Ahhahaha, finally, A POV chapter nobody guessed. Still have no idea how someone on AO3 guessed a Krillin POV would come up the day before that one was posted. This one was planned pretty much since I decided on the concept, certainly, once I decided to keep the POV chapters in the main story, I was pretty much writing this at the same time as Krillin's POV
(I wrote this like two months in advance, I really hope no one guesses this in the meantime, which I really doubt anyone will, and if you're reading this, no one has)

Also, in the last one, I said that This would be the last POV chapter planned but since then I've decided on at least four more by the end of the Cell saga, one being really soon. As in the next chapter.

Also I have determined that Mondays probably aren't the best day to post, but also might not be the worst?

Retalal: "Once puberty hits" lol. That's all.

thewittywhy: it'd feel a bit convenient for Goku to reach Super Sayain off screen, so to speak. Nah, I'm thinking he pushed the Kaio Ken to 25, maybe even 30. Also maybe throw in the "Frieza slices himself" thing 'cause that always amused me that that's how he lost.
We might see how Chichi would react if SIGohan used the Dragon Balls at the moment. Who knows. But probably not in the way you're thinking.
And I tend to think Super Sayain is cause by a sudden burst of emotion more so than the lingering dread SIGohan would currently have.

fangrts: yeah...becoming reliant on transformations probably isn't a good thing...it'd be a shame if that was a plot point lol.

milpld: I... would recommend against that...

Reishin Amara: lol unfortunately, not even I can justify that. And I wouldn't say he'll be benched, at least not completely. There's still gonna be at least one plot thing for him in the coming arcs, just there's another character who'll be popping up and have precedence\

royalburrito999: lol thanks. As for the Future Trunks deal, we shall see. There're a few chapters to go before we get into that

Pigero

The day that tsunami hit was the worst day of Pigero's life. What else could it have been? He'd lost both his parents and his home in a single day.

Most of the survivors were evacuated right away, some were left behind and forgotten. Most who were eventually made their way back to civilization, moved on, and dealt with what had happened.

That had left him, and a handful of children alone. Eventually, they were discovered to still be there, but they refused to leave. How could they? This was all that remained of their home. Their families.

Hachi, Yordon, Jinku, Ena, Rom and Chico. That's all who remained, along with himself. Taking care of these kids became his life. He was the oldest, after all, he had to be in charge. Hachi was the closest to him in age, only one year younger. If there was one he considered a friend instead of his kid it'd be him. It became routine, finding food, drink, making sure their houses, or what remained of them, stayed livable enough. It was free. It was fun. It was, a distraction.

For two years. For two years he had managed to take care of them all. Sometimes one would get sick or hurt and it'd scare the hell out of him. Once, sickness spread through all of them, and it terrified him that he was not able to take care of them. Take care of his kids.

He could never show that. Of course. He could never show that he was afraid, 'cause that'd just make his kids afraid. He had to be strong, for them at least.

Every time those social workers came, it hit harder. This couldn't last forever.

And then a new kid showed up. Introduced by Rom as a girl named Gohan.

Apparently, she had scared away the social workers. To him, it looked like she had just spoken to them, but as he had no idea what was said, he couldn't be sure. All that mattered was that they were gone for now. Always for now.

If you asked him now if that child was what he expected her to be, he'd simply laugh in your face.

The girl was serious for her apparent age, and just allowed either Chico or Rom to lead her wherever they were going.

All that ignoring the frankly absurd distance she had cleared in a single jump, or the fact that she had a very clearly real tail, judging by its movements. But that could be questioned in time. It was also probably a good dictation of emotion. An interesting note.

He accepted her into the group, coining a nickname that she seemed to like.

He knew he shouldn't have, it was difficult enough taking care of the six kids, seven if he included himself. But how could he not? Chico and Rom were already so attached, and he was sure Goh would be a great addition to the group.

She didn't participate as we, acquired, our food. Which was fine, she was new here and while she'd have to help eventually, it was fine if she took her time getting used to things for now.

Still, he took a little less food for his own share that night. With an extra mouth to feed, it'd be fine if he went without for a day or so.

However, it seemed that wouldn't even be an issue since she had parents, and stranger still, a separate caretaker.

When she had asked to speak to him, telling him that he and his kids should go with the social workers was just about the last thing he had expected.

The fact that she systematically pointed out every flaw in how they were living was not comforting, and all this in a single day? She must have been looking for flaws to exploit.

But even still, she didn't say anything, technically incorrect, so he didn't call her out on it.

Still, he asked how old she was. She said five. She wasn't lying….but there was something, not right there. He pushed it aside for now.

And instead turned the questions on her.

On how is it that a child with parents and a caretaker ends up wandering through a ruined city. She tried to lead away but he didn't let her.

At the very least this caretaker of hers was neglectful. How else would she have found her way here unquestioned as she stayed the night with no apparent forms of communication?

He let her have a moment to string her tale, to formulate and tell a story of kidnapping and how she was now with her caretaker for protection.

The best lies were told in a veil of truths, and he had enough faith in her at this point to believe she knew that, so he could believe that the base of her story was true enough, as outlandish as it sounded, but that the deception lied in the details.

He called her out on it, and the slight widening of her eyes and tension in her shoulders told him he was on the right path.

Still, she stated that that was all she was told, and that, at least, wasn't a lie.

So she knew more than she was supposed to then. Maybe by overhearing, maybe some other source.

The claim that she was with her caretaker because it would be dangerous otherwise was an outright lie. Tensed shoulders, glancing to the side, and a stutter that was not there before made it easy to call out. She didn't even bother to deny it.

Still, something wasn't right. A hole somewhere in what she's said that wasn't necessarily a lie.

He questioned her caretaker's name.

She froze for a moment. Then she was smiling. An awkward, and amused laugh. She glanced around as if looking for a way to avoid the question.

He had thought he had prepared himself for just about any situation the kid could be in. Maybe she was a runaway. Maybe her parents were abusive. Maybe, despite her earlier claims, her caretaker was abusive. Maybe they were separated by bandits. Maybe some other horrible thing happened that he just hadn't thought, or didn't want to think, of.

Her saying she was being cared for by a man named Piccolo in an almost joking tone, was not on that list.

The fact that this was the first time he'd seen her smile, let alone laugh, was not lost on him.

Now, of course, his first instinct was Demon King Piccolo. He could still remember when the monster had threatened the world. Threatened to eliminate sections of the planet for his own amusement. Lawlessness had taken the world by storm in the few days that he ruled.

The girl waved off the comparison with abandon. As if she didn't take the implication seriously at all. As if the entire situation just amused her now.

At least she wasn't afraid of her caretaker then…?

Still, she outright refused the notion that the two were one and the same. Even though the idea that someone would just coincidentally have the same name, he allowed the topic to drop, for now, as he continued his line of questioning.

Then she said that "her" Piccolo was stronger than the "supposed demon king".

Then she said that her father had been the one who defeated "Mr. Spoopy Scary". When he was 15.

Her casual tone and demeanor portrayed no lies.

Well, that would explain why she wasn't taking any of this seriously.

And then she finally said that this Piccolo, was the son of the Demon King.

Pigero was now considering kidnapping as a form of keeping this child away from her supposed caretaker.

She retold her tale, this time with the added context of Demon King son.

How old even was this caretaker? Her previous description had him assuming he was an adult, but considering how quickly the Demon King rose and fell from power made it difficult to believe he just had a child out there somewhere that wasn't caught up in the situation.

For the sake of his own sanity, he skirted past the implication that one or more of the participants of the tale weren't from Earth.

By the time he collected his thoughts, it was well past the time that any five-year-old should be asleep, so he sent her off while he resigned himself to cycling through what was told to him.

Eventually, he gave up on sleep and instead snuck over to the nearest town, finding a 24-hour cafe that offered the use of their WiFi for free, and use of a computer with any purchase. So he delved into his already meager savings to buy their cheapest drink.

He certainly overstayed his welcome as he researched all he could on the Demon King Piccolo.

It was difficult to parse between fact and hearsay, but the common consensus was that a child with a tail named Son Goku was who defeated the Demon King.

The few pictures he could find of him made him look younger than 15, but it was believable enough that he was short for his age, or even that they had used old photos.

His seize had taken place almost immediately after the 22cd World Martial Art Tournament, of Which Son Goku had taken second place, and the Demon King seemed to prioritize the killing of martial artists who participated. Almost seems reasonable when you consider that the second-place winner was who finally defeated him.

However, after the case, all those who were killed seemed to return to life. No one seemed to have an answer to that. The most common theory is that they were put into a state of near-death until the Demon King was killed. Pigero didn't think he believed that.

Furthering his research, he found that in the Next World Tournament, the one that Son Goku finally won, his final match was against someone who, didn't look exactly like the Demon King, but looked close. If he were to guess, he'd say that that must have been the son spoken of.

The stage and most of the island was destroyed by the end of that fight.

Once again, Pigero considered kidnapping.

However, in that World Tournament, this Piccolo at least looked like an adult so that kinda answered his earlier question. He assumes.

By the time he got kicked out, Pigero was at least more confident that the girl wasn't just making all this up.

And that was more or less confirmed when he asked for her full name, Son Gohan. With how few people still bothered with family names, and that hardly being a common one, unless she had done the same research, or a family member had and just chose to fake it, there was no doubt.

Especially considering the tail. That was, significantly harder to fake. As in, probably impossible.

But even so, even knowing all that. Just, letting her go, letting her go back to that man, felt wrong. Like he should have done something else. Something more to prevent her from going.

Especially after learning that she was actively training to fight.

But still, he just, let her go.

Of course, he knew that, realistically, he couldn't stop her. Even ignoring her claims that Piccolo would have come to get her, which he did not want to deal with, he also, wasn't sure that he could, physically, stop her.

Sure out said he could out loud, but if her father could defeat the Demon King at his age, then why would he be able to stop his kid at any age.

So, he finally accepted the woman's, no, Isabella's help. He allowed her to take his kids, and him, to an orphanage.

And, he watched as Goh walked away.

Of course, now he had a new fear. A purely selfish one. That one of his kids may be adopted and taken from him. He knew, he knew that that would be for the best. And that he would not allow for contact to be lost, but still. The possibility existed, that his kids would be taken and he'd have no way to help them if anything ever happened.

So, he did more research on the enigma and her family.

Once again it was difficult to parse truth from fiction.

Some things were easy enough, he claimed second place in the 21st and 22cd World Tournaments and took First in the 23rd.

He could also pretty safely ignore some of the more outlandish claims, like those who say he turned into a giant ape or traveled to a demon world. Really, putting a rabbit on the moon? That one was a pure fairy tale.

Then there were some middle ground claims. Some that were maybe true, or maybe partially true.

Sure the claim that a twelve-year-old single-handedly took out the Red Ribbon Army was outlandish, but was it any more so than a fifteen-year-old defeating Demon King Piccolo?

There were pictures and clips from some of the old tournaments.

He ignored the 23rd finals.

He did, however, note that Anonymous was probably Goh's mother, considering how Son Goku had quite literally proposed after their fight.

Isabella had noted his newfound interest and offered her help. He was…polite with her, but didn't otherwise engage. His kids liked her well enough though, which was all that really mattered.

He, had to admit, having clean sheets, and clean clothes, was nice. Running water was something he was sure never to take for granted.

The first night, eating a hot meal for the first time, he had to excuse himself midway through. It had been too much.

There were other children there. Rom and Chico made quick friends, and Ena mingled with them occasionally. But the older ones, along with himself, just stuck with their own group. But polite, always polite. It'd do no good to make enemies of anyone while staying here.

There was one other teenager. She was rude and had a bad attitude. She didn't seem to care about the establishment or the care that went into maintaining it.

What was worse, it seemed Hachi had a crush. But, while he was their leader in terms of decisions, he couldn't exactly make choices in their personal lives. It wasn't like he was interested in someone significantly older or outwardly aggressive, so the best he could do was be there when it inevitably went downhill.

The days went on, turning into weeks, then months, and he began feeling restless. He felt like he shouldn't have been there, like he wanted to be somewhere else.

Isabella encouraged him to go out and make friends his own age. She had already gotten him into high school, and the others into their respective grades, after they had been caught up on what they had missed in their two years off-grid.

Most of them had to be held back a year. Yordon was two. He didn't mind much since that had put him in the same year as Jinku. The only one who managed to stay in her proper grade was Ena, which was ironic considering her complaints against studying. And even that was just barely.

Still, days went on with no word from Goh.

And then there were broadcasts of a pair of aliens who had come and destroyed a city.

It was awful, countless lives lost. But it didn't have anything to do with-

And then the broadcast showed a man with green skin and pointed ears. With a child standing next to him.

It, it was a coincidence. There was no way that that could possibly have been-

The broadcast cut out before the child really did anything. But it did show perfectly well one of the men there, one with long hair, being killed.

He was glad none of his kids were there to see it. He was glad the broadcast cut out before any of them walked in.

He didn't want to think about why the broadcast cut out.

He didn't want to think about why there was a child there.

He didn't want to think about the possibility of that being Goh.

He ignored it, and a week later, he was almost vindicated. Goh showed up, perfectly fine and healthy. No evidence of a fight. Of course not, that child hadn't had a tail, it couldn't have possibly been-

Goh did not have a tail.

Her claim that "some jerk cut it off," was far from adequate.

It, it was a coincidence. She had no injuries. The two aliens had to issues hurting or killing others, surely, if she were there, there'd be something to show for it.

Besides a suspiciously missing tail.

Regardless, her mother showed up and Goh's discomfort could be easily seen, so he plastered on a smile and stepped in, while indicating for the younger ones to escape.

He decided to ignore the hospital statement for now. That denial would probably be the only thing keeping him from demanding answers immediately.

He also decided to ignore the fact that the vehicle Goh's mother arrived in seemed to be driven by the Capsule Corp heiress.

Overbearing perhaps, but Goh's mother seemed decent enough.

"Say, you wouldn't happen to be Anonymous from the 23rd World Martial Art Tournament, would you?" He asked, though, from the pictures he'd seen, the answer was almost certainly yes.

"Oh, those were the days…" she wistfully spoke, "between raising a child, and everything that's happened in the past year or so, I'd nearly forgotten that stage. An interest of yours?"

"A recent one," he, avoided mentioning the research he'd done on her husband, "obviously it must be an interest of hour's considering you participated."

"Oh no, not really. I only really learned to get Goku's attention."

"But you made it into the top 8?"

"What can I say? I've got the genes for it. My father had learned from the supposed best, I picked up a few things from him."

"That's the Tournament that Son Goku won, right?"

This caused the woman to frown, "yes, to be honest, it's not much of a pleasant memory. At the time I had thought that Piccolo, or his son, or whatever he is, to be a monster. And he certainly acted the part. But Gohan seems to like him, and now I'm not entirely sure. Goku doesn't seem to be worried, so, I don't know," she sighed.

"I trust my son's judgment but, he's so young, I'd hate for him to be misled."

Pigero was glad she wasn't looking at him at that exact moment and was instead gazing off towards where the youngest had been talking, because his head whipped around so quickly that he was sure you could have seen an exclamation point shoot from his head.

"O-oh?" He forced a calm expression, not allowing his confusion to show.

"Gohan's a smart kid, but still a child. He doesn't seem to be acting too much different from before, but still, it's worrying."

Ok, that's, ok no. There were a few explanations for, this. He just, wasn't going to tip the hat either way until he was sure which it was.

He had known that Gohan was a rather, masculine name. Hence why he offered the nickname in the first place, he had just assumed that she was named after someone. but even so- no. Wait. Going to wait. Speak to Goh before any assumptions.

The conversation continued on, and when she began to speak with Isabella, Pigero ducked out.

He needed to speak with Goh, alone, and his kids dutifully went along with his request.

He started with what he assumed would be the easier topic. He asked why Goh's mother seemed so concerned with where she was going.

As he had expected she hesitated and tried to duck out of giving any direct answers.

He reassured her that, of course, anything told in confidence wouldn't go be told elsewhere, but she still hesitated.

"Piccolo is gone."

The statement was far from expected. He had to clarify what she meant, and her hesitation was all the answer he needed.

For half a second, he was relieved. Then immediately felt guilty for it, because he heard the sadness in her voice and saw the frustration in her eyes.

He consoled her best he could, and then what she said surprised him.

She claimed they could bring him back.

She quickly pushed away his skepticism and claimed that Her father had been dead only to come back.

And, it was difficult, because she didn't say it with the excited enthusiasm of a child, or blind confidence. She said it as if she knew for a fact that it was possible, but also as if she knew the claim was ridiculous.

Her mother talked about Piccolo in the present tense, whether that was because she wasn't aware he was dead, or also believed he could come back was unknown.

Or, maybe he wasn't dead? Maybe Goh was misunderstanding the situation?

So much for this being the easier conversation.

"Well unless you think we have time to go over the history of the Dragon Balls, there's not much else for me to say on the matter."

She said it with the same flippancy that she had when talking about the Demon King. And with that, she opened a new line of questioning, knowingly. She wanted him to take that bait.

But, he couldn't. There was still the other question, and he didn't know how long Goh's mother would be occupied with Isabella.

So, aware that she seemed uncomfortable with the tension change, he questioned the pronoun inconsistency, and he saw something in Goh he hadn't seen, and was starting to think didn't exist in her; fear.

He could have cursed if he wasn't around a child.

As quickly as he could, and only slightly panicked, he talked her down from it. Well if that didn't tell him all he needed to know-

Still, he asked a few clarifying questions to make sure he understood as much as possible, acutely aware that Goh was visibly uncomfortable and looked like she'd run at the first provocation.

"Anybody else?"

"The only other person who knows is Piccolo."

Of course. Why not. The only other person who knows is the questionably dead man with very questionable morals. Ain't that just perfect.

Still, he made sure to cover all the bases with his kids best he could.

His top priority was always the safety and happiness of his kids, and he didn't know when Goh was added to that list, but that didn't really matter. All that mattered was he do his best to protect her in what little way he could, since any conventional way was obviously out of reach.

He also didn't care that Isabella said that he shouldn't be taking such responsibilities. That she said it was too much pressure for a teen to deal with. That it wasn't supposed to be something he had to deal with. She didn't know anything. They were his kids. He had to take care of them.

Even when they strolled in and out haphazardly, always seeming to be in danger and out of reach, not taking things seriously-

Still, time ran short and as things came to a close, he had to have an answer to a question he was avoiding; so, he threw on a purposely sharp smile, and asked what, exactly, she had been doing at a hospital.

And this time he didn't call it out when she told a story of half-truths and fumbles.

Still, he couldn't be too disappointed when she left. After all, she had given him a new line of research to discover.

The Dragon Balls.

He had wanted to disregard the concept in its entirety at first.

Really? Magical orbs that grant a wish when you collect all seven? It's a children's tale at best. Not a very popular one either, considering he had never heard of them.

The most credible source was that Bulma Briefs, the heiress of the Capsule Corporation, the woman who was driving Goh's mother, apparently believed in their validity. Not that it meant much by itself, rich people were known for their eccentricities.

There wasn't much on them to be found. Some shop owners propagating the myth to sell some cheap looking glass replicas. A few people who have claimed to have found one or two, not really knowing what they were, before a blue-skinned man who called himself Emperor Pilaf stole them. Or the Red Ribbon Army stole them. Or a child with a tail came in and asked for them.

There was no telling how credible any of these claims were. No telling if there were people just lying or making things up or misunderstanding.

So four sources, really. Half of them relating to Goh. At least half of them.

That wasn't exactly much to convince him.

It was apparently enough to convince the biggest privately owned army. Enough to convince the Capsule Corp heiress.

Any wish one could have.

A children's story.

Nothing more.

Every fighter killed by Demon King Piccolo was miraculously brought back to life.

A coincidence, certainly.

Now Pigero wished he didn't look into this. What was he supposed to gain? Some second or third-hand accounts couldn't prove anything. Now here he was wondering if some stupid children's tale was real because Goh's family and friends told her it was.

If he could have a wish….

It was a waste of time to consider it.

How could he? The fact that he was spending any amount of time with this was ridiculous.

It'd be nice to see his parents, even just one more time….

A waste of time.

Nothing more.

…

When about a month and a half passed, around the time frame Goh said she'd be back, he was walking up to the orphanage when he saw her flying over.

He wasn't even sure why he was surprised. Like, half the finalists of the 23rd World Tournament could fly. Of course she would have picked it up.

Didn't make it any less surreal to see.

And, the fact that she was in higher spirits from the last time they met didn't slip past him.

Regardless of anything else, he was adamant that eventually, he would get the story straight on the chaos that was her life and those who surrounded her.

Eventually.