An End and A Beginning
"So what am I supposed to be first, sensei?" Gohan asked, his eyes hardening as he prepared for anything.
Piccolo stared down the young boy. He had prepared to throw the boy into the wilderness by himself for months to toughen him up mentally and physically. Yet, the young boy seemed different than before. "Your first task is to survive out here for three months. This area is filled with dangerous creatures and has little vegetation. The nearest village is thousands of miles away and this place is completely surrounded by desert, so there is no escape. You will learn to use your strength and live. Remember, you will be one of the saviors of Earth. You must learn how to draw out your potential."
Instead of whining and complaining like Piccolo expected, the half-Saiyan merely nodded. "Simple enough."
"If you manage to survive, I will personally train you for nine months before those Saiyans arrive. We barely manage to defeat your uncle, your kidnapper. Now, the two Saiyans heading to Earth are much more powerful in strength and power. If we do not manage to stop them, they will stop at nothing to destroy this planet. You may be the key to our victory, so you need proper training." The Namek crossed his arms as he explained the situation to him.
"Then why don't we train from the very start?" Gohan wondered out loud, looking up at the large alien in front of him. "12 months of training is better than 9 months, right?"
The green creature glowered at him. "Before I train you, you must be mentally and physically prepared. You certainly seem mentally prepared, which is a surprise, but you are nowhere near physically prepared. Which is why you will survive out here and build your strength."
With one of his finger pointed at the ground, Piccolo materialized a uniform for the chibi on the ground. It was an orange gi with the letter ma, which meant demon, on the back. The Namek turned to his "student" and tossed the clothes to him. Gohan caught it and was instantly taken back by the weight of the gi. "These will be your training clothes. They have added weights to them to improve your training and will stop any minor attacks. That is all I will give you to train and survive out here. I will come back in 3 months to check on your progress."
As Piccolo began to fly away, Gohan let out a small shout. "Wait!"
Piccolo ignored him and continued to fly away.
"Can you at least remove my tail?"
The green creature heard the loud voice and sighed. With an annoyed look on his face, he came down next to Gohan. "Why?"
"I don't feel like it'll be useful when I'm fighting. Someone can easily grab onto my tail and use it against me." Gohan replied. I just hate the idea of having a tail. It's so... weird.
The Namek looked at the boy with curiosity. "Turn around."
Gohan followed his orders and turned his back to the green alien. Piccolo grabbed the tail and pulled it out cleanly with brute force. The young boy wanted to scream as an intense pain filled up his bottom but merely winced in pain as Piccolo held up the tail in his hand. "There, are you satisfied?"
"Thank you, sensei," Gohan said with a small bow. "Also, can you increase the weights of the shirt? I feel like I can speed up my training if I had a heavier load on me at all times."
Piccolo seemed surprised at this request and gave out a small smile that quickly retreated before the young boy can see. The boy is determined... I hope this is a good sign. With another point of the finger, the weight load on the shirt increased, making Gohan nearly drop his uniform.
"I have changed your gi so that the weight load will increase over time. As you get stronger, the weight of the gi will become heavier." The green creature stated. "I will come back in 3 months to inspect your progress."
And with that, the Namek flew away into the sky. Gohan immediately changed into his new uniform and looked around. Survival training. That alien is probably watching me from a distance... Time to survive and train then.
He immediately began to seek for the three most important things he would need out in the wilderness: water, food, and shelter. Piccolo mentioned that some dangerous creatures were in the area, that might be my source of food. There's a pond right next to me, so water isn't a problem. As for shelter... I'll just find a cave or build a temporary one out of rocks.
Gohan grinned. He would train hard and prove to the alien that he was ready to be trained.
A month later...
The sun was barely over the horizon, yet a young boy was already hard at work. His punches and kicks created powerful aftershocks as the air literally hummed in energy around him. He had been practicing for hours, yet he showed no sign of exhaustion as he continued his daily routine of training. His attacks were well coordinated and seemed as if he was following a manual, with his punches and kicks connecting smoothly.
On the first day in the wilderness, Gohan was lucky enough to find a small cave as a shelter. It was the size of a small room, but it was big enough for him and a small fire pit to light up a fire when he was sleeping. The first few nights were bitterly cold and Gohan accidentally used his explosive energy to create a fire. He had tried, without much success, to re-create the energy that he used to destroy the mountain before. Ironically, starting the fire on accident was when he began to learn to control the ki within him and to use it when needed.
Every day, he trained intensely, pushing himself to his physical limits. Gohan woke up early before the crack of dawn and stretched to prepare himself for the day. After he finished stretching, he continued on to practice katas. In his previous life, he had been a karate black belt and brought his fighting techniques to good use. The katas solidified his fighting form and allowed him to connect different moves without difficulties. After practicing katas for two hours, he ran miles daily, switching back and forth between jogging and sprinting for five hours. Afterward, Gohan would take a small break to give his body some rest, often meditating in silence for an hour to calm his mind. The training of his body was crucial, but Gohan knew that the spirit was just as important as the body. Meditation actually helped him focus and allowed him to feel the energy moving through him, like a river rushing down a mountain. Immediately after meditating, Gohan focused on building up his strength through various exercises: pushups, situps, bench press with some rocks and a branch, different exercises with makeshift dumbells, squats, and deadlifts. He implemented the "Pull, Push, Leg" workout routine, doing pull, push, and leg exercises all on different days to allow his muscles to build up and rest. After the workouts, he would practice his ki control, using the energy within him at will to destroy entire boulders. Between all of his training, he managed to do a bit of studying as well. He ran through basic information on biology, chemistry, English, and everything else in his head daily. It helped him clear his head and also to remember things better. He also
This daily routine was intense and fast paced. There was barely any time to eat and rest for Gohan. He still ate three meals a day, as he knew that food was essential in building up his body. Thankfully, plenty of animals were within the vicinity and he hunted them down with ruthless efficiency. He slaughtered large scorpions, dinosaurs, wild boars, and even a bear. He had no way to preserve the meat, so he cooked the creatures he killed over a fire and dried the meat to lengthen the life span. Gohan also fished with a makeshift net, as there was a small lake nearby that had a decent amount of fish. As for vegetables and fruits, there was a forest that was a good distance away from him that he utilized to collect berries, wild herbs, and nuts. Despite aiming to be a lawyer in his previous life, "Gohan" had plenty of experience working out and maintaining a balanced diet. The situation was very different in this life, but it was just a more extreme version of his previous experiences.
"Kiai!" Gohan shouted as he shifted his feet and went into a front leaning stance. He let out a series of quick punches and then immediately moved his arms to block his imaginary opponent's attacks. He had moved onto the Ananku, a form that was both offensive and defensive, that focused his strength at the center to block attacks from both sides and created openings to attack.
He turned around to face another imaginary attacker, punching straight into the chest of his open opponent. Gohan's punch created a huge rush of wind that slammed into a nearby mountain, creating a large crater into the side of said mountain. He paused for a moment and looked at his own fist.
I have an insane amount of power. This is unreal. It's almost as if I'm Superman...
Gohan sighed and looked at the sun that was now fully in the sky. He guessed that it was around seven in the morning and moved back towards his cave. Grabbing some dinosaur meat, some berries, and a small bowl he used to drink water out from, he enjoyed a relatively enjoyable breakfast. The dinosaur meat was a bit tough, but it tasted similar to beef, so he didn't mind. As he chewed he watched a flock of birds fly over his head, freely exploring the endless blue sky.
"Flying," Gohan muttered. "That alien could fly too... Is it possible that I can also fly?"
Every time he ran, he would also practice jumping. He was quite surprised to find out that he can jump large distances easily. It was terrifying at first, as he launched himself into a good fifty feet in the air and barely managed to land on his feet, but as time went on, he easily leaped hundreds of feet in the air and came back down.
After finishing his breakfast, Gohan decided to put an effort into flying. He had no idea if he could do it, but something screamed in the back of his mind that he could do it. He stepped out into the open and began to run as fast he can, gaining momentum, and then launched himself into the air.
He immediately shot off the ground and rocketed into the air. While he was in the air, he attempted to transfer the energy within him into his feet, as if there was a cushion to support him. His body obeyed his command and energy began to rush below his feet. Gohan could've sworn that he felt himself float in the air for a moment, but he began to streak towards the ground instead of staying up in the air. He landed on his feet and ran at top speed once again.
Not even Superman got it on his first try. Gohan thought, encouraging himself. He kept on launching himself into the air and jumping before he finally managed to learn accidentally.
As he jumped once again and failed, but Gohan was pleased to discover that he had stayed in the air for just a second before coming back down. Even as he came down, he felt his body going down slower than before.
One more time. Gohan ran into the open distance again, running at full speed then leaping into the air. He rose high enough to almost touch the clouds with the ground nearly a thousand feet below him. He concentrated all his focus onto his feet, willing his ki to change and support his weight in the air. His body began to sink towards the ground, but he closed his eyes and focused on his goal. He could feel himself falling further and further before finally, he felt his body stopping. Gohan slowly opened his eyes and looked down.
He wasn't falling. Instead, he was floating comfortably in the air, though he could feel himself falling towards the ground at a slow pace.
Despite this, he urged his body forward, stretching his arms forward and diverting any energy he had into his feet. Gohan felt himself propelling forward and was surprised when he began to move in the direction he desired.
After several seconds of being in control, he slowly came down to the ground. He had only flown for a minute, but his ki was exhausted and he felt thoroughly drained.
This isn't good. If I use flight during combat, I'll definitely exhaust my energy rapidly for sure. I definitely need more practice... And if I use flight in battle, it'll definitely change my fighting style. I need to practice fighting in the air and on the ground.
Gohan's head was rushing with a million thoughts, but he turned his head upwards and grinned. He still had a long way to go, but he was getting stronger.
And a stranger watching over him silently agreed.
When Gohan awakened, he was no longer in the cave he called home. Instead, he was surrounded by nothingness. The ground was completely flat and smooth and there was nothing on the horizon for miles around.
"I see you have awakened." A very deep voice boomed.
Gohan looked up and saw a mysterious being dressed in a black robe and mask floating in the air. "Who are you and where am I?"
The being chuckled. "You are in the realm beyond even the After Life and the Spirit Realm. To simply put, you are at a place beyond even heaven itself."
That caught Gohan's interest. "A place beyond heaven?"
"Precisely, and as for who I am, call me Hikari."
Hikari. Is he some sort of God? Gohan thought as he inspected the stranger above him.
As if he could read his mind, the being laughed. "Good guess, but no. I am not God. I am above God. But I just prefer the name Hikari"
Gohan nearly choked on his own spit. "A being above God?"
"If God created the world, then who created him? I did. Who brought you to a different world as you were dying? I did." "Kami" stated, as if his actions were of no importance.
"Why did you save me then? What is my purpose?" "Gohan" asked the divine being.
The being shrugged. "You did not deserve to die. No matter what Fate or God said, you are one being that deserves to live. You have a strong sense of justice and helping the weak. You are selfless but have enough pride to stand up for yourself. You don't help people for fame or glory, but help people because it is the right thing to do. There have been humans like you that have existed before, but they managed to live full lives and bring about great changes. You, on the other hand, didn't. That is why I gave you that chance, you are the hero that this world needs."
A small smile spread across Gohan's face as he sheepishly scratched the back of his head. "Thank you, Hikari."
"It is the truth. There is no reason to be modest." Hikari simply stated. "Before I continue, I must do something."
Hikari waved his hand over Gohan. Suddenly, "Gohan" felt himself separating into two and cried out in pain as his vision darkened from the pain. When his vision cleared, there was a young boy next to him that looked like the body he occupied. Confused, Hiroyoshi looked at his hands and felt his face. "I'm myself again."
The young boy looked up at the older one and grinned. "Hi, Hiroyoshi!"
"Uh... Hello." Hiroyoshi said though he wasn't very enthusiastic. How can the boy be so happy and easygoing when I basically took away his life?
"You didn't. The real Gohan lives within you. Think of him as a companion and a friend that is always with you." Hikari replied. "I will teach you a technique that will allow you to clone yourself. When you clone yourself, Gohan will be able to take control of the clone's body. Usually, creating a clone of yourself will cut your strength, speed, and energy by half and transfer it to the clone. However, the clone you make will be of equal strength of the original."
As he spoke, Hikari placed his right index finger on Hiroyoshi's forehead, a small spark flying off the young man. Hiroyoshi's eyes glazed over for a second before refocusing on the being in front of him. "It seems like you taught me other techniques too."
"Yes. I've also taught you how to do some basic fighting techniques that will be useful for your future battles. In addition to this, I have merged the power and energy of your body with Gohan's body. Your old body's strength wasn't massive, but your spiritual energy was certainly plentiful and it will definitely help you on your journey."
Hiroyoshi nodded. "I can't thank you enough, Hikari."
"Hey, Hiro niisan!" Little Gohan bounced around the taller human.
"Yes, Gohan?"
Gohan gave the older boy a glowing smile. "Beat up the bad guys! Their friend killed my dad! You better not lose to them!"
The young man let out a small chuckle and ruffled the boy's hair. "You can join me in the fight if you can possess a clone. We'll beat them up together."
"You got it, Hiro niisan!" Gohan hugged Hiro's leg. "We'll beat them up easily with the two of us!"
Hikari laughed, breaking the conversation between the two mortals. "It was definitely the right choice to bring you to the other world. Now, I will send you back to the mortal realm. Train well and continue being yourself. Remember, you are the future savior of the world and I will be always watching and helping you."
Hiroyoshi woke up, half expecting himself to wake up in his room on his Earth. Instead, he came face to face with a rocky ceiling.
He was in his home, his cave.
A part of him wanted to go back. He wanted to see his family and friends again. Yet, he knew he had a duty to carry out in this world. A duty entrusted to him by the creator of the universe and God. He couldn't go back.
His eyes drifted to his hands. They were soft, baby hands instead of the rough and broken hands he was used to seeing. He was Gohan once again.
"Gohan" stepped outside and closed his eyes. The sky was still dark as the sun had not risen yet. He focused on his inner energy and concentrated on splitting apart. There were no reactions for a few moments, but as he willed himself further, he felt his body splitting apart once again. When he turned to his left, he saw a clone of himself next to him.
"Hiroyoshi niisan!" The clone cried as he hugged the original furiously.
"Good to see you again, Gohan." The Gohan looking Hiroyoshi said as he hugged his clone back. "Now let's get to training, shall we?"
The real Gohan nodded and went into a fighting pose. "I know everything you know also, so don't hold back, Hiro niisan!"
Gohan rushed towards the clone Gohan and aimed a punch at the clone's face. The clone easily dodged the attack and move aggressively towards Gohan, attacking the "original" by attempting to sweep his legs and grappling his neck. Gohan managed to dodge the clone's attacks and slowly took up his usual fighting stance. Seiunchin, an all out aggressive form that throws the enemy off balance and dominates the enemy with force. Guess I'll have to counter it then.
Slipping into a Suparimpei stance, Gohan grabbed the clone's arm when he attempted to close in for a body throw and punched the clone's chest. As the clone staggered backward, Gohan ran forward and kicked the clone squarely in the face. However, the clone grabbed Gohan's leg and smiled.
He saw through my attack! I guess that makes sense since he knows all my moves...
Gohan suddenly found himself being thrown around by the clone and was thrown into the side of a mountain. He groaned as he shook his head and looked at the boy coming towards him.
"You'll have to try harder in order to beat me." Gohan managed to say, his head still ringing from creating a hole in the mountain.
The clone/real Gohan powered up ki into his hand. "Then let's try harder, Hiro!"
Gohan managed to deflect the energy attack with an energy attack of his own. He powered up ki into his fists and began to engage in close combat with the clone. Similarly, the clone also directed his energy to his fist and began to counter Gohan's every move. The air shook as their arms, hands, and legs clashed with one another.
Finally, Gohan managed to create an opening by slamming his fist into the arm of the clone, making the clone drop his defensive stance. With everything he had, Gohan punched the clone in the chest and released an intense ball of energy. The clone cried out in pain as he was thrown backward.
Instead of getting up and continuing the fight, the clone remained on the ground and cried. "OWW! Hiro niisan that actually hurt!"
Hiro in Gohan's body helped the real Gohan up. "Sorry, Gohan. You did say to go all out and I need to train to become stronger."
"It's okay Hiro niisan!" The clone said with a smile. "You've definitely gotten stronger! You'll beat those bad guys easily!"
"I know." Gohan smiled back, but his smile didn't reach his eyes. It's definitely not enough. I need to train harder...
A month after meeting Hikari...
Gohan shot through the sky like a bullet fired from a gun. A month before, he struggled to just stay afloat in the air, but that was a month ago. Now, he was zooming through the sky while he fired bursts of energy at targets he had laid out before, destroying entire boulders with small balls of energy. Below him, clone Gohan was firing energy blasts at him to knock him out of the sky. Gohan easily dodged all of them with stunning speed as he managed to destroy his targets and dodge enemy attacks at the same time.
The area was littered with craters, destroyed boulders and mountains, and plenty of trenches made by Gohan's training. It was as if a huge battle had occurred in the wilderness, but the destruction was only caused by a single boy and his clone partner. The power of that one boy was shocking, to say the least.
Real Gohan grinned as Gohan destroyed the last target and landed softly next to the clone. "Hiro niisan, you finished that in twenty seconds! Yesterday you finished it in 25 seconds! You're definitely getting better!"
Letting out a small laugh, Gohan patted the clone's head. "Your counting probably changes every time you time me, but thanks again, Gohan."
Still smiling, the clone hugged Gohan. "My time is up for today, niisan. Good luck on your training!"
The clone's body merged with the original's as the two became one again. Gohan sat down and began to meditate. He had already finished his physical exercises a few hours before and now he concentrated on calming his mind and spirit.
He was stronger, much stronger than before. His rigorous physical training had toned his body muscles. His muscles were no longer weak and soft, but hardened and powerful to match his fighting spirit. Gohan also mastered his ki control, which allowed him to control the size and power of his energy bursts. He could also fight in midair without difficulty and power up his attacks by bringing for an aura of energy.
However, he knew that he still needed further training. Despite his advances, he knew that his future enemies would be just as powerful, if not more powerful than he was. He couldn't afford to slack off, not at this point.
As he meditated, Gohan could feel the weight of his training gi grow heavier. He couldn't tell how much the gi weighed exactly, but he could guess that it weighed at least a ton. After all, his physical training increased his strength tremendously and the gi had to grow heavier in order to accommodate to his growth. It always bothered him at first, but he always got used to the new weighted gi after a few days and then the weight of the gi increased.
The sudden change of the gi broke his concentration for a moment, but Gohan's eyes remained closed as he settled down. Through his meditation, he could feel the energy from nature being absorbed into him. He needed the energy as he had used up his entire reserve while training with clone Gohan. While meditating, he usually began to think about his previous life, the life he had left behind.
Pictures of his parents and friends flashed back to him and important moments of his life replayed in his head. Every day he watched his memories in order to remember them, but with each passing day, the pictures grew a bit fuzzier. He was definitely forgetting the names and faces of people he once knew, even people that had been prominent in his life. He did practice drawing the faces of people he remembered, but he wasn't a very talented artist and practicing drawing was much more difficult than lifting weights or flying. At least to him, it was.
His past memories were not all warm and fuzzy. Occasionally, his mind dived into a darker piece of his past, usually the later part of his life where he was forced away from his family and home into the unknown. He became something he never expected to be: a soldier. Gohan always sought to bring about change and justice peacefully, but instead, he was thrown into a war he didn't believe him in order to "protect his country."
Today was one of those days and his mind replayed the horrors he wanted to forget.
An explosion rocked him off his feet as he stumbled to the ground and dropped his rifle.
"Kid!" His sergeant yelled at him as he pulled Hiroyoshi up. "Now is not the time to nap! If you want to live, be quick on your feet!"
The Japanese-American boy gave a small nod to his leader, but he was still unbalanced from the explosion. The sergeant moved away to help his soldiers fire back at the enemy.
War was hell. There were dead bodies littered all over the ground and various craters and holes were everywhere on the ground. Buildings and people alike were crumbling around him as enemy artillery and gun fire began to pick up.
It was his third battle in the wretched desert. The war had begun just a year ago, right when he was forcefully drafted into the military because the multitude of enemies his country faced in the war. Instead of going to UC Berkeley to study and become a lawyer, he was now "defending" the very freedom and liberty his country held dear. Even so, he never wanted to participate in the war. His family had already lost many members in previous wars and had strictly prohibited anyone in their lineage from entering the military. But they were forced to watch as he was called to the military to fight.
Several bullets whizzed past him and Hiroyoshi's train of thought crashed as he dived for cover. He held out his rifle and began to fire towards the direction of the enemy. He didn't want to kill anyone, not even if they were firing back at him. It wasn't right that he took a person's life for a cause he didn't believe in himself.
Another explosion pulled him further towards the ground as shrapnel flew around the area. He winced as he saw one of his comrades scream in pain due to his leg being blown off. "Enemy mine," Hiroyoshi mumbled as he turned away from the sight. He was used to the sight, but it sickened him every time.
One of his close friends, a white American by the name of Sam Johnson, dived into cover near him. "One hell of a battle, eh, Hiro?"
Hiroyoshi had befriended Sam when he joined the military. Like himself, Sam was forced to join the army after his parents pressured him to join. Sam's family also had a history of male members serving in the military and apparently, his father had wanted Sam to join and serve. Sam hated serving in the military, but he wasn't afraid to shoot back and kill to save himself.
"I'm never going to get used to this." Hiroyoshi weakly said as he fired a few more rounds of his rifle at the enemy. "I just wished the war ended already."
"Same here," Sam replied. Both of them were forced to move positions when another artillery round landed very close to them. "If I die, I want to die peacefully in a retirement home. Not some desert in the middle of nowhere."
The Asian boy admired Sam, who managed to stay cool even in the face of death. He was able to crack jokes and make his comrades laugh even in the midst of battle.
Even in the heat of battle, Hiroyoshi let out a small laugh at Sam's remark. But it quickly died in his throat when Sam pushed him out of the way.
Hiroyoshi was thrown back onto the ground several feet away as Sam dived onto a rolling object that was thrown towards them. The object exploded under Sam and the soldier shook violently.
"No. No no no!" Hiroyoshi yelled as he dropped his rifle and ran towards Sam's corpse. He couldn't do anything as his friend had already died.
Gohan's eyes snapped open as he surveyed his surrounding. The ravished landscape was eerie reminiscent of his unforgettable past. It was strange to think that he would become a "soldier" and fighter in this world. He hated using violence unless it was absolutely necessary, but it was a necessity now in order to protect the world. In a sense, he was defending justice and was being a hero, in a way that was different from what he had imagined.
I don't initiate violence, I retaliate. A quote rang through Gohan's mind. That one sentence summarized his feelings perfectly. He wasn't the one that came to this world and instigated violence, his enemies were. All he was doing was protecting his planet and every living being that lived on the planet. He technically wasn't from this Earth, but it was still Earth. Despite the differences, it was still the planet that housed billions of souls like himself.
Instead of continuing to meditate, he began to fly around and see the wilderness. Gohan's mind was at peace as he looked at the miles of luscious forests, gushing rivers, and scattering plains and fields. He didn't exactly need the motivation to fight and defend the Earth, but seeing nature untouched by mankind certainly, put a bit more desire to protect the world. His sensitive hearing could hear thousands of creatures going about their day and he could even hear the dim sound of the city miles away.
This was everything he needed to protect. Mankind and everything not touched by mankind.
As he was flying around, he could feel a powerful ki signature tailing him. He had felt the energy of the individual for weeks now, and it was a very familiar one. It was the first and only ki that he had felt in this world. Gohan began to slow down and dropped down onto the ground as he waited for the source of the ki to appear.
Seconds later, a green alien landed right beside him. "You have grown, brat."
"It's not like I had a choice in the matter," Gohan replied with a small smirk.
The Namek returned the smirk, "I thought you would need months to prepare yourself, but it looks like you're ready to finally train with me personally."
Gohan's eyebrows shot up in surprise. "It's only been two months though."
"Listen, kid." Piccolo towered over the young half-Saiyan with a knowing look. "I've been watching you for the last two months. I've seen everything you do and I've heard everything you said. I know you're not really Gohan."
"W-What do you mean? Of course I'm Gohan!" The half-human proclaimed confidently, but he could already tell that Piccolo knew he wasn't Gohan.
"Hiroyoshi, is it?" The Namek disregarded Gohan's attempt to counter his statement. Gohan could feel the alien's eyes stare into his soul. "I don't care who you are. I don't care who put you in there, but clearly, there's a reason. And it seems like the real Gohan, who manages to appear from the clone you make, accepts what has happened. You are now Gohan and you must accept your role and duty. It wasn't the "real" Gohan that has been training hard and amplifying his powers for the last two months, but it was you. Perhaps this is why you've entered Gohan's body; to become stronger than the other Gohan could've become and to help us defeat the incoming Saiyans."
Piccolo grabbed the collar of Gohan's shirt and lifted him up. "I do not care who you were. You are now Son Gohan. Forget your past and look forward towards your future. I will not tell anyone about this matter, but you will help us defeat those Saiyans and become a strong fighter.
The boy weakly nodded as Piccolo calmed down and placed him onto the ground. "Good, now let us fight to test your strength. I can already sense your ki levels are much higher than before. Let's see if you can put it to good use."
He went into his battle-ready stance and motioned for Gohan to do the same. Slowly, the half-alien boy entered into his usual combat stance and stared at the Namek directly in the eye. Silence prevailed for ten long seconds before either of them made a move.
It was Gohan who struck first. With a small yell, he zoomed towards Piccolo in an attempt to land a clean blow to his torso. His punch missed as Piccolo seemingly disappeared into thin air.
Gohan looked around him quickly, trying to locate his opponent. Piccolo had managed to suppress his ki signal, so he was unable to sense where an attack would come from. Damn, where the hell did he go?
Out of pure reflex, Gohan dodged a sweeping roundhouse kick that was aimed at his head. He could feel and see the green leg that nearly knocked his head off. Immediately, Gohan countered by aiming a front kick into the Namek's thigh. He felt a solid hit as Piccolo grunted from the hit and backed up away from him slowly. Another series of punches were aimed at his head and torso, but Gohan blocked most of them except one that managed to slip by his solid defense and struck him straight in the chest. The punch knocked the wind out of him and Piccolo exploited this chance to kick him into the ground.
Gohan shook his head and began to fly up in the air. Piccolo followed suit and soon, both warriors were hovering five hundred feet in the air. This time, Piccolo struck first and launched a powerful side kick that was blocked by Gohan's arms. The blow created a ripple of wind as both fighters began to counter each other's attacks with strikes of their own. When Piccolo leaned in towards Gohan once again to deliver a blow, Gohan let out a small grin and disappeared into thin air.
Bewildered, the Namek scanned his surroundings like Gohan had before. However, unlike Gohan, he was unable to stop his opponent's blow that came from below. A solid punch landed cleanly on Piccolo's chin as he spiraled out of the sky and crashed into a nearby mountain.
A small groan escaped Piccolo's mouth before he was attacked again by the half-Saiyan. Piccolo managed to block the incoming attacks, albeit just barely. The green alien managed to find a small opening in the human's stance and attacked him ruthlessly once again. However, this time, Gohan was expecting this to happen and countered with a small ki blast into Piccolo's chest.
The small ki blast blasted Piccolo through the mountain and onto the other side. With a growl, Piccolo stood up and fired several ki blasts toward his attacker, but Gohan easily dodged the rapid array of attacks and fired a powerful, concentrated energy beam towards his opponent. Piccolo barely managed to dodge the attack and responded by shooting an energy beam of his own. This was skimmed Gohan, who winced as the intense energy shot burned his left shoulder.
Clutching his wounded shoulder, Gohan dodged Piccolo's barrage of ki blasts. The Namek wasn't very merciful in his attacks and sped them up as Gohan was forced to dodge the attacks with his slowed movements. While he was dodging, Gohan was struck by two ki shots that had been aimed perfectly, making him tumble backward into the dirt. Out of desperation, Gohan shot a powerful ki blast into the ground, whipping up dust and dirt over the battlefield and temporarily blocking Piccolo's line of sight.
Before Piccolo could approach him, Gohan brought both of his hands forward and charged up a large amount of ki into his hands. After three seconds, he carried out his attack. "Reibimu!"
Even in his slightly weakened state, a large ray of energy shot out of his palms and headed straight towards the unsuspecting Piccolo. The green alien saw the attack at the last second and managed to dive out of the way of the blast. However, the blast still struck his legs and exploded, thrusting the stunned Namek into the ground without his legs.
Piccolo shouted in pain as he attempted to regrow his legs, but Gohan was already next to him with his right hand sticking out in front of him. "I believe I win, sensei."
"So you have." Piccolo merely stated as he attempted to wrap his head around the amount of power and potential Gohan was showing. While he was thinking, his legs grew back out and he let out a small yell because of the intense pain.
"I may be powerful, sensei, but these Saiyans that are heading towards our planet are probably just as strong." Gohan helped his mentor onto his newly grown feet. "You shouldn't be just watching over me. You should train also. That way, we'll both be ready to take on the invaders when they come."
The Namek seemed to be surprised at the boy's comment, but nodded his head as he patted the boy's burnt shoulder and fixed his gi. "It seems you are right, Gohan. Perhaps I am too confident in my abilities. I will also train with you starting tomorrow. Be prepared to be thrown around, because I will not show any mercy in our next fight."
Gohan grinned. "I look forward to it."