Kaede fled into the shadowy woods, unable to bear staying in the blood-soaked classroom a moment longer. She stumbled through the underbrush, the injured puppy cradled protectively in her arms. Finding a large oak tree, she slumped against it, utterly drained.
Her mind was still reeling, struggling to accept all that had transpired. Kakarot, the only person who has ever protected her, was gone. He was the only one she could ever consider a friend.
She hadn't been able to give him even a proper burial. The thought made shame burn within her. He had sacrificed himself for her sake, and she repaid him by leaving his broken body behind like trash.
Kaede clenched her fists. It wasn't right that he had died so cruelly, simply because she was a little different. Why did people have to hate what they didn't understand? Fresh tears stung her eyes, but she stubbornly held them back. Crying wouldn't change anything now.
The puppy whined and licked her hand, snapping her from her dark thoughts. Kaede gently stroked its soft fur. "I'm so sorry," she murmured. The poor thing had nearly lost its life today too. She had failed to protect it needed her the most and now Kakarot is dead.
"Your injuries will heal," she told the puppy silently. "I'll make sure of it." Kakarot would want me to be strong. But the ache of losing her very first friend still throbbed deep within her heart.
Overwhelmed with grief and self-loathing, Kaede grasped at her horns as if to tear them from her skull. It was these cursed things that had marked her as different and made her a target for cruelty and abuse. If not for them, Kakarot might still be alive.
Suddenly she hears the sound of something dropping. There stood a young boy, staring at her with an expression of wonder. At his feet lay a music box that released a melancholy tune into the silence of the woods. The song and the scene seemed frozen in time.
Kaede tensed as the young boy approached, instinctively preparing to defend herself. But he simply smiled and held out the music box as it played a delicate melody. Against her will, Kaede felt herself entranced by the haunting song.
The boy, breaking the silence, asked, "Do you like the song?"
"What?"
"Well, why else would you be staring?" the boy responded.
Kaede looked away, abashed. "I just thought it was a beautiful song, that's all."
Kouta's eyes lit up when he saw the small puppy nestled in the strange horned girl's arms. "What a cute dog!" he exclaimed. He reached out to pet it, but the girl instantly recoiled, shielding the puppy from him.
Kouta blinked in surprise at her reaction. The girl was glaring at him warily, clutching the puppy tight to her chest.
"You can't touch him," she said in a low voice.
Kouta tilted his head, confused by her protectiveness. "How come? I only want to pet him."
The girl's eyes narrowed further. "No. I don't trust you."
Kouta thought he saw a deep sadness in the girl's gaze then. The girl seemed intent on keeping the dog safe now, regardless of what.
Kouta slowly lowered his hand, giving her a reassuring smile. "It's okay, I won't hurt him. You can keep protecting him."
The girl continued to eye him guardedly. But her stance relaxed a fraction at his words.
Kouta studied her curiously. "Are those horns growing out of your head? They look like horns!" he exclaimed with innocent fascination, studying the bony protrusions on her head.
Kaede braced herself for more cruel taunts, ready to summon her invisible arms in retaliation. "I'm sure you find my horns disgusting, don't you?" she said bitterly.
She was sick of this. She was sick of all of it. 'Why won't people just leave me alone?' she thought.
Kouta's eyes widened. "What? No way! They're so cool!" he exclaimed. "I'm really jealous - horns would be totally awesome to have!"
Kaede froze, stunned by his words. She had been ready to lash out, so used to hatred and fear. But Kouta's innocent admiration was completely unexpected.
Her vectors disappeared as the boy put his hand on her shoulder. No one has ever said her horns were cool, not even Kakarot. And even if he did believe it, he never said it out loud.
"You're jealous? You have no idea how much hardship I've endured because of these horns," Kaede said bitterly, her body tensing as painful memories surfaced.
Kouta blinked, taking in the deep hurt reflected in her eyes. "I don't really understand, but I think your horns look amazing," he insisted earnestly. "I'm not joking - they're the coolest thing I've ever seen!"
Kaede turned away, caught off guard by his sincerity. She was used to cruelty, not compliments. "Just leave me alone. You're not being funny," she muttered.
But Kouta was undeterred. He stepped closer, eyes shining with friendly excitement. "Hey, what do you think about being friends? I'm staying with relatives here for the summer. I won't be around long, but while I'm still in town we should play together! It'll be fun!"
Kaede hesitated, part of her wanting to accept Kouta's innocent friendship offer. But harsh memories surfaced, reminding her to be cautious.
She recalled the girl at the orphanage who had seemed kind, offering to keep her secret about the injured puppy. Kaede had let her guard down, only for that trust to be betrayed.
And then there was Kakarot, his voice still echoing in her mind. "This is why you shouldn't be so quick to trust strangers. You should have known better than to confide in some random weakling."
Kakarot had died a brutal death because she trusted the wrong person. She couldn't just disregard one of his last pieces of advice to her. How could she ever trust anyone again?
"You must be joking!" Kaede said bitterly, glaring back at Kouta.
Kouta blinked, taken aback by her sudden hostility. "Oh, why do you say that?"
"Because I hate all of you!" Kaede spat out the words like venom. The pain of past betrayals simmered just below the surface.
Kouta simply stared at her, confused and concerned by this venomous outburst.
But he refused to give up so easily. "You hate all of us? Hold on!" he said firmly. "My name is Kouta. I'll be waiting right here for you around the same time tomorrow. So be sure to come, okay? It's a promise!"
Kaede hesitated, wavering between distrust and being tempted by this offer of unconditional friendship. Perhaps Kakarot had been wrong. Or perhaps Kouta would prove him right. Either way, she had to know for sure.
"...Alright Kouta, I'll come tomorrow," she finally conceded. "But this doesn't mean we're friends."
Kouta just grinned, undaunted. "Got it! See you tomorrow then. Don't forget!"
As he waved and headed off, Kaede watched him go with conflicting emotions. Could she bring herself to open up and trust again after everything? She wasn't sure. But something about Kouta's gentle spirit stirred a faint flicker of hope inside her. A hope she thought had been extinguished forever.
It wasn't long before one of the orphanage staff walked into the classroom, only to be met with a horrific scene. The carnage was evident upon a glance. It took only seconds for the staff member's screams to echo through the hallways. Unable to comprehend the nightmarish sight, she turned and fled.
Moments later, frantic calls went out to the police and paramedics. Help was coming, but far too late.
The police officers stepped into a scene of absolute carnage within the classroom. Young bodies lay at unnatural angles, bearing silent witness to the violence inflicted upon them.
"My god..." one of the officers murmured, bile rising in his throat.
His partner set his jaw in grim resolve. "Looks like some kind of massacre. I'll call in forensics and preserve the scene. You check for survivors, though it doesn't seem likely."
The police started to cover the obviously deceased children with blankets, preserving what little modesty and dignity remained to them.
Reaching the last body, the officers hesitated. Unlike the others, this young boy appeared intact, with no visible wounds save a head injury. One paramedic quickly knelt, pressing his fingers to the boy's neck.
After a tense moment, he looked up sharply. "I've got a pulse! It's faint, but he's alive!"
His teammate hurried over, eyes widening. "That's impossible..." he breathed, taking in the pool of blood around the child's head.
They swiftly brought over a stretcher, handling the boy with urgent but gentle care. As they maneuvered his limp body onto it, the boy's eyes slowly slid open.
The paramedics froze, shocked to see him weakly regain consciousness. "Just hang in there, kid," one soothed reflexively. "We'll get you to the hospital."
With impressive speed, the boy's head jerked up, surprising everyone present. While still sitting down, he started to look around the scene with a confused look.
"What's...going on?" he rasped, wincing a little.
"You've been injured. We need to get you to the hospital right away," one paramedic replied gently.
The boy blinked, touching his head tentatively, feeling the wetness around it. "I am?"
As they moved closer to assist him, the child simply stood up on his own, steady on his feet. The paramedics exchanged astonished looks. After a head wound like that, he should be barely conscious, much less standing.
The boy took in the bodies under blankets around him. "What happened to them?" he asked. "Why are they covered up?"
The emergency responders hesitated, unsure how to explain the horrific scene to one so young. "They...got hurt badly," one simplified. "We're here to help."
The boy considered this, then responded, "Well, you should give them bandages then. That will make them feel better."
Despite everything, the paramedics had to suppress sad smiles at his innocence. "We'll do our best to help them," one affirmed gently.
The paramedics tended to the young boy, carefully examining his head injury. Blood matted his dark hair, but miraculously the wound appeared relatively minor given the severity of the trauma that had occurred.
"Does anything hurt? Are you feeling any pain?" the lead paramedic asked, flashing a light into the boy's eyes to check his pupils.
The child blinked against the bright light but showed no obvious signs of concussion. "Not really," he insisted. "My head just feels a little fuzzy."
His lack of distress was astonishing given the situation. The paramedics shared an amazed glance before continuing their assessment.
"Can you tell us your name?" the other asked gently as he checked the boy's vital signs.
The boy's brow furrowed, his gaze turning inward as he struggled to remember. His eyes took on a look of deep concentration. He doesn't remember his name, in fact, he doesn't remember much at all. The paramedics waited patiently, the silence hanging heavy in the air.
Suddenly, the boy's eyes lit up. A fragmented memory floated to the surface - hazy and indistinct, but anchored to a name. He was smaller, and younger, playing in a sunny yard. The voice of an older woman called out to him.
"Son Goku!"
The boy's expression cleared. "Son Goku! That's it. My name is Son Goku!"
The paramedics exchanged a surprised glance at the unusual name. "Son Goku? Are you sure that's your name?" the other paramedic asked gently.
"Yes, Im sure!" Goku responded with a bright smile.
The police officers approached Son Goku, their expressions somber. "We need to ask you some questions before the paramedics take you to the hospital," one officer said gently.
Goku just blinked at them innocently. The officers were taken aback by how unfazed he seemed despite the horrific scene surrounding them.
"So do you remember what happened here?" one of them asked.
The boy blinked large eyes at him. "No, I don't remember," he replied plainly.
The officer's brow furrowed in concern. "Do you know any of the children here?" he pressed.
The boy looked at the blankets, his expression vaguely curious rather than upset. "No, I don't know any of them," he responded.
The officer turned to his partner, who gave a subtle shake of his head indicating he'd had no luck gathering information either.
The officer tried again. "What about your parents, son? Do you know where they are?"
Goku tilted his head thoughtfully. "Parents? What's that?"
His partner swiftly smacked the back of his head, hissing under his breath, "This is an orphanage, you insensitive idiot!"
The officer cleared his throat awkwardly. "Ah, my mistake. Well, we'll get you looked after kid."
The paramedics gently guided Goku outside towards the waiting ambulance. As one paramedic guided him, she noticed something odd protruding from his lower back. Before she realized what she was doing, she had reached out and grabbed it.
Instantly Goku yelped, his body stiffening in surprise and discomfort. The paramedic quickly released her hold, alarmed at his reaction.
Goku turned to glare at her, his eyes narrowed. "Why did you grab my tail like that?" he asked irritated.
The paramedics froze, staring at each other in bewilderment. "Your...tail?" one paramedic repeated in disbelief. They peered closely at Goku's back and saw the furry appendage.
"Yeah, that really hurt when you pulled it," Goku insisted with a slight frown, still tenderly rubbing the spot on his lower back.
The paramedics exchanged confused looks. Thinking the tail is fake, they decide to just play along.
The paramedic crouched down to Goku's eye level. "I'm so sorry about that," she said gently. "We should get going to the hospital now, okay?"
Goku's eyes relaxed and he nodded agreeably to the paramedic's suggestion. But as he climbed into the ambulance, he suddenly turned back with a puzzled expression.
"What's a hospital anyway?" he asked. "Is it a place where you eat food? I am kinda hungry." He rubbed his belly for emphasis.
The paramedics exchanged another glance. "Well, it's not exactly for eating," the paramedic explained patiently. "It's where doctors and nurses take care of people who are sick or hurt."
Goku's hand drifted up to gently touch the wound on his head. "So they'll take care of me there?" he asked uncertainly.
"That's right," the paramedic replied with an encouraging smile. "The doctors will make sure you're all fixed up."
Goku's fingers rubbed his head as he considered this. Doctors...fixing him up. His young mind started to wander, imagining what that might entail.
Suddenly his eyes went wide with fear. Now he remembers what doctors must use to fix people. Needles! That must be how they would fix his head - by sticking him with lots of sharp, pointy needles!
Goku's breathing quickened as fear flooded his mind. "No, no needles! I don't want to go!" he cried out, shaking his head wildly.
The paramedics tried to reassure him, but Goku pulled away, insisting "I'm fine! I don't need to go to the hospital!"
As one paramedic reached out to gently restrain him, Goku suddenly leaped straight over her head, landing nimbly behind her. The paramedics stared in shock at the athletic maneuver.
Just then the police officers came running out, alerted by the commotion. "What's going on?" one asked.
"He's panicking about going to the hospital," a paramedic explained helplessly.
The officers surveyed the frantic child. "Let's get him settled down so we can get him checked out," one decided, moving towards Goku.
But as the officer approached, Goku darted away with surprising speed, evading their grasp. The paramedics and police gave chase, but he ducked and wove past them with astonishing agility.
"How is he doing that?" a paramedic exclaimed as the boy leaped up onto an ambulance bumper, deftly balancing out of reach.
Despite his young age and head wound, Goku moved with grace and swiftness. The officers panted, hands on their knees.
"Kid's...incredibly fast..." one gasped out in disbelief. They stared up helplessly as Goku peered down at them, still trembling with fear of the hospital. Coaxing him down would require creative thinking and patience.
"I'm not going!" Goku yelled down at the paramedics and police officers, his small body tensed and ready to flee.
"Now just relax. We only want to help," one officer said in a calming tone, hands raised.
But Goku was past listening. His gaze darted around, looking for an escape route. Spotting the forest bordering the orphanage, he made his decision.
With a nimble leap, Goku sprung from the ambulance roof and hit the ground running toward the trees.
"Hey, stop!" The officers gave chase but quickly fell behind as Goku's small form disappeared into the dense forest.
"How is he so fast?" a paramedic panted, hands braced on knees. They listened futilely for sounds of pursuit, but all was quiet.
One officer clicked his radio. "We've got an injured minor escaping into the woods. Requesting backup for search and rescue."
As the radio crackled with acknowledgment, the team stared helplessly into the dark forest. The mysterious boy had evaded them for now thanks to his unfathomable speed and agility. But they had to find him - before he got lost or his injuries worsened. Not to mention he could be what they need to find out who killed these children. Gripping flashlights, they plunged into the trees after him.
Kaede stepped out of the shower, the towel wrapped around her head the only cover for her naked body. She moved past the lifeless forms sprawled on the living room floor without a glance. They were only obstacles now, barely human to her.
Entering the kitchen, she checked the refrigerator, hoping to find something to eat. But it was mostly empty, save for a few condiments and a wilted lettuce head. Kaede closed it with a look of resigned annoyance. She would have to move on again soon.
Kaede spotted her small puppy whimpering in the corner. She went over and stroked its fur reassuringly. At least she had managed to protect her one loyal companion through everything.
Searching the kitchen cabinets, Kaede finally found an unopened bag of dog food. She poured some into a bowl and set it down for the grateful puppy, faintly smiling as it ate eagerly. She may have lost touch with her humanity, but this innocent creature still anchored the remaining shreds of tenderness left inside her.
As her puppy ate, Kaede's eyes drifted back to the news report on TV, hardening once more. She didn't have the luxury of tenderness anymore. To survive, she had to bury her emotions and keep running.
She listened to the TV as a news anchor described the grisly scene found at the orphanage that morning.
"There are still no leads in the case of the murdered children found at dawn today in their area Children's Home," the anchorwoman said, her tone grim. "Amidst growing concern from neighbors of the facility, a manhunt for a missing girl from the home continues."
Kaede listened impassively, her face betraying no reaction. But then the anchor added a detail that made her brows furrow slightly.
"In related news, a young boy was also found injured at the scene. Witnesses say he escaped from police custody before being transported to the hospital. Authorities have not released the child's name, but describe him as approximately 12 years old with black spiky hair."
Kaede stared at the TV, eyes widening slightly as the anchor described the escaped boy. She thought of only one possible person. Could it really be him? But she had watched him die...hadn't she?
He was the strongest person she knew. If anyone would survive what had been done to him, it would only be him.
A flicker of hope rose within her that Kakarot might be the one who escaped. But along with that hope came a swirling storm of guilt and shame.
She should have stayed by his side but instead, she abandons him when she thinks he died. If by some miracle he was still alive, would he ever be able to forgive her?
Kaede clutched at her chest, overwhelmed by the possibility. She squeezed her eyes shut and whispered "Please, don't be angry with me Kakarot. I'm so sorry I failed you."
Conflicting emotions swirled within Kaede. "Please be okay."
So here it is, chapter 4.
It looks like Kaede left the orphanage thinking Kakarot was dead. This is when she comes across Kouta. Turns out Kakarot survived, but due to a head injury, he isn't Kakarot anymore, he is Son Goku. He escapes from the cops and into the surrounding forest, his fate unknown. Kaede starts to get suspicious that her past-tensed friend is alive. Will they meet again? You'll find out in the next chapter.
This chapter was originally gonna be longer but then I made the decision it would be better to cut it off at this point. This means some of Chapter 5 is already done. This also means you might see the chapter as soon as tomorrow if I have time. It also might be one of the longer chapters because I wanna get through many stuff in it.
Now I wanna take this time to answer some of the confusion and questions I have been seeing in the reviews (Or just anything I wanna say about the story).
Last chapter, Goku got beat pretty badly. Knowing Goku survived a fall from a high ravine as an infant, the damage probably wouldn't be as bad as I described it. To be honest, I just wanted to make Goku seem dead to Kaede. And now that they are separated for a while, how will they cross paths again? I think it's gonna be interesting when they eventually cross paths again and Kaede sees how Goku is completely different and doesn't even remember who she is.
As for Goku's power level, it's around the same as him from the beginning of the Dragon Ball series. Since he never had Grandpa Gohan to teach him any martial arts it might be slightly less (though he still trained regularly). So instead of a power level of 12, it might be 11 or 10. And without people like Master Roshi to teach Goku anything, it'll be a long time before he can grasp Ki attacks himself. This isn't a problem now since so far he has been surrounded by mostly normal humans. But you can probably guess it will be a problem in the future. But don't worry because I have thought of ways to try to get Goku as strong as his canon. And, Goku still has his tail just in case he meets someone too strong.
And for the type of universe, in which this story takes place. Think of it as the Elfen Lied Earth in the Dragon Ball universe. This means you will probably see mostly characters from Elfen Lied for a good period. Though you can guess things not from Earth in Dragon Ball are soon to be seen. We already know Raditz is eventually going to come to Earth. There are also things already on Earth but not from it. I don't know if it matters if I spoil something but you can probably guess what I am trying to say. This will become relevant in approximately 4 to 5 chapters. So yes, you will be seeing more characters from Dragon Ball and it will play a major role in the future.
This will also mean there will be new storylines that slightly diverge from Elfen Lied's main storyline. I still want some events to happen as they do, but a lot of different things will transpire as well. I already have some ideas for what I want to do in the future. As I have said before, certain Dragon Ball characters will eventually become relevant in the story (as well as the collection of certain types of balls), and this is when new events will happen. I don't want this story to just be the Elfen Lied plot but with the addition of Goku.
Well, that's all I have to say about the questions. I've been trying to get the chapters out fast. So far I've been good with time management. At his pace, I might even complete the story in a month. I estimate this story will come to its conclusion around this story's equivalent of the Saiyan Saga. There will also be elements that allow for it to have a sequel if I choose. This is so I don't end up biting more than I can chew and eventually give up. I wanna give this story a proper ending.
Well, see everyone next chapter.
