball to his hand and tossed it at Pearl, who quickly countered with her own Vanishing Ball. Pearl blasted Bardock with a barrage of ki balls then knocked him out with one last punch to his stomach. Pearl spotted a portal activating and flew into it, arriving at the Moutains, where she saw Nappa.
"What forsaken planet are you from, and why would you face a Saiyan?" Nappa wondered. Pearl responded, "I'm from here, and I'm protecting my home!" Pearl then hit him with a Vanishing Ball, knocking the large Saiyan away. Nappa jumped up and growled, "You've done it now… you don't seem to know how scary I can be!" Pearl charged up her ki as Nappa charged at her, and with a mighty yell destroyed him with her Angry Explosion attack. "I guess I do know," Pearl said aloud. Huh… I guess Ryo is rubbing off on me… Pearl saw another portal activating and flew into it, arriving at the Wasteland. There stood her last opponent, Vegeta. "You would dare face me, Vegeta? A foolish mistake," PQ Vegeta said as he blasted at Pearl with Galick Gun. Pearl easily avoided the blast, along with Vegeta's follow up strikes before slamming her knee into his stomach and kicking him back.
"Wh-What's happened!?" PQ Vegeta wondered. "I'm winning," Pearl told him as she blasted him with Dodoria Blaster. The ki barrage defeated the Prince of Saiyans completely, and Pearl looked at her hands, Holy cow! I bet I can take on Frieza's whole army at its peak now, GInyu Force and everything! Pearl's Scouter went off and she took the portal back to the Mountains. Piccolo and young Gohan arrived, and Pearl immediately gulped, Gotta go easy on them… "You crushed them… Like ants!" Piccolo declared. "Yeah," Pearl said. She quickly used Instant Transmission and kicked PQ Piccolo in his stomach, driving the wind out of him before finishing him with a quick shop to the back of his neck. Pearl did the same to Gohan, making sure she only knocked them out. The PQ was over, and she returned to Conton City and Barit said, "Soon-san's training is phenomenal!" "I know, it's kind of scary," Pearl replied, "Any word about Kenshiro?" "No, but it hasn't even been five minutes," Barit told her.
Pearl nodded and chose the 11th Parallel Quest, 'Burst Open and Mix.' Pearl was at the Mountains, and quickly beat the Kaiwareman, Jinkouman, and Vegeta that were waiting for her, before taking the portal to Pod Landing. Pearl didn't even bother waiting, just used Angry Explosion to destroy Raditz and the Kyukonman and Kaiwariman accompanying him. Pearl actually felt a thrill go up her spine when she realized how strong she was becoming now! Pearl flew back through the portal to the Mountains and from there she headed to another portal that took her to the Wastelands and Nappa, with a Copyman and regular Saibaman with him. "That power!" Nappa said as he looked at Pearl, "Is something wrong with my Scouter!?" "Nope," Pearl said as she blasted him with Dodoria Launcher, the initial blast ended PQ Nappa quickly, and the ki balls she blasted all around afterwards ended the Saibamen. Pearl sensed that Vegeta was still alive, and flew back to the Mountains. Pearl watched as Vegeta stood up and growled, "The form disgusts me, but I'll transform into a Great Ape and crush you!" Vegeta tossed up the power ball he wanted, and quickly transformed. "How's that!?" Great Ape Vegeta roared, "NOW THIS IS THE END!"
"For you!" Pearl confidently said as she blasted the Great Ape's face with ki balls, blinding him. Pearl seized her chance and grabbed him by his tail and tossed Great Ape Vegeta to the ground. She then flew back and charged up her ki. As Great Ape Vegeta got ready to attack, Pearl blasted out with Angry Explosion, stopping him in his tracks and knocking him back. Pearl quickly finished him off with Dodoria Launcher. Pearl looked at what she had done, this is…amazing… I didn't even need Kaioken or Futten to do it… Pearl's Scouter went off and she saw that it was directing her to the portal to the Underground Lake. Pearl flew in and three Time Patrollers flew up to her, a male Earthling in Vegeta's armor with spiky green hair and blue eyes, a female Saiyan with pure white skin and black hair and eyes wearing grey and white armor, and a large green male Majin with two tentacles wearing a white and blue gi. "Hi, do you mind helping us train?" the male Earthling said.
Pearl cracked her knuckles and told them, "Bring it on." The three Time Patrollers flew at Pearl all at once, but Pearl was too fast for them now. She easily blocked or dodged all their attacks, shouting encouragement the whole time. "That's it! Do your best, let me have it!" Pearl told them. She then blasted ki all around herself to scatter them. She went at the male Majin first and quickly knocked him out with a one-two combo before quickly dodging the female Saiyan's Kamehameha Wave and blasting her away with Vanishing Ball. She then used Instant Transmission to get to the male Earthling and knocked him out with a quick punch to his gut. In a flash of light Pearl and the defeated Time Patrollers returned to Conton City. "Wow, we really need to train harder, Jubei," the male Majin said. "I know, Boris, I know," the male Earthling said, then turned to the female Saiyan, "Nipp, you might as well give her your Dragon Ball." "Damn it," the female Saiyan, Nipp, said as she handed Pearl a Dragon Ball. "Hey, you guys just need to work harder, that's what I had to do to get here," Pearl told them, "Weighted clothes help."
"We'll look into that," Boris said, and the three of them walked off. "Well then," Pearl said then turned to Barit and gave him the Dragon Ball. Barit looked at it, it was the Three Star one. "This could be useful," Barit said and tossed the Dragon Ball up a few times. "I hope so, now, for my last PQ, and I can finally call it a day," Pearl said. She chose the 13th Parallel Quest, 'Namekian Dragon Balls.' She arrived on Namek and Trunks told her through her Scouter, "Please collect all the Dragon Balls around the area, and collect them into the Time Machine." "Can do!" Pearl cheerfully said. She saw some of Frieza's soldiers and quickly beat them with one kick each before her Scouter pointed her in the direction of a Dragon Ball underwater. Pearl quickly grabbed it and flew to the Time Machine, where she deposited it.
Guldo snuck up behind her and got Pearl with a Charged Shot, but Pearl then turned around and blasted him back with Bomber DX before finishing him with a barrage of ki balls. She flew around Namek, and her Scouter picked up the signature of two more Dragon Balls. Pearl flew straight to them, and quickly dealt with the soldiers in her way before grabbing both Dragon Balls and placing them in the Time Machine. "New Dragon Balls have been located! Please find them!" Trunks told Pearl through her Scouter. Pearl's Scouter then went off, and she saw a powerful ki signature approach, much stronger than Guldo. Recoome quickly appeared and yelled, "It's over for you! Tou!" Pearl's Scouter also told her he had more foot soldiers with him. Pearl looked at Recoome and quickly hit him with Bomber DX, then a Vanishing Ball for good measure. Recoome was knocked into a mountain, but quickly emerged, "Crap! My teeth! I think I'm a little mad now." Recoome went for his Recoome Kick, but Pearl blocked it and quickly kicked him in his stomach before hitting him point blank with Dodoria Launcher, ending Recoome quickly. Pearl used her Scouter to find the soldiers that came with Recoome, and quickly dispatched them with kicks, and grabbed the two Dragon Balls they had and flew them to the Time Machine. Pearl's Scouter went off again, and Burter arrived quicker than she expected.
"What are you? I've never seen your kind before…" Burter said. He then quickly attacked her with a Mach Punch that she barely avoided, and followed up with Mach Kick, this time the attack was dead on. Pearl barely avoided Burter's ki balls and flew back from him. "Alright then, let's go!" Pearl said and summoned up more of her power. Pearl and Burter clashed, at first it seemed the large blue alien had the advantage in speed, but Pearl powered on through and landed a hard elbow into his stomach before blasting him back with Bomber DX. Pearl summoned up all her power and Instant Transmitted behind PQ Burter. "What the-" that was all he had time to say before Pearl finished him with Angry Explosion. Pearl used her Scouter to find the last two Dragon Balls and placed them in the Time Machine, and in a flash of light, she returned to Conton City for the final time.
"Man, we are awesome!" Barit said as Pearl took off her weighted boots and wrist bands. Pearl cracked her neck and rolled her shoulders, "Barit, can you take my weighted clothes and carry them for me, please?" Barit shrugged, "Sure." Soon then walked up to them and said, "That was great, you've all improved so much." "Thank you, sir!" Barit said. "All thanks to your training, Soon-sensei," Pearl told him. "You earned this, there's a spa in Conton City, it's indoors, but it's good. You two and Kenshiro could use it," Soon said, and pulled out three coupons for a free trip to a spa and sauna. "Wow! Thanks!" Pearl said as she took the coupons. "Use them tomorrow," Soon told them. "Will do!" Pearl said then asked, "Do you know where Kenny is?"
"Oh man," Soon said as he rubbed the back of his head, then leaned closer and quietly said, "Apparently, Hokuto Shinken is too powerful to be used in our Universe. The Supreme Kai of Time is really reaming him for using it somewhere all could see it. I only caught part of it, trust me, you don't want to deal with her when she's really angry. But, I don't think he'll be using Hokuto Shinken again, at least not in Parallel Quests." "Oh no," Pearl said, "What's she gonna do to him?" Soon cocked an ear towards the Time Nest and said, "Apparently, she wants him to train some more with me. I'll go see what I can do to alleviate his punishment, but don't expect to see him until later, much later." "Poor Kenshiro," Barit said, shaking his head, "Oh well, I guess all we can do is go home and make sure that there's something for him." Barit looked meaningfully at Pearl, and she had an idea of what he was getting at. "I'll do my best," a blushing Pearl said as they headed back to their apartment, leaving a blushing Soon to fly back to the Time Nest.
As soon as they arrived at their apartment, Barit gave Pearl back her weighted clothes, and she took them to hers and Kenshiro's room. Pearl's stomach growled and Barit collapsed on his chair, "I don't think I can stand to cook anything." "I know," Pearl said, lying down on the couch. "What should we order out?" Barit asked her as he turned on the TV and turned it to a channel showing a zombie movie in space. "I think it should be something Kenny would like, for when he gets back," Pearl said. "Got it, pizza coming up," Barit said, and ordered an extra-large pepperoni and onion pizza for him and Kenshiro, and Pearl just got regular cheese pizza. While they waited on the pizza, they watched the zombie movie as the hero struggled against a mutant zombie with extra-long arms. The hero hacked off one of the mutant zombie's arms with some kind of laser axe, then tossed it at the mutant zombie's head, killing it. Then the doorbell rang. Pearl opened it and paid for the pizza, then came back to see the hero surrounded by zombies, and the movie ended with 'To Be Continued.'
"So, we get a free day at the spa tomorrow," Barit said as he and Pearl started eating, "Think I can come with you?" "Huh?" Pearl asked. Barit actually blushed and said, "Well…can I…come with you, to the female side?" "What!? But you're a guy!" Pearl yelled. "No I'm not…" Barit said and looked down, actually looking very hurt at that. "I mean, well, everyone assumes that Namekians are male, and we're treated like we are, but we're not. I mean, we give birth, and traditionally we're a peaceful species… But because of how our bodies look and voices sound, everyone always assumes that about us," Barit explained. "I mean, I used to like doing some unmanly stuff before I came to Conton City, like sewing, and well, let's face it, I'm the best cook between the three of us," the Namekian continued, "I stopped because I wasn't sure how Kenshiro would react if he found out…about me." "Uh…ok… I guess… But I don't know how other girls will react…" Pearl said.
"Well, I can at least try it," Barit said, "What's the worse that can happen?" Pearl got an image of Barit getting the shit beaten out of them, but kept that to herself. "Um…do you want me to start referring to you as a girl?" Pearl asked. "Well, you don't have to… I've gotten used to other species thinking of me as a man. Fact is, this is more me just…experimenting to see if I really am 'masculine' I guess. I could be wrong," the Namekian said. "Barit, how old are you?" Pearl asked, as her relationship with Kenshiro had progressed, Pearl had done a lot of research into Earthlings, especially gender and sexuality, though most of it was about how to have sex than anything else. She'd read that it wasn't unheard of for Earthling teenagers to explore like this, but she didn't know if that held true for Namekians. "I'm twenty-three in Earth years, I've been mature, physically, for about fifteen Earth years. I just never really thought about this stuff until you and Kenshiro got involved. Never thought he'd date outside his species, except for a Saiyan," Barit said.
"How many girlfriends has he had?" Pearl asked. Barit took a second and answered, "You're his third since I've known him. His first was this one small but muscular girl, black hair cut into pigtails with green eyes and serious go to attitude… uh… Luci was her name, oh yeah, and she wore glasses. That was a short thing though because she got jealous of Kenshiro and me hanging out. Then there was Rachel, who turns out to be into other females. And finally, you… Just noticed that he has a type, meganekko." Pearl rubbed her face and remembered that she left her Scouter on, and went back to her room and got her glasses back on. "What was Rachel like?" Pearl asked. "A lot like you, always reading, more brains than brawn, at least that's what you were like before. Yeah, Kenshiro and her got along pretty well, but I guess things got awkward when she realized she didn't like guys," Barit said.
"Lesbian, that's what it's called when a woman likes other women," Pearl informed him. "Oh, never read up on this stuff, I still don't understand romance," Barit said and tossed Pearl the remote. Pearl changed the channel to show a Wild West version of Lord of the Rings. They were halfway through the first movie when there was a knock on the door. Pearl answered it and saw Soon carrying Kenshiro. "Oh my!" Pearl exclaimed as Soon helped Kenshiro lay down on the couch. "What happened?" Barit asked. Kenshiro looked completely drained as he said, "Extra…training." "She had me spar him for three hours straight, with five ton weights," Soon said. "Wow! Are you alright?" Pearl asked as she grabbed a glass of water. Kenshrio eagerly took it and guzzled it down, about half of it fell down his chin and chest. "More!" he said, and Pearl made him another glass, then a third, before he was finally satisfied.
Kenshiro managed to sit up and said, "So, apparently Hokuto Shinken is too powerful to be used in our universe. The Supreme Kai of Time…explained it to me that Hokuto Shinken is the ultimate martial art, and if combined with ki it's master could be unstoppable. So she forbid me from using it where others could watch and learn it." "What happens if someone does learn it?" Pearl asked. Kenshiro turned pale and said, "She'll make me watch my parents conceiving me…" "Yikes! Though I guess you're used to seeing your Mom screwing around," Barit said. "Shut up," Kenshiro told the Namekian, "I need food, then a shower." Kenshiro ate the rest of the pepperoni and onion pizza Barit ordered, and Pearl let him have two slices of her cheese pizza, then the three of them took their showers, and headed to bed. They were really looking forward to that spa tomorrow.
Author's Notes: I kind of think that it's a wasted idea, exploring Namekians and gender. After all, they are technically neither male or female, being hermaphrodites. It's a shame the idea is never really explored in fics.