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Last time on A Half-breed's Life
"You were never planning on leaving me here like you promised my father, were you?" Gohan whispered, staring at the ground.
"You're a smart kid." Raditz smirked as he leaned back fully, placing both his hands behind him. "Just hope that my boss will allow you to make the same decision your father has to make."
Gohan slowly sat down. "Your boss?"
"Our leader." Raditz looked up when his scouter beeped. "That's probably him." His hand moved up to press on the receive button but then hesitated. "Do you see the bushes over there. With the apples?" Gohan looked to where Raditz pointed and nodded. "Good. Go grab them."
**** DBZ **** DBZ ****
"What was that?" Vegeta asked, narrowing his eyes at the half-saiyan.
"That…." Raditz started, smirking smugly, "was why I decided to take him. He did the exact same thing on planet Earth. That's how he got through my armor."
Vegeta looked at Raditz. "He gets stronger when he gets angry." The man looked at Gohan again. After this he started laughing, earning confused glances from Nappa and Raditz. "Great." Vegeta smirked as he reached out and gently pushed against Gohan's chin with his fist. "You are definitely going to that camp. The specialists and the cadets there will push you to your limits every day and once you're ready I will shape you into my perfect little soldier."
"You just saved your own life, half-breed." Nappa said cheerfully. "Now we're sure we don't have to kill you."
"No, keeping you alive will be much more rewarding." Vegeta added, still smirking.
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"I'm not here for me. I'm here to drop off one of my soldiers." Vegeta said as he reached back and motioned for Gohan to come closer. The half-saiyan sent a hesitant glance in the direction of Raditz but his uncle only pushed against Gohan's back with his boot.
"That's him?" The large man frowned as he eyed Gohan up and down. "He's too young. We won't accept students younger than ten."
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"You have two options, Gohan." Headmaster started when he noticed the rather scared expression on Gohan's face. "One. We can protect you, train you and give you your own room. All you have to do in return is obey our orders and do your chores. The second option is that we leave you right here to fend for yourself and you'll have nobody to protect you from those warriors down there."
Gohan looked down at the cafeteria again before glancing up at the headmaster. The decision wasn't that difficult to make. "Okay." He said softly. "I'll do what you say."
**** DBZ **** DBZ ****
His father's screams rang through his head. Raditz's laugh as he tortured his father. Vegeta's last words before he left…
"If he can't survive, he's not worth our time."
Fine. They wanted him to toughen up? He would toughen up. Those specialists wanted him to work and train? Fine. He would do just that and he would become the strongest warrior in this camp and once those three saiyans returned…
Gohan narrowed his eyes at the wall in front of him as he leaned on the sink.
"I'm going to kill them."
Chapter 4. Five Years Later
"Wake up! Wake up!" A young but muscular boy climbed on top of a bunk bed and started to shake the bed, having no regard for the two boys who were sleeping in that bunk bed. "Come on! Wake up!"
The older boy that was lying in the top bed growled and pulled up his blankets. "Go away." He muttered from under his bedspread.
"Why does he do this every morning?" A voice from the bottom bed muttered in response. "Every… Morning..."
"You two sleep too much." The boy called Gohan complained. The half-saiyan crawled closer to the older boy and grabbed the upper edge of his blanket to pull it down. The older warrior had different ideas and he reached out to curl an arm around the boy. Gohan gasped as Oriko pulled him down until he was lying too.
"Good night, half-breed."
"Oriko! Let me go." Gohan complained when the boy just continued to sleep. He let Oriko pull him closer and stayed silent for a moment to give them more time to slowly wake up. A moment later, Gohan pushed his body up, realizing that Oriko was trying to pull him back down but easily overpowering the other's strength.
"Wake up, people. I've been up for hours already and you two have been sleeping forever. If we hurry we can still get in some training before breakfast." Gohan started to shake the beds again.
Oriko looked up at the clock that was hanging in the middle of the large bedroom. "It's 04:30." He complained as he fell back down and tried to hide under the bedspread.
Judin rolled over in his bed. "You know, when I just entered this camp and I heard that breakfast was from 06:00 to 07:30, I considered that so early…"
"Yeah. Me too. Who would have known that we would get stuck with a brat who wakes up hours before that?" Oriko added, groaning when Gohan managed to pull the blankets off his body.
"You two are so sad. Get up! Get up!"
"The specialists' suggestion to make half-breed sleep in a cage suddenly doesn't sound so strange." Oriko said sarcastically as he sat up. The boy yawned and rubbed his eyes.
"Yeah. Maybe we should take them up on that offer." Judin replied.
Gohan jumped off the bed. "We're wasting sunlight here." He stated as if the others hadn't spoken at all.
"The sun isn't even up yet!" Judin exclaimed as he sat up as well.
"Would you all be quiet?" Another warrior yelled from the others side of the large room. "Damn it. Every morning…"
"Yes. Get him out of here so we can sleep." Another voice that sounded closer snarled.
Gohan grinned when the two other teenagers frowned at him. The half-saiyan started pushing Judin out of his bed. Oriko heard Judin's curses and moans and he decided that it wasn't worth it. He climbed out of his bed and his feet touched the ground on the same moment that Judin was finally standing.
"Smart choice." Gohan commented as he nodded at Oriko. After this he motioned for the two to follow him and they actually listened to him, following him. Seeing as Oriko and Judin were still in their pajamas, they had to go to the dressing room. The two opened their lockers and got out the purple uniforms and silver lined armors.
Gohan waited patiently for them to finish dressing. Well, he considered himself patient. The other two were constantly complaining whenever he edged them on or commented on how slow they were.
"What should we do now?" Oriko asked, wondering how many mornings without energy he could endure.
"Drown half-saiyans." Judin muttered darkly before he yawned once more.
Gohan smirked as he placed his hands on his hips. "You two should be getting used to this by now. You're sleeping way too long. It's a waste of your life."
"Some races need their sleep." Judin replied as he reached back and tied his purple hair in a braid. "We need ten hours a day to function properly."
"And I let you sleep for like five hours. That's quite enough." Gohan's tail was wagging behind him cheerfully. "Let's see if we can steal you some coffee from the specialists' quarters."
"Coffee." Oriko said, placing a hand on his heart. "Yes, I am so happy to be your friend again. You are forgiven."
"No way." Judin shook his head. "Remember last time they caught us trying to sneak in their quarters to get coffee? I like my flesh on my back."
Gohan shrugged. "They're a bit touchy when it comes to people breaking their rules. So what? As long as Crimon doesn't whip you it's okay. Even the other specialists agree that he is the most brutal one when it comes to punishments."
Oriko made a confused face. "Didn't Crimon say something about having the official right to always punish you? Something about you being his student and that the others should always let him take care of the disciplining? Or was that a joke?"
Gohan flashed the two boys an innocent grin. "I was talking about you two, not about me. Besides, that's even better for you. He'll be so busy punishing me that he won't even look in your direction." He meant this as a joke but it only made his friends look more worried so he waved their worries away. "I can handle Crimon. Do you want to get the coffee or not?"
"No, it's not worth it." Oriko said, earning a nod from Judin.
"Fine. Then let's go and get some training done." Gohan urged before he turned away from them. "It's so early that nobody is awake yet so we'll have the entire room to ourselves."
The three cadets made their way to the largest training room. A dark room with no windows. This was mainly because there was a machine that could simulate different atmospheres.
"Where do we want to fight today?" Judin asked as he activated the simulator.
"Have you ever checked if the planet of your race is in there?" Oriko asked as he leaned forward so he could look at Gohan.
"Which one? The Saiyan planet or the human one?" Gohan teased as he leaned forward as well.
"Planet Earth." Oriko replied, rolling his eyes.
"They're both not in there." Gohan said as he looked at the machine. "The meteor destroyed the saiyan planet before the simulator was created and planet earth is not in their database."
"Then I suggest planet Koia. Beautiful planet." Judin stated before looking at the two for confirmation. Both nodded their approval.
The three warriors waited until the planet materialized around them. The beautiful lime green sky and the snowy white grounds. Gohan liked this planet. He hoped to visit it someday.
The years at camp had done him good. In the beginning he experienced difficulties fitting in. He spent most of his free time in his room, lonely, and only left to do his work. The first day that Gohan arrived there, Headmaster immediately made Gohan start working. His chores were usually cleaning the specialists' quarters and kitchen, cleaning their private rooms and bathrooms and tidying their offices. Aside from that he had to obey their orders on pretty much any other topic.
On the other end, the specialists kept their end of the bargain as well. Crimon started teaching Gohan basic combat, flying and energy-use. Hitora often helped out and practiced with Gohan. Headmaster taught the boy how to read and write in the universal language. Apparently, the universal language was similar to the human language in speech, but not in writing. Where humans used letters, the universal language was based on different combinations of symbols. It wasn't hard to learn and Gohan quickly mastered it.
It was not long before Gohan was strong enough to follow the classes like the regular students, but he still wanted to keep training with Crimon and Hitora, and they granted him this wish.
At age seven, Gohan met Judin, one of his closest friends, and he decided to move out of his single room and into a communal room like all the other cadets. The regular students all had to sleep in the communal bedrooms with nine other students. The specialists did not object to this change and allowed Gohan to sleep in the bed next to Judin's bunk bed.
There was one thing that made the relationship between Gohan and the teachers a little more strained at times, which was Gohan's attitude. The specialists hoped that if they treated him harshly from the beginning, he would become an obedient cadet.
Think again.
Almost right from the beginning, Gohan had been somewhat difficult. It started with small things. A refusal to do something, a what they called 'big mouth' but those could always be toned down by a punishment. As Gohan's strength grew, so did his offenses and soon he started to try to escape.
These attempts were punished severely, in Gohan's opinion. The specialists could not afford to let Gohan leave the camp. Vegeta would eventually come back for the boy and they did not want to be on the receiving end of Vegeta's anger. Not because they were afraid of his strength, but mainly because the man could destroy the entire building without even trying, and they dealt with Vegeta's temper before. It wasn't good.
So they discouraged his attempts to escape, especially when Gohan started to gain friends and together they created a what they called "Freedom Group", an entire group of students who were there against their will and wanted to leave. The specialist had never seen anything like it.
Luckily for Gohan, the specialists were not the kind of people to punish without a reason so the teachers did not go after Gohan when he behaved, but they had the tendency to keep an extra eye on the half-saiyan and his two best friends. They were assumed to be the leaders of the Freedom Group, something Gohan, Oriko and Judin strongly denied.
Gohan powered up as he flew up in the air. He already spent a few hours training by himself this morning so he was completely warmed up, but Judin and Oriko still had to stretch their muscles so Gohan trained by himself for a bit while they took care of their warm-ups.
A blast made Gohan jump sideways. Oriko grinned. "I nearly got you there."
"You only nearly got me there because I let you get that far." Gohan taunted as he placed his hands on his hips.
Oriko flew up to Gohan's level. "I'd say I need to get you back for waking me up this early."
"You can definitely try." Gohan glanced sideways while Judin flew up as well.
Oriko was the first one to attack, trying to slam his fist against Gohan's cheek, but the half-saiyan blocked his punch easily. He did not see Oriko's knee coming and was pushed back somewhat.
Judin had been waiting to see who would lose this little fight and set his sights on the temporary winner; Oriko. Judin attacked the older warrior head on but Oriko blocked his attack.
Gohan watched the two warriors fight for a moment. His friends progressed a lot since he met them. Then again, he had as well.
The half-saiyan could not wait anymore and jumped between the two fighters, attacking Judin with ferocity. Judin moved back, trying hard to avoid Gohan's punches. Gohan's senses told him that he was being attacked from behind. The boy blocked a last punch before diving down, out of Oriko's way.
Oriko's had already thrown his punch, and Judin widened his eyes when Gohan disappeared from his sight and he was faced with Oriko's fist. Gohan laughed when he heard the unmistakable sound of someone punching someone else.
Judin placed a hand on his cheek. "Darn it." He muttered. "That was the hardest punch you've ever given me."
Oriko glanced to Gohan. "That wasn't meant for you, Judin." He replied before turning to Gohan fully.
Gohan pouted a little. "You wanted to beat up a little kid?" He asked innocently.
"More like a little monster." Oriko muttered as he powered up.
"Auch." Gohan placed a hand on the area of his heart. "Calling me names isn't going to make you any less weak."
"Then let me show you how strong I really am." Oriko yelled before he attacked the half-saiyan. Gohan showed a grin as he moved back to avoid getting kicked by Oriko. The older warrior pulled back a fist and tried to punch Gohan but this was dodged again.
It didn't take Judin long to get into the fight as well, and the three warriors fought their hardest until the morning bell broke up their fight.
Gohan wiped some sweat off his forehead. "Already?" He asked as he looked up at the ceiling.
"Breakfast!" Judin cheered before he landed on the ground. Oriko and Gohan followed his example and both landed on the ground.
While they were making their way to the cafeteria, Gohan suddenly felt a strange sensation. He looked sideways, furrowing his brows as he focused on the power levels on this planet. Strange new powers? Hmm… Probably visitors. Strong warriors landed on this planet every day to visit their families or friends that were staying in the camp. Still… It worried Gohan somewhat.
"Half-breed." A voice hissed warningly and Gohan blinked to get back to reality. He looked forward and stopped walking as he nearly bumped into a broad chest. The man that was connected to this chest sneered down at him.
"Get out of my way, animal." The man said, narrowing his eyes at the half-saiyan.
Gohan clenched his fists. "You get out of the way. I have just as much right to walk here as you do." He snarled back.
"I often wonder why you are still alive. Babies like you should be thrown out of this camp. It's tainting the name of this place." The man's friends smirked down at Gohan. Oriko and Judin were standing right behind their friend, glaring back at them.
The half-saiyan barked out a laugh. "You're just a sore loser, Himona. You can't take that I can best you in anything."
"If you are so special, then why is nobody coming for you?" Himona taunted. Gohan stepped back. "Everyone is so embarrassed of your existence that even your own family disposed of you."
"That's it!" Gohan clenched a fist and threw a punch, which was caught by Himona.
"Oooh, did I hit a sore spot there, outcast? You're the only of your kind, aren't you? You'll never fit in anywhere." Himona taunted, his friends laughing, as he pulled Gohan closer. "But don't forget," he whispered in Gohan's ear, "you will always have a special position as Thunder's little plaything."
Gohan growled in anger before he kneed the man in the stomach. His tail released itself, wagging behind him angrily as he powered up, his hair floating behind him.
"What is going on here?" A low voice thundered. All the cadets stopped glaring at each other and looked sideways. Gohan snapped out of his anger and powered down. "Do I hear two warriors who are eager to fight? If you two want, why don't you join me in the training room and fight me?" Crimon placed his hands on his hips as he smirked at them. "Do I hear any takers?"
Gohan and Himona shook their heads. "As I thought," Crimon continued, "now scramble."
"Come on, Himona. They're not worth it." One of the cadets said, and they turned away from them.
"Let's go, half-breed." Judin said when Gohan didn't move. The half-saiyan nodded and turned to follow them to the canteen.
"Not so fast, Saiyan." Crimon said when he noticed that Gohan was leaving. The half-saiyan stopped and turned back to him.
"I know." Gohan stated. "No fighting in the hallways. I'll try to remember it." He went to turn away again and Crimon placed a lilac hand on his shoulder to keep him in place.
"You shouldn't let him get to you like that." Crimon chastised. "I don't know what it is about him that makes you so angry."
"Am I dismissed?" Gohan asked, looking up at him but not meeting his eyes. He clearly did not want to talk about this.
Crimon waved them away and the three warriors resumed their journey to the canteen.
They had a relaxing morning schedule today. The three cadets were all in the same class and they had a lecture about raciology. Today Hitora walked around in the class, explaining the strengths and weaknesses of a certain race and how to battle those aliens the best. Often, Hitora's class was combined with Crimon's combat class later on the day. Hitora would explain how to best beat a certain alien race, and Crimon would let them practice it.
Gohan would always kick back and relax during these classes. Hitora had several books about pretty much every race, and Gohan had the tendency to borrow these books and read them, resulting in him knowing pretty much everything that Hitora spoke about during the classes.
After the first class, Gohan grabbed his notebook and went to follow his friends, but Hitora called him back. "Saiyan. Come here for a sec."
Oriko and Judin exchanged glances and decided to wait for Gohan outside. Gohan walked back to Hitora's spotless desk. The man leaned on the desk with his hands.
"I will join the training session you have with Crimon this afternoon." Hitora stated as his long black hair fell over his shoulder. The man realized that Gohan made a rather thoughtful face, placing his hand against his chin to complete the picture. "What are you doing?"
"Nothing. I just…. I'm trying to remember what I have done to deserve something like that..." Gohan said innocently.
Hitora laughed. "Be prepared." He said before he stood straight and grabbed his papers. "You're dismissed."
Oriko and Judin gave Gohan curious glances when he met them in the hallway. Gohan rolled his eyes. "I have a training session with both Crimon and Hitora today." He explained before he started walking again.
Oriko followed him. "What did you do to deserve that?"
"Hitora laughed at me for asking the same thing." Gohan complained as he walked to his personal locker and entered the combination. "I didn't do anything."
Judin sent Gohan a wary glance. "You didn't do anything…?" He repeated. He clearly did not believe Gohan.
"I didn't!" Gohan exclaimed. Judin shrugged and turned to his own locker. Gohan muttered some rude things under his breath before closing his locker. "What do we have now?"
"Crimon. Three hours of combat classes." Oriko closed his locker too and walked closer to them.
Combat classes were always outside. No matter what weather, they were outside. Today was a beautiful day. Gohan placed a hand above his eyes to shield them from the sun. "That's going to be a sweaty morning." He observed.
"Better than be soaked by the rain." Oriko shrugged. Gohan had to agree with that. Though the end result would probably be the same.
"Just think about the cold shower we'll get to take afterwards." Judin added as they lined up with the other students.
Gohan placed his hands on his hips. "How much time do you expect to have after this class? I would be surprised if we had enough time to get from this place to the canteen before lunch is over."
"We'll manage."
Crimon was the one of the interrupted them, telling the cadets to get their warming-ups over with and get ready for the class.
Crimon looked at the group of warriors in front of him, standing in neat lines. He crossed his arms over each other. "Good morning, soldiers." He stated as he looked at the students. "It's a hot day today so try to drink enough water. Wouldn't want you to get dehydrated." His eyes moved over the students. "I'm going to show you a new technique today that is perfect for fighting an opponent who is taller than you are. I'll need a volunteer to help me out. Preferably someone smaller than me."
The group was silent. "Who shall I choose?" Crimon said, smirking a little. Nobody ever wanted to help, mainly because they would have to help demonstrating fighting techniques, which meant they would get hurt and possibly humiliated. "Someone small… Let's see… Saiyan! You were so eager to fight this morning so why don't you help me out?"
Gohan looked up and made a face. "Should have seen that coming." He muttered to his friends before walking to the front of the group. "I'm always happy to help." He said cheerfully.
"So, now that we have a saiyan here, we might as well work on your raciology." Crimon stated as Gohan walked to the front. "What do we know about Saiyans?"
"Hu hu ha!" A soldier made unmistakable monkey sounds and the entire group laughed. Gohan rolled his eyes. It wasn't the first time someone teased him like that and he was sure it wouldn't be the last time.
While Gohan positioned himself next to Crimon, the man's eyes moved to the guilty soldier. "Please answer in the universal language and not in your own, Oriko."
"Yes sir." Oriko replied, winking at the half-saiyan. Gohan smirked a little as his tail wagged lazily behind him.
"So, does anyone have an answer to my question?" Crimon asked again. Gohan waited patiently, still standing in a rather relaxed posture. "No, we don't know much about the saiyan race. Their planet was destroyed by a meteor many years ago and most saiyans perished along with it. Though there were some survivors. You will always see, no matter how hard you try to destroy a race, there will always be some rodents who make it out alive."
Gohan grinned as he crossed his arms over each other. "We're a stubborn lot." He said cheerfully.
"So, what information do we have? The saiyan race is a very strong race. They seem to be primarily made for fighting since they are so good at it from a young age. Their skin is a type three in thickness, making it almost impossible for thin needles to penetrate their skin on any other place than their inner wrists, inner elbows, neck and the base of their tail."
Gohan listened to Crimon's speech, eying the soldiers in front of him. He knew everything there was to know about the saiyan race. The information about the needles was something that the specialists learned through tests on Gohan. That was the deal they made when they started training Gohan.
When Gohan first arrived there, the saiyans left right away so the specialists weren't sure whether the warriors would pay for Gohan's education. Therefore, they made Gohan pay for it by forcing him to do chores and help them out in any other way. For Hitora, a teacher, fighter and scientist in one package, that meant that Hitora could do tests on the half-saiyan to find out more about the saiyan race. Was Gohan eager to let Hitora stick needles in his flesh on all areas of his body? No. But on that day Gohan found out that three men could easily restrain a six-year-old boy.
"Those areas are also considered their weak spots." Crimon continued.
"So… If I hit him on those particular spots I will win the match?" One of the soldiers asked curiously.
"If I were as weak as you I would be more concerned with actually landing your punches rather than where you land them." Gohan taunted, placing his hands on his hips. "You hitting me. Don't make me laugh."
Crimon extended an arm to stop Gohan from saying anything more. "Personality wise, the saiyans tend to be drawn into fights easily, never backing down from a challenge and always fighting on the front lines. Add to those traits the ability to live with limited sleep, gain strength from even the smallest amount food and the obvious strength growth after healing from an injury, and you have the perfect warrior race."
"So why did the saiyan race perish?" Crimon's gaze moved to Gohan. "Even before the planet was destroyed, the saiyans were in very limited numbers. Strong. Yes. One saiyan equaled about fifty regular soldiers. Their problem was their ambition. They tended to rush into battles without thinking and find themselves overpowered and killed."
"Lastly, recognizing saiyans is always easy. They tend to have a dark to very dark brown hair color, a relative bulky build and, the most obvious one, a tail." Gohan's tail wrapped around his waist again. He didn't know why but he suddenly felt a little self-conscious when all the eyes landed on his tail.
"Now," Crimon continued, earning their attention again. "That was enough for the reminiscing. Moving on to today's topic."
Gohan's thoughts trailed off during Crimon's explanation. He figured he would find out later anyway as he was to help Crimon out. He focused on something that had been bothering him a while now. A strange sensation that came from the pit of his stomach. His gaze moved to the white building. He didn't know what it was but something was off today. He did notice some strong power levels landing on the planet this morning but he did not give it much thought. Strong powers landed on this planet all the time. Besides, there were many strong power levels on the planet all the time.
A high whistling sound was Gohan's only warning. The half-saiyan jumped back when a whip landed mere centimeters from his feet. The boy looked up.
"On another note, Saiyans tend to be very vigilant. They feel an attack coming from a great distance, unlike this little saiyan." Crimon put the whip back on his belt. "What's wrong, child? Do you need to get to your twelve o' clock nap?" He mocked as he glared at the young warrior.
"I'm sorry. I wasn't paying attention." Gohan muttered as he looked down.
"Clearly. Did you process any of the information I just relayed on the others?"
"Not really."
Crimon let out a sigh. "Fine. I'm not going to explain it twice. Go back to your place in line and send Oriko up here."
Gohan nodded and walked to his position. He passed Oriko on the way and grinned at his friend, who sent him a glare back.
After the demonstration, Gohan and his two friends were getting ready to practice the new technique on each other. Crimon called Gohan over. "Saiyan. You don't have a partner? Good. You can practice with me."
"Well, actually…" Gohan said as he pointed at his friends. "I always practice with Oriko and Judin."
"They can practice with each other. Come, Saiyan." Crimon motioned for Gohan to follow him. The half-saiyan made a face at his friends before following the specialist. "You weren't paying attention?" Crimon asked as he turned to the half-saiyan.
Gohan nodded. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to. I just... I have been feeling strange today. It's like the planet is just a little bit different. I can't really explain it."
Crimon sent Gohan an admiring glance. "Really?" The man smirked as he looked up at the white building. "Unbelievable." He stated before he looked back down at Gohan. "Well then. Let's get to work, shall we?"
Gohan nodded as he got in the position that Crimon demonstrated earlier that class. The boy smirked a little. "Do I get to throw you on the ground now?"
"Well, you get to try." Crimon responded. "Normally, the element of surprise is the most important aspect of this move but that's not the case this time because I know exactly what you're going to do."
Gohan glanced around for a moment. "Thanks for mentioning all my weaknesses like that. Now everyone knows about them."
The specialist chuckled. "As you said, their main concern is actually managing to land a punch. I can mention weaknesses of people like you. Besides, I left out the most important weakness, didn't I?"
Gohan suddenly made a move, using the technique Crimon taught them to throw Crimon on the ground. Crimon landed on his feet on the other side of the half-saiyan. The man let himself sink down and used his right leg to sweep Gohan's feet from under him.
The half-saiyan landed on his hands and knees. He immediately got up and glared at the specialist. "You're not supposed to attack me."
"You shouldn't be so trusting." Crimon motioned for the half-saiyan to try the move again.
Gohan narrowed his eyes and attacked. It took him several tries to actually throw Crimon on the ground fully. The specialist did not like this and promised to get back at Gohan during their training later.
Gohan met up with Oriko and Judin. The three ate their lunch quickly. Gohan was used to the surprised glances he got from his friends at his eating habits. The older he became, the more he ate. The specialists told them that it was a saiyan habit. Gohan denied this. He figured that young growing teenagers just needed enough food.
The half-saiyan eyed the beautiful blue sky. "Maybe we could go out and swim in the lake this evening." He suggested as he looked at his two friends. "The weather is beautiful."
Oriko and Judin exchanged glances, somewhat uncomfortable. Gohan noticed the silence and he sent them a questioning glance. "What?"
"We… ehh… It's group night tonight." Oriko said hesitantly.
"Oh…" Gohan nodded. "Right. Sorry. I forgot."
Group night was an official night that occurred every two weeks. During this night, the different social groups of the camp gathered for a social activity. These activities often included movies, parties, campfires, alcoholic beverages etc. There was a reason why the classes started three hours later than usual on the day after these group nights.
The groups were a large part of the social community of the camp. There were four groups in total. Thunder. The strongest warriors and therefore the most influential group. Lighting. The warriors who were fast as lighting. This was the smallest group because their standards were very high. Nobody was fast enough for them. Water. Warriors who were smart enough to work their way around any obstacle. Air. The warriors with special powers like transformations, psychic powers etc.
Oriko was accepted by Lighting when they found out how fast he was. Air and Water fought over Judin when he first arrived because he was trained in science, flying airships, and he was overall smart. Aside from that he could also transform, but he chose not to because he did not like how the transformation looked. Judin chose to join Water.
Gohan was entirely ignored by the social system. He was the only warrior who was not part of a group and thus the only warrior who did not have plans on group night. Headmaster often stressed that Gohan could easily fit in any group. His strength would primarily put him in Thunder, but he was definitely fast enough for Lighting and smart enough for Water. Gohan's ability to transform to Oozaru also made him fit for Air. The groups still continued to ignore him though.
"We could not go." Judin suggested. "At least, I could. It's okay. We can go swimming."
Gohan shook his head. "No. You two have done that too often. They're already complaining that you're not participating enough, right? Go. Have fun. I can swim by myself." He smiled at them.
Oriko hesitated again. "About that. I heard that Thunder is planning on picnicking near the lake tonight. So it would probably be better for you not to show your face there."
The half-saiyan's gaze wandered off to a nearby table where a group of strong bulky cadets were sitting, talking loudly and eating with horrible manners. Thunder.
"Right." Gohan nodded. "Thanks for telling me. It's probably better that way. I still have homework that Headmaster gave me. I should probably finish it today." He said, trying to sound cheerful.
"You could come with me." Judin offered. "We can bring people once in a while. They like you. I'm sure they wouldn't mind."
Oriko placed a hand on Judin's shoulder to stop him from talking. Gohan already knew what Oriko was about to say. "No. Thunder doesn't like that."
"But I don't understand why. It's not like half-breed's in Thunder, and I don't understand why the other groups listen to Thunder's demands. It doesn't make sense." Judin complained. "You know you're welcome in Water. They will accept you any time if it wasn't for Thunder's annoying claim on…" Judin noticed Gohan's expression and he stopped talking. "It's just not fair."
Gohan showed a half-smile. "Tell me about it. Can we talk about something else?" He suggested. "This topic is bringing me down."
"Good idea." Oriko nodded once. "I know! The specialists are going out on a business trip this weekend, and it might be fun to give them a little welcome back present." He sent his two friends a devious grin.
Normally, Gohan would be excited at the thought of pranking the specialists but he was not feeling like himself today. His thoughts wandered off again and he looked at the large windows to the blue sky outside.
"What do you think half-breed?" Judin asked. The half-saiyan looked at his friends.
"I'm sorry. I dozed off for a second there. What were you saying?" Gohan asked as he looked at them.
"About the specialists…."
"Saiyan! Come here!"
"Speak of the devil." Gohan muttered before looking up at the balcony that was located high up near the ceiling of the large cafeteria. Crimon was leaning over the fence and looking down at the three warriors. The specialists made the balcony so they could watch over their students during lunch.
"Hurry up!" Crimon yelled to make Gohan move faster.
Gohan growled in annoyance. "Why do I always have to go there? Why can't they just COME HERE?" He yelled back.
"That's because you're the student and I'm the teacher, Saiyan!" Crimon yelled back, amusement shining in his eyes.
Gohan scoffed. "That's not fair!" He screamed up, but Crimon only motioned for him to come to him.
"I'll be right back." The half-saiyan flew up and landed on the balcony. "What's up?"
"Why don't you come over and spent the evening in our lounge." Crimon suggested.
"I have plans." Gohan replied automatically. It's not that he hated the specialists but spending time in their lounge often made other cadets think that he got special treatment. He wanted to stop those rumors, which is one of the reasons why he stopped going over to their quarters lately.
"It's group night." Crimon raised an eyebrow. "You're probably the only cadet who does not have plans tonight."
Gohan leaned back against the balustrade and looked down, feeling rather put off by this statement. Crimon did not have to say it that bluntly.
Crimon must have noticed Gohan's lack of response and he knelt down to Gohan's face level. "Keep your chin up. Saiyans don't pout." He said in a somewhat softer tone.
"Have they ever called for me? Vegeta or any of the others?" Gohan asked, his gaze moving to Headmaster. "Just to ask how I was doing?"
Headmaster slowly shook his head. "No. Nothing."
Gohan sighed. "Himona was right. Everyone forgot about me." The boy turned back to the cafeteria and looked over his shoulder. "I'll come over tonight. What time?"
"Six." Crimon stated as he got up too. "Are you okay?"
Gohan showed them a smile but the smile never reached his eyes. "I'm fine. Saiyans don't pout, remember?" He placed a hand on the balustrade. "I'll see you this evening." He jumped over the balustrade and off the balcony, lowering to the ground, where he spoke to his friends before he left the cafeteria alone.
Crimon leaned on the balustrade with his hands. "He didn't finish his meal." He observed.
"Do you feel like something is bothering him lately?" Hitora asked from his chair. "He seems distracted lately during classes and during the training sessions."
Crimon turned his back on the cafeteria and walked to his own chair. "I can ask about it tonight." He stated as he sat down. "Let's see how much of a fight he puts up this time."
Headmaster laughed. "You see everything as a challenge." He stated, smirking at their antics.
Meanwhile, Gohan found his bed. Falling down on it, he stretched out his limbs and stared up at the ceiling. On days like this he would think about his home planet. The blue skies, the green grass. His mother's smile. He did not remember much of how his life on planet earth used to be but he did remember his mother, or at least the version of her he could recall.
Turning on his stomach, Gohan pulled a black notebook out of his armor. He visited his personal locker before coming here, and now opened the notebook on a fresh page. He liked to write down his feelings on times like these. His friends would probably call him a softy for this, which is why he preferred to do it when he was alone.
Obviously, in a room which he shared with nine other people, he was never really alone and even now one of the roommates was sitting in his own bed, minding his own business, but that did not matter to Gohan.
The half-saiyan locked his mind in his own little world as he wrote away the bad emotions of that particular moment, and for now, he could feel safe.
**** DBZ **** DBZ ****
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Until next time!