"Not hard enough," Piccolo growled, sending Gohan flying for the fourth time. "You have to concentrate, Gohan!"
Gohan, who had landed quite a few yards away, pushed himself up slowly, panting. Losing sleep and having that awful dream was really taking its toll on him. Not to mention he had skipped breakfast. A bead of sweat trickled down the side of his face and he wiped it away, looking up at his dad.
Goku was standing next to Piccolo, in his usual battle stance, but he had a frown on his face. He had all morning.
Gohan walked back over, a little bruised and beaten.
"Your timing's off and you're rushing things. Unless you've got somewhere else to go I suggest you start to actually try," Piccolo scoffed.
"I AM trying! I'll do better, I promise," Gohan protested, stepping forward.
"That's what you said two moves ago," Piccolo rumbled.
Goku, who had said nothing the entire time, suddenly turned to Piccolo. "Maybe he's just tired. He skipped out on breakfast this morning."
"Pfft, that's no excuse," Piccolo said, still glaring down at Gohan, "He fought much better 3 years ago when he was in the wild and hungry. And that was BEFORE I had even stepped in. He merely didn't bring his head today that much is for certain," he went back to his glaring.
Gohan looked down at his feet. '…attacks are of course much higher in those who repeatedly take themselves to the limit.' The line from the book last night echoed in his head. He HAD brought his head…just was focusing it on two things, training and his Dad's health.
He flinched when Goku coughed. And Goku seemed to notice this. He crouched down. "Hey, come here for a second."
Gohan walked sheepishly over to his dad, still looking at his feet.
"You can tell me what's wrong, Gohan. I've been watching you all day and I know something isn't right."
Gohan still trained his eyes on his feet though, not wanting to meet his father's gaze. So Goku took it upon himself to lift his son's head.
"Something's been on your mind ever since I caught you reading last night, and I won't go away unless you tell me," he offered a smile.
"Reading?" Piccolo interrupted rudely, his frown getting deeper. "Reading what?"
Goku looked up at him. "Some science book, I guess. I didn't catch the entire title."
Piccolo crossed his arms. "Does he have it with him?"
Goku's eyes fell across the land and stopped at Gohan's bag.
Gohan looked up and over nervously as his father walked over to it. Goku opened it up, reached inside, and pulled out Gohan's book.
Moments passed. Goku flipped through pages, pausing at parts with pictures.
"What is it? Did you find anything?" Piccolo called, still standing near a paralyzed and slightly trembling Gohan.
Goku looked directly at Gohan. "Is this what you're afraid of?" He held up the book for all to see.
Gohan, still trembling slightly, nodded and nervously swallowed. "I…I didn't want anything to happen to you."
Goku walked over with the book still in hand. "Shh, don't talk like that," he crouched down to Gohan's level again. "Nothing's going to happen to me. I have the cure from that guy from the future, remember?"
Gohan looked up at his dad, sniveling slightly and blinking back tears. "But what if you don't have it when you need it? Who will know how to take care of you?"
"Worrying isn't going to solve anything," Goku tried to reason. He put a hand on his son's shoulder. "You need to focus on your training, Gohan. The world will need you in two years to protect it."
Gohan wiped his face with his sleeve. "Yeah, but the world needs you too, Dad. More than me. I mean, me and Mom need you too."
Goku shifted in his crouch, "Look, I've got the vial right here," he said, "If I feel just a little off I'll take it, alright?" Goku withdrew the container out of his shirt. He gave his son a reassured smile. "It'll be okay."
Gohan blinked, looking at his dad with pleading eyes. "Promise?"
"Promise," Goku said. Gohan rushed in to hug his dad. Goku caught him, smiling down at him. Gohan started chuckling, then laughing, and Goku followed in suit.
Piccolo watched them from a distance. There has never been a kid who loves his father more, he thought.
At length, Goku released Gohan, ducking to look in his eyes again. "Alright, now you're going to train as hard as you can right?"
"Hmm," Gohan took a step back, nodding. He looked ready.
"Great," Goku said with his usual smirk, "Now get over there and give me fifty pushups," he motioned with his head back behind him. "We need to work on control over your strength."
"Okay!" Gohan jogged off a little distance and went down on the ground to perform the exercise.
Goku stood up, bushing himself off. He watched his son go with his hands on his hips.
Piccolo walked on over and stopped next to Goku. "He's going to be just like you. I can tell," he said in his usual low voice.
Goku looked over at him. "Thanks Piccolo."
Piccolo smirked, "You're assuming that's a compliment."
With that Piccolo crossed his arms. Goku glanced at him smirking, and then went back to watching his son, thinking about the thrill of the impending danger in just two short years.
And how he'd do anything to keep things the way they are now.