"Gohan! You-! I-! What's going-?! How could you-?! Hrrgh!"
That was about how Gohan expected his mother to react to this development, honestly.
"I realize it's a lot to take in, but-"
"Oh, that is the understatement of the gosh-darn year mister! I can't believe that you'd-!" Chi Chi cried, turning to Master Roshi to vent her fury before remembering that he was currently in the midst of being healed and rapidly restored via Senzu beans in order to keep him alive. "Ah. Right. Sorry, I'll...give you a minute," she said sheepishly, her rage subsiding a little.
"Appreciated," Master Roshi said weakly after swallowing the first bean, always one to find the funny parts of a bad situation. While Chi Chi turned her focus back onto Gohan, causing them to argue back and forth with Goku forced into the role of mediator, the others opted to stay well away from that and focus on speaking with Master Roshi instead.
"Oh stars, can you wait ten seconds?" Dende said in an exasperated tone as the others crowded around. Master Roshi feebly put up a hand to assure the young Guardian that it was alright, but fortunately, another Senzu bean supplied by Mr. Popo was enough to leave the old warrior winded, but more than capable of moving around and holding a conversation. Which was good, considering that, despite the promise he implied minutes before, Gohan was not going to be in a position to offer answers anytime soon.
"Jeez, what the heck happened to you two in there?" Krillin began, causing Master Roshi to chuckle as he sorted out how best to summarize the last year of his life.
"Gohan approached me about training to master the Saiyans' 'Oozaru' transformation by helping him keep his emotions in check," Roshi began. "It took a while, but with fairly regular exposure to the effects of the transformation and some remarkable innovation on his part, Gohan's managed to eliminate most of its drawbacks. Rather than simply multiplying his power tenfold while retaining his speed and becoming a massive target, Gohan's refined version of the form increases his power and speed tenfold, not to mention he got a fair bit stronger in his base form as well."
"Indeed," Piccolo said, pride seeping into his voice as he looked across at the far more imposing Saiyan child. After all, he had been there for the first time Gohan had transformed and witnessed the incredible might of the Oozaru firsthand, a monstrous creature that would have crushed him under its weight if he hadn't destroyed the moon. To think that Gohan had become capable of fully harnessing that immense power...well. There were more important things to worry about than how Earth's warriors continued to slowly but surely pass him by. "Can he assume the form at will?" he asked instead, having noticed the lack of any visible source of moonlight.
"Eh, yes and no," Roshi answered frankly. "We developed a new technique during the last six months of our training, something which Gohan calls the Lunar Flare. It combines the principles of the Solar Flare and the Artificial Moon technique I picked up from our Vegeta in order to allow him to transform temporarily. It was a little touch and go at first, but we've managed to refine it to the point where it'll give him a good half hour in this state at a much lower energy cost compared to using the Artificial Moon." The others nodded along, with Tien in particular smirking just a bit.
"It seems Gohan is like his father in one respect, at least. They just can't resist the lure of my techniques, can they?" he said jokingly, earning him a weak chuckle from Master Roshi.
"Eh, he hit himself with a few Solar Flares accidentally, I think Gohan's had his fill of that particular move," Master Roshi replied in a similarly joking tone, while Yamcha geared up to ask the most important question they were all thinking in the back of their minds, even if none of them were especially ecstatic about the idea of Gohan fighting on the front lines of this coming conflict.
"How does he compare to Vegeta?" Yamcha asked, knowing that Master Roshi was the only one there who could get a read on the distant would-be king's energy. After a moment of concentration with his fingers to his forehead, the old man was able to get a read on him and compare that to what he knew of Gohan's newfound ability.
"In terms of raw power, Gohan is the stronger of the two in this state," he began, which the others took as an encouraging sign while Piccolo crossed his arms, knowing that wasn't the whole story. "However...we weren't able to train his tail," Roshi admitted, confirming the Namekian warrior's suspicions and causing the others' faces to fall. "And, of course, if anyone knows about how to exploit the weaknesses of this transformation-"
"It's Vegeta," Krillin glumly finished for him, sighing to himself before shrugging his shoulders. "Eh, I guess it's for the best, really. At least this way we've got more of an argument for him not going out there and getting hurt." The others nodded in agreement, with even Piccolo being reluctantly forced to agree with that assessment.
"It seems a waste not to have him make use of all of this hard-earned power at the first opportunity, but...you all are correct. It would be best for him to remain here and keep the planet safe while we fight abroad, just in case," Piccolo reasoned, bringing up another important point.
"That reminds me: by my reckoning, we've got a day left until Vegeta gets to Planet Chilled, probably at least a few more before he's finished taking power and can do anything to those rebelling planets, even with that fancy ship of his," Master Roshi remarked, looking over at everyone who had gathered around him. "Have you all decided how you're going to make use of the time chamber?" he asked, causing 18 and Krillin to look away from each other sheepishly while Tien spoke up on behalf of the small group that he had assembled.
"Me, Piccolo, Yamcha, and 16 would like to go in first," he began. "16 doesn't need anything, and we've made sure to pack enough water capsules to keep Piccolo healthy along with the gravity chamber Bulma designed. We'll set up the gravity chamber to see whether or not it works with what passes for sunlight in there, stay for however long Piccolo has left-"
"One year and 49 weeks, by my count," Piccolo added.
"-and follow him out once our own time in the chamber is up," Tien finished, his third eye swiveling towards 18 and Krillin as he noted their reluctance to speak and made a few educated guesses. Judging from a quick glance over at Yamcha with his other eyes, the former bandit seemed to be thinking along the same wavelength, and found the courage to speak a little teasingly.
"You know, I happen to know that Bulma has a pretty swanky capsule house from way back in her Dragon Ball hunting days," Yamcha remarked coyly. "I can't imagine she's getting much use out of it anymore, and I'm sure she'd be happy to give it to someone who needs it more than she does. It'd certainly make for good practice if you're gonna be spending, what? A year, two years training alone together, with no one else to talk to?" Neither of them seemed especially inclined to comment on any of that until Krillin eventually answered Yamcha's question.
"Y-yeah, we were thinking two years," he said, stuttering only a little bit with great effort on his part. "Might as well make full use of it, you know? 18's super strong, but her martial arts knowledge is literally textbook, so I figured it'd take a while for her to really tap into all that power."
"I gotcha, I gotcha," Yamcha said, acting like he was taking the whole situation incredibly seriously when all three of them knew what he was implying. This time, 18 was the one to speak.
"We'll talk with her," she said somewhat tersely, with a rather noticeable blush. "While we're at it, I'll ask if they have a room for my brother at Capsule Corp. Makes sense to have him close by for what she's been working on with the other Vegeta, plus that gives you your house back," she said to Master Roshi, who simply chuckled good-naturedly.
"Ah, it was no trouble helping you two get back on your feet, really," he said amicably, and the group sat in awkward silence for a moment before a loud booming noise turned their attention back to the escalating argument they had tried to block out as best they could. When they looked over to where Gohan had been, they instead saw cracked floor tiles indicating that he had taken off towards the Son family house at incredible speeds. Goku was left doing his best to placate a stewing Chi Chi, but when that clearly didn't go anywhere, he reluctantly trudged over to the group.
"So, uh, you guys heading into the chamber?" he asked Piccolo and Tien, sounding like he desperately wanted to have something else to talk about right now.
"Indeed. Best not to take any more time than necessary," Piccolo replied. "Forgive me, it slipped our minds earlier, but could you retrieve 16?" he asked Master Roshi, who simply shrugged.
"Sure, I probably should wait a day or two before getting some answers anyway," he replied somewhat absentmindedly, leaving the others confused and a little annoyed when he didn't elaborate on that. "Oh, but before I go..." he added, focusing intently on all of the fighters around him for a moment and flooding their minds with memories of his own usage of Instant Transmission. "There we are; figure it's better to get information from a primary source when it comes to learning techniques this way," he said cheekily, to which Piccolo and Tien chuckled.
"Tell us about it," the latter remarked as he reflected on the struggle that learning the Kaio-ken third-hand had been. He gave Master Roshi a brief wave as the old man teleported off to 16's location using the nearest ki signature he knew. With that done, the triclops spared a quick glance at Chi Chi. "Is, um, everything okay with you two?" he asked, having never been the best at those sorts of discussions. Goku smiled wearily, doing his best to retain his usual chipper attitude.
"It's gonna be awkward tonight, but I think we'll get past it," he said optimistically. "He's eager to put this new form of his to use, but Gohan still agreed to get our permission to go fighting, which I told him we aren't even considering until we hear what Future Vegeta has to say, considering he's the one who knows the most about what we'll be getting into." The others nodded. It seemed a reasonable enough compromise to make, especially since they could all guess with at least some certainty that Future Vegeta wouldn't be eager for Gohan to fight either.
"Gotcha. Just let us know when he wants all of us to meet him at Capsule Corp so we can figure out a plan of attack," Tien replied, to which Goku nodded.
"Sounds good," he said, catching Chi Chi's evil eye as sweat began to appear on his forehead. "Alright, uh, I've gotta go; good luck in there!" he called out, gingerly grabbing Chi Chi and taking off into the night sky in pursuit of Gohan. The others sighed, silently praying for their friend to have a peaceful couple of days in their absence, before Master Roshi returned with 16 in tow.
"Alright, have fun, big guy!" Roshi remarked, patting the much larger android on the back. 16 didn't visibly react to the gesture beyond turning to face him in a somewhat jerky fashion.
"I am not programmed for 'fun,' but I will endeavor to execute that directive to the best of my ability," he replied in his usual tone. Although he couldn't read the robot's mind, Master Roshi had to wonder whether 16 had actually just told him a joke in his own unique way. Chuckling to himself, Roshi smiled at everyone present before putting two fingers to his forehead again, aiming for a faint yet very familiar ki signature that he had found himself missing quite a bit.
"You have a good time too, kids," he remarked teasingly, delighting in how Piccolo bristled at the term despite technically being the youngest one there. "Remember: taking care of yourself takes precedence over growing stronger, always! Don't go crawling out of there half-dead like I just did!" he warned, wagging his finger at Tien and Piccolo in particular. Dende could only chuckle at that.
"Glad to see at least one of you has a healthy sense of self-preservation," he remarked dryly as he and Mr. Popo moved to open up the time chamber once more.
"We'll be careful, Master, I promise," Yamcha remarked, likewise not quite understanding how Piccolo and Tien could become so laser-focused on getting stronger that they forgot to eat.
Master Roshi nodded before turning to 18 and Krillin. "That goes for you too, missy. I know you don't need to eat and you don't get tired, but that doesn't mean there aren't ways you can wear yourself out due to how inexperienced you are with this kind of exercise. Take it easy, take breaks when you need to, and most importantly..." he said before giving Krillin a wink, letting him know this last bit of advice was reserved for him and him alone. "Don't do anything I would do." The old man stayed just long enough to watch them both flare up before disappearing beyond the range that Krillin and the others could sense his energy, causing the smaller man to sigh in annoyance.
"Friggin old bastard..." he grumbled, one of the rare instances where he was left peeved enough to speak ill of his beloved martial arts teacher. 18 could only grumble in agreement alongside him, the two of them stewing in their embarrassment as 16 watched, uncertain what was happening.
"Query: why is Android 18's internal temperature exceeding her normal operating parameters?" he asked quietly. Piccolo rolled his eyes, Tien declined to comment, and Yamcha clapped the massive robot on the shoulder as they all walked in lockstep towards the door.
"We'll tell you when you're older, buddy," he said jokingly, only confusing 16 more.
"But I do not get older-" he began, just as the door slammed shut with a resounding boom.
"Man, I'm not gonna lie...a part of me was expecting more pushback."
As he spoke, Krillin gingerly held Bulma's old traveling house capsule in his hands before handing it to 18, who placed it into her pocket without a word. Bulma simply chuckled good-naturedly as she moved to grab some equipment she needed for her ongoing project. Said ongoing project was currently asleep on the very same operating table he'd been laid to rest on when he first came in for treatment, and would likely be there for the rest of Bulma's month-long timeline. Frankly, she was surprised he hadn't been woken up by all the noise, but she kept talking anyway.
"Ah, Yamcha was right, I don't need that old thing anymore. It's better in your hands, if only so one of you can have a place to stay instead of living on Roshi's couch for however much longer," she remarked with a hint of dryness in her tone. "I'm assuming you wanna set up near Goku's place?" she asked more amicably, to which 18 shrugged while Krillin nodded enthusiastically.
"Yeah, I think it's, y'know, a good idea for whichever of us ends up taking the place once we're out of the chamber, just so that we can be close to Goku and Tien for training and hanging out and stuff," he replied with a hint of nervousness, glancing quickly at 18 when he knew she wasn't looking. Bulma nodded along with a coy smirk on her face.
"Riiight," she said, keeping her observations to herself. "Well, anyway, good luck in there, and I'll make sure to put your brother up in our nicest accommodations so he can get out of your hair," she added for 18's benefit, who gave her a genuine smile in response.
"Thanks," she said simply, taking Krillin's hand and beginning to briskly leave the room as Bulma waved them off with slightly exaggerated enthusiasm.
"Buh-bye, be safe, make good choices!" she teasingly called out after them before the door slammed shut. By the time she had made a quick phone call and ordered her staff to make the necessary arrangements for Android 17 to stay at Capsule Corp on a temporary basis, her charge finally, finally seemed to wake up enough to comment on the situation.
"How long do you give them?" Future Vegeta remarked in a conversational tone which made it sound like he'd known Bulma for decades instead of days. In a way, Bulma supposed he did, at least in one timeline. Still felt a little weird, in all honesty, but she'd grown to appreciate it.
"Oh, probably not until after they come out of the time chamber, but who knows what'll happen during those two years?" she replied in a similarly amused tone before sighing as she began to work on one of the many necessary components for Future Vegeta's conversion into a cyborg. "Not gonna lie, a tad jealous. Just a tad," she added, leaving Future Vegeta confused.
"Of the cyborg?" he asked, still partly waking up from his latest nap after being stabilized by Capsule Corp's medical technology, only for Bulma to teasingly bap his shoulder.
"Of Krillin, you dolt, look at her!" she said playfully, belatedly reminding Future Vegeta that his wife was, in fact, bisexual. It was an easy thing to forget when he'd been the only person to catch her eye in over three years, after all. He supposed it should feel at least somewhat odd to hear a younger version of his wife casually chatting about the attractiveness of someone else with him, but he paid it no mind at this point. In spite of his initial faux pas upon first laying eyes on her, it hadn't taken long for him to fully internalize that the woman standing across from him was just another version of Bulma, not his Bulma. She had no reason to feel the same way about him just because of her counterpart's well established relationship with him, and though it stung ever so slightly, he would simply have to deal with that feeling on his own.
"I'd only ever heard of her by her violent counterpart's reputation, so I'm in no position to comment on that," he said easily, prompting a chuckle from Bulma.
"Fair, but seriously, why are they both so attractive? Like, it should be illegal to be that attractive!" she said only half-jokingly, prompting Future Vegeta to comment further.
"Perhaps it's the incredible strength? Or the reduced aging process?" he suggested in that same wry tone, earning him a richer laugh and a counterpoint from Bulma.
"Maybe, but honestly, I think it's mostly just those damn cheekbones, dude," she said, blushing a bit in spite of herself before she focused more intently on her work. "Stupid sexy cyborgs..." she muttered indignantly, which Future Vegeta managed to catch with his keen hearing.
"I may be 'going out on a limb here,' as you say, but I believe there is a simple enough method of relieving this evident tension you're experiencing," he said coyly, causing the blush to intensify. "From what I understand, the twins are roughly in their 20s somewhere, and Android 17 certainly seems like the type to be interested in, oh, what's the word you humans use for women like yourself? It's on the tip of my tongue, it's an acronym, starts with an M-"
"Oh no-ho-ho!" Bulma said, blushing crimson and laughing in spite of herself, her work briefly forgotten as she held up her hands like she was trying to physically shield herself from Future Vegeta's words. "Do not finish that sentence, please! I am not ready to think of myself that way! I'm only thirty!" she added, beginning to calm down yet still speaking with a sort of panicky sincerity.
"My apologies, but I trust my point has been made?" Future Vegeta replied smugly, earning him another bap on the shoulder from the still-flustered Bulma.
"Oh, shut up, your highness," she replied dryly, while at the same time not denying that the point had indeed been made. After a moment of awkward silence, Bulma eventually spoke again, quieter this time. "Look, I'm not...I mean, assuming you're right, and assuming I did, y'know, pursue that - which was a joke between me and my ex, by the way - are you sure you're...alright, with that?" she finished nervously, sounding genuinely troubled. Future Vegeta sighed deeply.
"Truthfully, it would bother me a bit, if only because it's still difficult for me to fully trust those two. However, I assure you I've moved on from the blunders I made upon getting here," Future Vegeta replied. "I shouldn't have put you on the spot when I arrived, and for that I deeply apologize. I suppose it was more difficult than I had anticipated to mentally separate my feelings about you from my feelings about...well, you, technically. However, the fact remains that you are not her, and so my feelings on what you do with your own life are ultimately irrelevant. I will simply have to manage my response to all of that on my own time, which as you're well aware...I have plenty of." That last dry remark got a weak chuckle from Bulma, who seemed more or less satisfied with that answer, but curious about something she'd wanted to ask about for some time. Now that this conversation had provided an outlet for it, she figured she might as well give it a shot.
After all, like he said, they had nothing but time.
"What's she like?" Bulma asked, briefly pondering the irony of asking such a question about a woman who was literally an alternate version of herself. Future Vegeta started suddenly, being caught off guard by the question until a soft smile came to his lips.
"A lot like you, and yet...very different in some ways," he began, speaking of her in the kind of wistful way that made it clear to Bulma that he really did love this other version of her with all his heart. "When I met her, she was a lot less cheerful than you are now, for obvious reasons. After losing almost everything, she became much more withdrawn, much more serious. She wouldn't say a lot of the exaggerated, half-joking things I've heard you say about your appearance or your less-than-stellar love life or other frivolous things like that, no offense intended. She simply didn't have the time nor the luxury to indulge in such a mundane thing as hope for a brighter future...at least, not until I showed up half-dead in front of her."
"Hm," Bulma said simply, lost in thought as Future Vegeta continued.
"After I recovered, after we evacuated the Earth, we both began to open up to each other. I think it was mostly an effort on her part to get me to open up more, ever since...well," he paused, and Bulma knew from what she'd heard of his story what tearful moment he lost himself in for a time before returning to the present, in a sense. "Suffice it to say, it was a long, long process, and a very tumultuous one at that. I had a lot to unlearn, and she was more patient with me than I deserved, but that didn't mean she wouldn't smack me upside the head whenever I said something I shouldn't have." Both of them laughed at that, the unintentional parallel between such a situation and Bulma's playful taps on his shoulder just moments prior not being lost on either of them. "Of course, I wasn't exactly in a position to put up much resistance. After all...she saved my life."
An awkward silence hung over the air once more as Future Vegeta stared off into the middle distance, his longing for the woman he loved more than evident to that woman's younger counterpart, perhaps more so than anyone else. Although it left Bulma in a strange position of not knowing what to say in order to make him feel better, it also gave her a moment to look at him, really look at him since he tumbled through a tunnel back in time and wound up half-dead on her own doorstep in a grim parallel to her future self's life. It had been hard for her to accept that any version of Vegeta could be as humble and kind as the man who lay before her now: willing to put aside his obsession with beating Goku, willing to go to all of this trouble to ensure that they would never face the horrors of his own timeline, willing to make an effort to give the Ginyu Force and even his evil past self a chance at redemption instead of just killing them all immediately. He hadn't completely let go of his Saiyan pride or his Saiyan ruthlessness: Gero's lab was proof enough of that. Still, he'd found a way to channel those qualities of himself into a more just and honorable direction than the ego and greed which clearly still reigned supreme in his younger counterpart's mind. Of course, that observation prompted a whole new train of thought, one which she had been idly pondering for some time as well, but had similarly been hesitant to voice until now.
"Now, I'm not trying to go to bat for him or anything, but...do you think it's too late for the other Vegeta?" Bulma asked, stunning Future Vegeta out of his longing reverie and forcing him to really think about that question for the first time since the pair fought.
"I...I'm not sure. I hope not, but the Vegeta of this time...it was too soon," Future Vegeta argued before elaborating on his point. "If he had been on that planet longer, if he had learned the lessons that I did in my own time, I have no doubt that he would have been put on a very similar path to becoming a better man. He might have still become lost in his desire to get revenge on Kakarot and the rest of you for all of the indignities he suffered, but with all of them alive to show him mercy yet again...I like to think he would've let it go eventually." The two were left in silence for a moment, Future Vegeta mulling over his choices and Bulma eventually daring to speak.
"But he didn't," she said simply, with a tone of grim resolution in her voice that Future Vegeta understood all too well, for he felt it more keenly than anyone.
"But he didn't," he repeated. "He was sent away from that path, practically gift-wrapped a method to achieve everything I wanted to achieve back then, and although I could not have known it at the time, the fact remains that my actions are what made all of this possible." Another pause as the truth of what Future Vegeta said hung in the air between them like a black cloud which rendered them quiet. "I don't know if there's any hope left for him," Future Vegeta continued eventually. "I want to believe that there is, if only because that proves that Pybara was right. That there has always been some long-buried scrap of goodness in me, in every version of me. However..." With this, Future Vegeta put two fingers to his forehead and searched for the most familiar ki signature in the universe. "I can still sense him, far away from us, hurtling towards Planet Chilled, and he doesn't appear to be stopping. As much as I've been trying to tell myself that my efforts to save him weren't in vain, that the memories of a better way which I showed him will get through to him somehow, I think I have to accept that killing him eventually is the only way to keep this planet safe." The two were silent for a moment before Bulma spoke up in sympathy yet again.
"It must be difficult for you," she remarked. "To imagine yourself in his place, I mean. Losing a fight's one thing, and obviously you've both been through a lot of the same stuff, but he's gonna be on top of the world for a while, just long enough to watch everything he'd worked for crumble apart all around him." She seemed to think better of painting such an evocative image for Future Vegeta as soon as she'd finished speaking, but he could only smile mirthlessly.
"Oh, believe me, I know," he replied matter-of-factly. "I daresay that's another disadvantage of being thrown onto this new path: he hasn't had time to process just how deeply the loss of everything we were affected us, just how much that pain influenced our actions for the worse. When I had time to reflect, truly reflect on what I had been through, it made me realize that a part of me had spent almost my entire life in mourning. All of that pain and regret had built up inside me like a dam waiting to burst, and killing Pybara-" His voice hitched at that as he thought back to the worst moment of his life. "That was the breaking point. That was what caused me to become a Super Saiyan, to lash out in anger at the nearest thing I could find because of how much I hated myself for everything I had done. Vegeta must have hit a breaking point like that as well to transform like he did, but if I had to guess...his breaking point was about his pride. About his fear of being forgotten, of never earning the birthright he had been promised and dying a shameful death on a nowhere planet...with nobody inclined to miss him." Future Vegeta seemed reluctant to talk after that, causing Bulma to instinctively reach a hand out for a more comforting shoulder touch.
"I'll...I'll keep on working in another lab," she said, beginning to pack up her things. "Sorry for, y'know, drudging up all of these bad memories," she added in a low tone of voice, only for Future Vegeta to hold up a hand and lightly hold her in place with a weak telekinetic grip, much as he had with his wife so many years ago.
"Do not apologize, Bulma," he said, his expression a mask of utter seriousness as he looked into her eyes and saw the bright woman his wife had been once, the woman she slowly became again after years spent away from the rubble of her ruined world. Years spent with him of all people, falling in love and raising their family together, a family whom he loved more than anything in the universe. He had to make sure that the light in this Bulma's eyes didn't dim the same way his wife's had once. "Just...promise me something," he added solemnly, leaving Bulma somewhat nervous.
"W-what?" she asked, unsure where exactly he was going with this, yet knowing that his tone left no room for argument, only to find herself surprised when he looked at her with a smile.
"Live your life, Bulma. Live it well," he said, firmly and warmly in equal measure, before adopting a slightly teasing expression. "And don't spend it all in your labs," he added with a wink.
Bulma lightly chuckled at that, feeling his telekinetic grip relaxed as he was forced to lay out from even that limited manipulation of ki. "Good night, Vegeta," she said softly before closing the door and leaving him to rest as she took the fruits of her labor elsewhere. She had planned to take it to one of the reserve labs she used for projects like this, but it just so happened that the route to get there passed by the reasonably spacious guest quarters that she had just assigned to Android 17.
Now, it was rather late, the light was off, and it was entirely possible that 17 had already gone back to Kame House by now, once their consultation was technically over. However, on the off-chance that he had been about to leave just as her new orders came down, and was somehow caught by the staff as he moved to exit the building, it was quite possible that he was behind that door at that very moment, having quickly gathered his few things and come back in time to settle down for the night. It was a slim chance, but...she had noticed some signs of reciprocal interest, and judging by his teasing remarks, so had Future Vegeta. Perhaps the circumstances she envisioned were more likely than she assumed. In any case, there was only one way to find out.
She quietly moved to open the door...and closed it behind her as soon as the light turned on.
"Ahh...alone at last."
Roshi sank down gratefully onto the couch, breathing in the quiet sounds of the island around his home and reveling in the simple pleasure of having it to himself once more. Although he'd been genuine about enjoying the twins' brief company, that whole arrangement had largely been for his student's benefit. Judging from a few of the surface thoughts he'd skimmed before he teleported away to fetch Android 16, it would seem his efforts had paid off. He didn't expect to receive much in the way of thanks for those efforts, but in this case, helping was its own reward...along with having the house to himself.
Hey, they do call him the Turtle Hermit for a reason, after all.
"Master Roshi? I didn't see you come in!" a familiar voice called out from the hallway, lower to the ground than most voices tended to be.
Well, they called him that for two reasons, at least.
"Ah, Turtle, it's good to see you," Roshi remarked genuinely before a smirk came to his features. "I have had quite the day," he quipped, causing Turtle to chuckle politely.
"Oh, yes, I imagine so," he replied, knowing what the old master was referring to. Without another word, he climbed up onto the couch and took his usual position by Roshi's side. The two didn't speak for a while, preferring to listen to the rushing of the waves against the shore and the other natural sounds that their home's location facilitated. Eventually, Turtle spoke up, having sensed that there was something else to Roshi's silence. "Are you alright, master?" he asked softly, startling the old man out of his introspective reverie before he sighed, willing to trust in his old friend.
"I've been thinking more and more about this strange business with King Kai," Roshi began, causing Turtle to lean in a little closer in order to listen. "When I was training up there, he reacted oddly to my ability to react to attacks automatically. He seemed to think there was something unusual about it, only to change his mind and claim he was mistaken without elaborating. I'm still not entirely certain on what it all means...but I have noticed some changes."
Turtle paled at that, glancing up at Roshi with concern in his eyes. "Changes?" he repeated nervously, to which Roshi nodded gravely.
"It started around the time I figured out Instant Transmission," Roshi began. "It was around that point that me and young Gohan began sparring in earnest, no longer attempting to limit our power levels. Using all my tricks, I could dodge him for a brief period, but eventually he got the drop on me, and somehow...I knew it was going to happen." There was a pause as Turtle registered what Roshi was implying before the old man continued with a hint of breathless eagerness. "This wasn't mere prediction or reading his thoughts as he attacked. For the briefest instant, I could've sworn that I saw him throw the punch before he threw it, before my own conscious mind could even register that it was happening." Although he marveled at this for a second, the old man chuckled as he went back to his story. "Mind you, that didn't help with actually dodging it, but...it was a start," he finished as he briefly reflected on other moments like that throughout the past year of training. "Gohan's become tremendously powerful with that new form of his, and his martial arts prowess has gone up by leaps and bounds compared to how he was when we started. Even these strange glimpses I was getting couldn't help me forever, and yet...I still kept up with him longer than I really should have," Roshi finished, causing Turtle to cock his head slightly.
"Have you told Gohan about this?" Turtle asked. Roshi sighed before shaking his head.
"Not about the glimpses, but I told him what happened with King Kai on the first day of our training, and I'm sure he noticed how well I kept up despite the ever-growing gap in our strength," Roshi replied. "I didn't want to worry him any further, is all. He was already concerned about how much I needed to ration myself to make sure he had enough food to last the year. He didn't also need to worry about me changing in some odd way." Turtle nodded slowly.
"I suppose it would be best not to burden the boy more than necessary," he agreed. "So, what now?" he asked after a moment. Roshi thought about it for a time before chuckling again.
"First, we rest. Then, we raise some hell with 'King Vegeta,' and then..." Roshi said, looking up towards the sky with a determined expression. "Then we finally get ourselves some answers."
Alright, another chapter over and done with!
Bit more of a set-up chapter once again, with a few subtle and not-so-subtle developments based on previous chapters which I'm hoping will go over well enough. The stuff going on with Roshi will be elaborated upon eventually, and it's a development I've been planning for him pretty much since the beginning, so I'm glad to finally have the opportunity to start hinting at it. Some more time with Future Vegeta is also something I've been meaning to do for a while, and even if it isn't a full on flashback like some suggested, I hope that it does go at least a little ways towards reinforcing his redemption.
As for the other thing, I'm still deciding how seriously to take this Bulma/17 idea, since I only really came up with it for that banter with Yamcha a while back, but now find myself kinda liking it a bit. I mean, heck, his canon wife is stated to be a zoologist, so it's established he likes 'em smart, and as for Bulma...I mean, come on. Without any of the typical options available, who else would she go with than the literal cyborg? In any case, all it is right now is a vaguely hinted fade-to-black thing that could easily be written off like a bad hangover, so it's a good time for me to get feedback from y'all as we take a detour next chapter to catch up with what King Vegeta's up to.
Also, goes without saying, but if Bulma being bi is the authorial fiat that finally turns you off of this fic, the door is right there. =/ Dragon Ball could stand to catch up at least a little bit in that regard, and Bulma is a character for whom such a change makes a lot of sense, in my opinion. Besides, I'm just borrowing from the headcanon I came up with for my inactive Launch - Yamcha swap fic "The Blonde-Haired Bandit" (which I really need to get back to, gagh! x{) and I like it, so there.
Anywho, don't believe there's any new power levels in this chapter, so it's time for review responses!
Crinightnight says: "Good job and Happy new year!" Thanks! It was rather serendipitous that it landed on a Sunday this year, lol.
Zeon Paralysis Crystal says:
"1. Hey whatever works and besides. Roshi would be laughing throughout the rebellion
2. Fair Point, such wasted potential on Toei's part. Not even a single episode is dedicated to showing their universe and home. Maybe Xenoverse villains perhaps? Just guessing here.
3. The legacy are gonna be an interesting endeavor to portray.
4. Yeah thought so, a few did sound stupid the moment I posted."
1. Indeed. Roshi's life has certainly been a long and interesting one.
2. Yeah, that's my main issue: if you're gonna bring in a multiverse, let your characters explore that multiverse! Also, I don't even wanna try to untangle what's going on with Xenoverse, lmao.
3. Yeah, especially since a good chunk of those legacy characters are gonna be regular human kids, so it'll be interesting to see how they set themselves apart.
4. Hey, at least on the bright side, none of them were as bad as "Super Saiyan Rage." =/
SmartCookie0 says:
"I think 180m is a little high for Wrath Gohan. Were it my decision, I'd probably put 25-40m, but I'd be fine with 170m. A consistent multiplier seems definitely wrong, for this high of a power level. Wrath should sacrifice at least a little speed, compared to if he had this strength naturally; he's larger, and so more massive. Being heavier slows you a lot, unless you're near-lightspeed, and he's not quite that fast in the middle of a fight yet.
"Roshi consistently dodging someone much stronger than him is very impressive.
But it seems unlikely even some speed-up or mind-reading we don't know about would let him dodge someone 6x stronger for an entire fight. Good job writing. Just keep doing whatever you've been doing, probably."
After looking at this again, I can see your argument on Wrath State, but that multiplier is directly connected to Wrath State being recharacterized as a refined version of the Oozaru transformation, which is a ten times power level increase. Having refined it to the point that Gohan only grows to be about the size of Teen Gohan, I don't really see how he'd be weighed down significantly enough for a noticeable speed drop, although I can concede that a kid suddenly growing to roughly adult size would be disorienting.
Yeah, Roshi himself can agree that it's all rather bizarre. We'll be shedding light on that eventually, and hopefully the explanation passes muster, lol.
The Rocha says:
"Really liking the characterization work here. I like your take on Maron and her freakish power level. A mimicry fighter can be useful with the right techniques. Maybe she can learn Instant Transmission and be a transporter and medic. Seeing the girls get some training done is going to be pretty cool."
Hm, wasn't necessarily my intention to imply that Maron is uniquely good at mimicry, at least not to the level of, like, a Saiyan. Her perfectly replicating the Wolf Fang Fist is simply the result of watching Yamcha's Budokai fights over and over and over again, something anybody could probably do with enough time and dedication. Even so, I do agree she's got potential, as do all of the other girls, and I'm looking forward to having them be strong enough to at least contribute to some extent.
"Gohan creating his form of Wrath State and the Lunar Flare was awesome, especially Master Roshi helping. Hmmm... I wonder if Lunar Flare can be used to take a saiyan out of SSJ and into Oozaru. That would be a really evil way to use it. Then again, it could backfire and create Golden Oozaru."
Y'know, hadn't thought about that. I guess theoretically, although everyone they know of who can go Super Saiyan doesn't have a tail, so that tactic's sorta useless atm.
"So, is that Master Roshi showing his limited form of Ultra Instinct he does in the manga?"
Perhaps it is, or perhaps it's something else. Only one person can really say for sure at the moment, and Roshi definitely intends to have words with him eventually.
"That Tien-Yamcha-Piccolo-16 training session is going get some legendary gains for sure. No idea why 16 is there, can this version power up by training?"
Nah, he can't grow stronger by training. He's only really there as a brick wall for the others to try and measure up against, not to mention all his martial arts knowledge was drilled into his head by a guy who didn't know anything about fighting that he didn't read in a book or watch through a camera. He can already match Goku through his energy absorption and raw power, but what helped Goku last as long as he did the first time was his superior fighting experience. If 16 wants to catch up to that, he's gonna need to gain practical experience fighting skilled martial artists instead of defaulting to his programmed techniques. And really, who better to teach him how to beat Goku than some of the only people still alive who have ever pushed him to his limits in a fair fight?
Well, with all that said, thank you all for reading, stay safe, have yourselves a fantastic night, and take care. See y'all next month!