"Hey dad?"

"Bulma!" Dr. Briefs said with a smile, stubbing out his cigarette and twisting away from the microscope he had been using to look at… well, Bulma wasn't sure what her father was working on. With him it could have been a thousand different things. People tended to forget that while his first degree was in Physical Science he had, in his long life, earned a multitude of others. Couple that with his mind working so quick at times that he tended to solve problems before he even finished studying them and it was common to find him with multiple projects going at once.

'If it weren't for mom's laser focus I probably would have been just as hyper erratic as he gets!' Bulma thought to herself as she moved into his workshop. "Are you busy? I can come back…"

"Nonsense!" Dr. Briefs declared, patting a chair. "How many times have I told you that you are welcome to interrupt me at any time?"

Bulma, knowing that he wasn't speaking hypothetically, instantly stated, "28 times."

"Exactly."

"Its just… I know you are busy and I'm probably being silly-"

Her father raised a hand, cutting her off. "Bulma. There is nothing you could say that is silly." He paused. "Well, unless you were TRYING to be silly. Are you?"

"No dad," she said with a smile.

"Then you aren't being silly." He reached up and rubbed his beloved cat Scratch under the chin. "My inventions… they are just lifeless things. You. Your mother. Our pets. They are what matter. People tell me that what I create will stand the test of time and that's why I should focus on them… I say that's why I shouldn't. Because they will last forever; all of you will not. I only have so much time with all of you and I don't want to waste a second of it. I set this down-" He picked up a bit of metal, a device of some kind, Bulma wasn't for sure, "-and it will be there when I get back, exactly the same. But I blink and suddenly you aren't babbling at my ankles but rushing off to school." He smiled at her and Bulma found herself managing to smile back. "So… what is it you want to talk about?"

"Well…" She shifted, wringing her hands together. "I guess it… kind of has to do with what you were just talking about. People not being around forever."

"Ah," he said, leaning back in his chair. "Is this about Yamcha?"

"It is," she admitted.

"Feeling bad about breaking up with him and now he's dead."

Bulma winced at that. Her father was being rather direct, yes… but considering they were literally waiting to bring Yamcha back why dance around the subject of death?

"That's the thing, dad… I don't feel bad."

Her father stared at her for several long moments before finally nodding. "Of course. You feel as if you should feel worse and you don't."

"Exactly!" She threw her arms up in the air and rolled back in her chair a few feet. "And what's worse is I don't know how to feel about not knowing how to feel! I mean… should I be more upset because the two of us dated and while I had decided to break up with him because we were having issues he was still my boyfriend up til right now and I should be mourning him? Or am I trying to force myself to mourn him more because I feel like I should but I really don't? Am I too sad or not enough!" she made her chair spin several times. "I just don't know! And its driving me crazy because I feel like everyone is looking at me expecting me to feel worse and sometimes I think they are right and other times I feel like they should lay off and… and…" she suddenly stopped herself. "And now I'm dizzy."

Her father pushed away from his desk and patted her on the knee as Bulma hung her head. "Well, I'd ask if you wanted to know what I think but I think the answer is pretty obvious." She gave her dad a watery smile at that. "Bulma, there is no wrong way to grieve. Anyone who tells you otherwise is a fool. We aren't machines… I should know, I've built enough of them!" She chuckled at that, weak and soft but it was still a chuckle. "We all deal with life in our own ways. We approach everything differently and so long as you aren't breaking some law… then its fine, no matter what we do."

"I know, but-"

Her father cut her off before she could go any further. "Bulma, just look at me and your friend Goku. We are completely different and I don't just mean in terms of how we handle threats. He punches them and I design lasers that burn them up. He married that girl Chichi before he was 20 and I waited till I was in my late 40s before I married. Does that make either of us a bad husband or father?"

"Of course not," Bulma said at once. "Both of you are great. You're… well, you know." She smiled and he nodded once in acceptance of that. "And Goku… oh if you saw how he was with Gohan…"

"That's my point, Bulma. We all live how we wish. And it is different from everyone else and we have no right to judge others for how they live. You mourn how you wish to mourn, sweetie."

"…right," she said, taking a breath. She didn't know if she believed her father but she did appreciate his kind words.

"Now then," he said softly, squeezing her knee, "with that settled can I tell you something that might upset you or might make you feel a bit of relief?"

"Ooookay," she said slowly, unsure just WHAT her father might be getting at.

"You and Yamcha were never going to last."

"…oh," she said, surprised by that rather frank announcement.

"I'm sorry sweetie but it's true. The two of you… well, you didn't fit together well." He looked away, but less because he was ashamed, she could tell, and more that he was trying to figure out how to explain what he was trying to tell her. "You know how sometimes you need a wretch that applies a ton of pressure? The nut is just stubborn and it sticks no matter what you do or however many times you loosen it? And other times there are nuts that need to be handled gently because if you squeeze too hard you could cause it to strip the bolt's threads or dig into the wood? There is nothing wrong with the wrench or the nut. They just don't work together."

"That was me and Yamcha, huh?"

"In my opinion yes. He is a nice boy and a good friend. I hope you two can keep being friends. But you weren't right for each other. I could tell that by the way you two fought."

"Yeah, I can see that," she said with a shake of her head. "The way the two of us would go at each other-"

"That's not what I meant," he said, cutting her off. "It's natural for couples to fight."

"Not you and mom," she said.

That made her father chortle. "Oh, your mother and I find our ways to show we're mad at each other. You just never noticed because we swore never to do that in front of you." He looked her in the eye and she knew at once she'd spend the next few nights lying in her bed and wondering just WHAT she had missed when it came to her parents and their marriage. The fights they had had in secret that she'd never known about. "Couples fight but the good couples know how to fight properly. You and Yamcha? You didn't fight properly at all."

"Because we yelled at each other."

"Because you yelled and he left."

Bulma opened her mouth to counter that. To tell her father he was wrong and that Yamcha wasn't a coward who fled confrontation. That he just knew when to leave unlike so many others.

Yet she found herself unable to say a word.

Her mind went to so many of their fights. How she would get upset with something he would say or do… or just as many times wouldn't say or do… and then the two of them would begin bickering and hurling insults only for Yamcha to leave with a bitter little comment while she was left shouting for him to come back and finish what they had started. And while they would eventually make up it never felt like anything was settled.

'Wasn't that why I decided to finally break up with him?' she thought to herself. 'We fought about him wanting to come late to our reunion because there was that convention he wanted to go to and when I got mad he decided not to come at all? Even though he knew how important it was to me?'

Her father continued. "You have always been someone that needed to be challenged in everything. Your first word was 'why' after all. You were never happy in school, saying that you were tired of the teachers making you hold back so that others could try and catch up. We gave up trying to hide your birthday presents because you always found them."

"You should have tried better," she teased lightly.

"Yamcha was never going to challenge you, Bulma. Not in the way you needed. You need someone that will push back against you and see a fight through to the finish. Yamcha found it easier just to leave the conflict which is why nothing every truly became settled for you two. There is nothing wrong with his choices except they didn't work well for you as a person." He paused, smiling slightly. "Honestly if your friend Goku treated arguments like he does fights I'd have pushed for you to date him!"

"Dad!" Bulma cried out, crinkling her nose in disgust. "I could never… with Goku…"

"Why not? He's a handsome young man. Very passionate."

"He's… so he said something the other day and it made me realize that… he's the brother I never had, okay? So me and him?" She shook her head violently, trying to dislodge those horrid thoughts. "No. Just… no."

Her father chuckled at her reaction which made her scowl all the more at him. "Very well. And like I said it wouldn't work anyway. Outside of a physical fight he's too easy going and timid. Reminds me of some of the boys you used to coo over when you were younger."

"I never 'cooed'," Bulma complained.

"You only saw their looks and never considered their personalities. They were too soft hearted for you… would have cried the first time you raised your voice. You need someone like him but with plenty of passion and determination in all things. And a drive to win that matches your own."

Bulma merely nodded, deciding to keep that all in mind. There was something to what her father had said. A logic that she'd never considered before but now that she knew it couldn't get it out of her head. It was like when she learned a new trick to build an engine and wondered why she'd never tried something like it before.

'Every time we fought I always pushed him and even though I was angry… I was never more upset than when he would walk away or refuse to talk to me. And when we made up I said I was fine and would apologize or tell him that I forgive him but… but I didn't mean it. Not really. I kept dwelling on it. Even now it feels like he died just to avoid talking to me!' She knew that was wrong to think and she'd never say the words aloud but it was true. 'But someone that will challenge me? Who will stand up to me and scream right back when I'm being a bitch? Yeah, that could be frustrating… but no more than anything else. And…' She smirked to herself, 'there are benefits…'

"Sweetie?" Bulma's mother called out. "Your friend Goku is here!"

"The last Dragon Ball!" Bulma said, getting up from her chair and hurrying over to the door only to turn back around and run to her dad, giving him a kiss on the cheek. "Thanks dad!"

"Have fun bringing the dead back to life, sweetie!" He called out after her as Bulma hurried upstairs.

~MC~MC~MC~

Piccolo frowned as he watched Goku greet the rest of his friends. He didn't know why he was sticking around; he'd done his part and gotten the Dragon Ball. It had been ridiculously easy, as his had landed in a freshwater lake that was home to some rather angry fin-backed dinosaurs. A few punches to their snouts though had gotten them to back down and let him retrieve the ball. He'd barely gotten wet, honestly.

'If that is how easy it was to gather the Dragon Balls I don't know what gave my… what gave King Piccolo so many problems.'

Sometimes it was so odd to think about his previous incarnation. Some days he saw him as a father. One he didn't know, other than the memories he had inherited from him, but a father all the same. He would do something and just KNOW that his father would not have done the same. Allying with Goku, for one. Or not taking advantage of him being injured by Raditz; King Piccolo would have slaughtered all of them even if it meant his death later, smiling as he finally managed to end his hated foe once and for all. But Piccolo hadn't done that; he had realized that in order to ensure the Earth survived Raditz he needed to work with Goku. Let them determine who ruled over the planet later; far better that than to be King of Ashes.

'Yet there are other times where I feel exactly like him,' Piccolo thought as he stood in the corner of Capsule Corp's main courtyard, Goku and his friends chatting amongst themselves. 'I remember things… memories that I can only have if I were him born again. Did we manage to cheat death through the reincarnation? Or is it something else?' He shut his eyes. 'And why does it matter when that Saiyan will be returning in 13 months? Deciding who I am will not help us win.'

"-very helpful," Goku's wife, Chichi if Piccolo remembered correctly, was telling Bulma. "Thank you for letting Kayos come with us."

"You are more than welcome!" Bulma said before suddenly grabbing the tall blond human's arm and tugging him away from the Son family. "But just remember he is documenting MY life!"

"Come on Bulma, we didn't forget that!" Goku called out. "He asked us a lot of questions about you…" Bulma though didn't respond and after a moment Goku noticed Piccolo and beamed. "Hey! You been here long?"

"Since this afternoon," Piccolo said. The moon was a half full and beginning to rise, marking how late it was. "What took you so long? We have to be training and every second we waste only gets us farther behind."

"Yeah, I know that," Goku said, not taking offense to Piccolo's tone. It was… something that didn't annoy him about his rival; that he didn't get offended over the smallest thing. "We ran into some guy who thought he was the next ruler of Earth. Had to deal with him."

"I hope you did," Piccolo stated. "The earth-"

"Mr. Piccolo?"

He looked down to see Goku's son staring up at him with large bright eyes.

"…what?" he asked coldly.

"I… that is… well-"

"Spin it out, runt," Piccolo said sternly, wondering why the child was gawking at him. 'Want to mock me? Say that his father is stronger? Maybe just stare because I am a demon and he is a oh-so-wonderful human-'

"I wanted to thank you!" he called out quickly, giving him a bow.

Piccolo blinked at that.

"W…what?" he managed to get out.

"Thank you for helping my daddy, Mr. Piccolo. If you hadn't fought with him he would have lost to that mean man."

"Yes," Chichi said, startling Piccolo even more when SHE bowed to him. "Thank you for standing with Goku. I know you didn't need to but I am grateful."

Piccolo looked at them for several moments before turning his head away. "We had a common enemy. It only made sense to help him."

"You sure did!" Goku said cheerfully. "You have gotten really strong, Piccolo! I'm glad you're on my side for this and not against me!" He refused to twist his head towards the Saiyan warrior despite how very much he wished to do so. It… couldn't be true, could it? Goku, the man that had killed his father, a father who had caused the deaths of his friends Chiaotzu, Krillin, and his teacher Master Roshi… admiring his strength and expressing how HAPPY he didn't have to fight him? "Don't get me wrong, I'd love to spar with you again… but maybe not where we had to kill each other?" He smiled big and bold as he rubbed the back of his head. "I mean, fighting is much more fun when you and your opponent can both walk away and train to get even better!"

"…hmmpf," Piccolo muttered, refusing to acknowledge what the other man had said.

"Come on guys!" Bulma called out, waving for them to join her. "We're going to summon the dragon!"

Piccolo moved to head out… and he CERTAINLY didn't make sure to shorten his steps so Gohan, who kept looking at him even as he held his father's hand, could keep up.

"So," Kayos said asked, hands jammed into his pockets, "how are we explaining the giant dragon appearing in the middle of the city?" He had thrown on a brown canvas jacket over his shirt but otherwise was dressed pretty much the same as he had been when Piccolo had last seen him.

'Might be the only smart one here,' Piccolo thought as Goku and his friends began to stammer that it was fine and they were SURE that summoning a giant magical dragon in the middle of a major city wouldn't cause any problems. 'He seems to be the only one here that thinks more than two steps at a time.' He frowned as he watched the man rock on his heels. 'Of course he's also a weakling… no training and its clear he isn't interested in learning. Just spending a few hours with him shows me he'll never be a fighter. One ki blast or a proper punch and he'd be dead and gone.'

That… well, he wasn't sure how he felt about all of that.

Goku stepped up towards the pile of Dragon Balls, placing the last one down and causing them all the pulse with energy. Piccolo's fingers twitched and he could hear his father commanding him to wish for immortality. And yet he also heard Kayos' comments about how that was a foolish wish and forced such thoughts from his mind. As the man had said it would be a wasteful, foolish wish, and doing so would also turn Goku and his allies against him. And as much as he hated to admit it he needed them at the moment in order to deal with Raditz.

"Hey Krillin?" Goku said, turning towards the short fighter. "Why don't you do the honors?"

"Me? You… you sure?"

"Yeah," Goku said at once. He walked over and placed his hand on Krillin's shoulder "I know you blame yourself for what happened with Yamcha. So go ahead... bring our brother home."

Krillin stared at Goku for a moment before rubbing his arm against his eyes, Piccolo merely rolling his eyes at such a display. But soon enough the Buddhist stepped forward and Goku returned to his family, taking hold of Gohan's hand. It was only because Krillin had begun to speak that Piccolo didn't cry out in surprise when Gohan used his free hand to grab onto his finger.

"Eternal Shenron!" Krillin called out, thrusting his arms skyward. "By your name I summon you forth!"

The Dragon Balls lit up even as the skies grew dark above them, the moon and stars disappearing so that the only light was that of the Dragon Balls. From them burst forth seven beams of light that twisted together to take on the form of a great serpentine dragon. Piccolo stared up, feeling a sense of… well, he refused to call it wonder… build in him as the energy condensed and transformed into the great dragon who could make the impossible a reality.

"I am the Eternal Dragon!" Shenron declared. "State your wish and I shall grant it!"

Krillin swallowed, head tilted up as he called out. "All Mighty Shenron, we ask you-"

'I must ask you to stop and listen to me before you continue.'

"Did… did you hear that?" Bulma asked, looking about.

"Mommy, who was that?" Gohan asked.

Goku frowned. "Kami?"

Piccolo scowled at the mention of his other half. 'Wonderful. The very last being I wanted to hear from.'

'That might be, Piccolo, but I will be heard all the same,' Kami stated. 'You can not wish for Yamcha to return.'

"Wh…what?" Krillin stammered out. "Why not?! Why can't Yamcha come back! He deserves to return-"

'I mean that this is not the right time to bring him back,' Kami continued. 'When Yamcha died I went to see him… I was able to convince King Yemma to allow him to run upon Snake Way, the great path of the Otherworld. Should he complete his journey he will find at the end of the path King Kai, the wisest and most cunning fighter in our galaxy.'

"Really?!" Goku exclaimed. "And he'll teach Yamcha?"

Piccolo heard Kami murmur in confirmation. 'With this new threat coming I felt it best that Yamcha learn from him. The techniques that King Kai can teach him will give you a grand advantage in the challenges to come. I ask you to give Yamcha one year to learn under King Kai before you bring him back to life.'

"Well, if you say so," Tien muttered. "I suppose learning some super secret moves would be nice."

At once Piccolo felt Kami leave his mind. 'Hmmpf. leave it to the old bastard to disappear after giving a command, not bothering to even say goodbye.'

"Wow, the most cunning warrior on the entire GALAXY!" Goku exclaimed. "I wish I could train with him."

"DID YOU MISS THE PART WHERE YOU'D HAVE TO BE DEAD?!" Chichi roared, causing Goku to wave his hands about rapidly, cringing in the face of her rage.

"I didn't mean it like that, Chichi, I swear!"

"Good on Yamcha," Krillin said. "Its about time he got a chance to shine."

"Yeah," Tien agreed with a nod, "we'll have to train even harder to make sure he doesn't show us up."

"I hear a lot of chatter but no wishes!"

Everyone started, realizing that with the news of Yamcha's training they'd forgotten about Shenron.

"Oh, well…" Krillin began, shifting from foot to foot, "it turns out we don't… really need you anymore. Think you can just head off till you recharge?"

"I can not," Shenron declared. "I have been summoned and must grant a wish before I might depart. Now then… state your wish!"

"Huh," Goku said, scratching the top of his head. "We haven't ever needed to figure out what to do if we didn't need a wish." He looked around at the others. "Anyone have any ideas?"

"We could just ask Shenron to kill Raditz," Bulma said.

Piccolo found himself shaking his head. "That won't work. If Raditz is stronger than Kami than Shenron can't kill him."

"Seriously?!" Bulma cried out.

"Why do you think we never wished to do that with King Piccolo?" Master Roshi stated. "There are limits to the Dragon Balls."

"I suppose we could just wish for something simple," Tien said, lips pressed together in a thin line that made it clear he didn't like wasting a wish like that.

"Oh!" Goku said. "We could ask for a TON of food! We'll need to eat when we train!"

"Shenron is not a caterer!" Bulma shouted.

"What about a lifetime supply of beer?" Master Roshi said with a grin, rubbing his hands together.

Krillin huffed. "Considering what you love I'm surprised you didn't ask for a lifetime of p-"

Kayos stepped forward. "Oh Mighty Shenron! Hear me and only me! I have a wish!"

'Well… this is going to be interesting,' Piccolo thought as everyone focused on the blond man.

~MC~MC~MC~

"I knew we couldn't trust him!" Krillin shouted behind me and I did my best to block that out. Apparently he hadn't taken my comment about poisons lightly. "He's probably going to wish for immortality for himself!"

"Come on Krillin," Goku called out, "Kayos said that was a dumb wish. Why would he ask for that?"

"Because he was tricking us!" Krillin demanded.

Chichi spoke up. "We fought with Kayos against the Dragon Lord… if he has an idea for a wish I want to hear it!"

"More of a theory," I stated, looking up at Shenron. He was massive and made me feel utterly tiny and I was doing all I could not to piss myself in his presence. "I imagine, Great Shenron, that you get tired of people summoning you for petty wishes."

"Not as much as people refusing to make wishes," he warned me.

"Point taken. Which is why I make this wish: I ask for you to provide me with an indestructible scroll, that will come to my hand when I mentally summon it, and will provide in writing, that I can read and understand fully, the answer to all questions I ask of it!"

I had taken the time to think the wish over carefully. While Shenron had proven to never try and twist any wishes to harm the wisher… well, enough tales about genies had taught me that you left as little wiggle room as possible. I needed a scroll that couldn't be burned, stolen, or would write in some strange alien language. And would answer more than one question. I was sure there were ways for Shenron to dick with me if he wished but I was hopeful that he would accept what I wanted to work to create such a scroll… or even a better version.

I held my breath… and then felt a tingle in my right hand. I held my arm out and after a moment a traditional Japanese scroll flew into my hand, striking my palm with a dull slap.

"Your wish has been granted! Farewell!" With that Shenron dove back down, returning to the Dragon Balls with suddenly rose into the air, glowing a pure white before they shot out in different directions, waiting for a year to recharge and be used again.

"Going to wish for immortality, am I?" I asked Krillin who had the decency to glance away, eyes shut and arms folded over his chest. I smacked the scroll against my open palm, looking it over carefully. "Well, we need a name for this thing. Powerful mystical relics need names, right? Scroll of Knowledge? That too on the nose?"

Goku frowned, leaning forward to look at the scroll better. "But why did you ask for that?" he asked. "You could have asked to… increase your ki or master a fighting style!"

"You think too small, Goku," I teased, Isco zooming over to push him back. "Watch." I unrolled the scroll. "What would be the best method to allow Krillin during the next year to unlock his full potential as a fighter?"

"Wha?" Krillin exclaimed, snapping his head towards me. But even as he did so the scroll began to write down upon itself the answer.

GO TO THE TEMPLE

OF THE REPENTENT MISER

AND SEEK THE TEXTS OF

THE SELFISH ONES

"The… what now?"

"OH!" Roshi exclaimed in surprise. "I've heard of the Selflish Ones! It was rumored that they learned how to ensure that they lost not a drop of Ki when in battle unless they willed themselves to."

"Not lose any ki?" Krillin murmured.

Piccolo narrowed his eyes at that. "Whenever one battles they naturally lose ki… it is impossible to not let it leak out." He held out his hand and began to channel a ki blast and sure enough I saw that energy began to flicker off his fingers like smoke from a fire. "it is a natural thing. That's why the more powerful the attack the more it drains you."

"So its like the laws of thermodynamics!" Bulma stated. "Its impossible to get more energy than what you put in. You lose it to heat or other factors…"

"But according to the scroll," I said, "it's possible."

Krillin was staring down at his hands before he too began to form some ki blast energy. "I will never be as strong as Goku… I know that. Accepted that. But if I could learn how to keep my ki so that I only used it to power myself and my attacks…"

I grinned and walked away from him, wiggling the scroll. "That's why I made the wish. One wish for me to be a better fighter? That's old and busted. A scroll that tells all of us how to go past our limits and become stronger? Oh… that's the new hotness."

"Wow," Tien whispered. "With that… you could…" he trailed off, unable to finish.

"Yeah," I said with a grin, looking at them all. "So I guess it's a good thing Bulma hired me for a long time because it looks like Isco and I will be sticking around for a year!"

"I suppose I don't have a choice in this, sir?"

"Oh, you have a choice. You can leave right now."

"…I sense a trick."

"Well, other than you'll have to return your cut of our paycheck from her… I have a scroll that gives answers. Want to learn how to turn air into gold?" I asked him.

I could practically hear the cash register chimes in his little shell.

"So the blood sacks are stuck with us for a year."

I chuckled at that. "And there it is." I looked at the others who were staring at me. "So… training."

"Right," Goku said, clenching his fist and holding it up to his face. "Its time we prepare for Raditz's return!"

Tien rubbed his chin. "Chiaotzu and I can head out and find a place where we can practice our moves. When you are ready, Kayos, you can find us and let us ask that scroll a few questions."

"And I guess I should begin researching that Temple of the Repentant Miser," Krillin said with a frown, kicking at the ground. "Now… where could that be."

"I expect all of you to be stronger by the time I see you again," Piccolo said coldly, glaring at all of his in equal measure. "If you expect me to be the one to save you all you're in for a painful surprise. I'm willing to save the Earth but if you fall to Raditz that's your fault."

"Oh, don't worry!" Goku exclaimed happily. "We'll all make sure we are ready for him!"

"So, we meet back in a year!" Bulma chirped.

"RIGHT!" the Z Warrirors declared, all tensing and ready to fly-

"Hold up!" Chichi called out, grabbing onto Goku's arm with one hand and Krillin's in another. "…why are you all going your separate ways?"

"Uh… to train, Chichi," Goku said, confused.

"Yeah," Krillin echoed. "I need to find that temple."

"Right and it makes sense for you to fly off when you KNOW where it is… but why go racing off now?" She looked at the others. "And why are all of you leaving?"

"To… train," Tien repeated slowly.

Chichi's eye twitched. "I get that but why aren't you training TOGETHER!?"

The Z Fighters all stared at her in confusion and Chichi let out a weary sigh.

"Okay… so Goku and Piccolo… you two are roughly at the same level of power and strength, right?"

Piccolo frowned at that. "I'd say I'm far stronger than him-"

"NOW IS NOT THE TIME FOR BOASTING!" Chichi screamed, getting right in the Demon King's face. Piccolo leaned back, eyes wide in shock and, I had to admit, a bit of fear. Not that I blamed him. Chichi might not have been a saiyan and might have gone to rust a bit when it came to her fighting (she had complained rather loudly on our trip to Capsule Corp about being out of shape and needing to get exercising again; I didn't know if she noticed how Goku lit up at that but she'd realize soon enough that not training was the biggest mistake she'd ever made) but she still had the fires of a warrior in her. "Now then… Goku and Piccolo are roughly at the same level in terms of ability and power. So doesn't it make more sense for you two to training TOGETHER?"

"What?!" Piccolo cried out. "Train with him!?"

Goku though considered that, tapping his chin with his index finger. "Actually, that isn't a bad idea. I bet there is a ton I could learn from you, Piccolo! And you from me."

"Like his moves if you decide to finally settle things," I whispered to Piccolo, having moved to stand near him as Chichi scolded the Namekian.

That gave Piccolo pause and he began to mull over Chichi's suggestion. "I… suppose there is merits to that."

"And Tien, Krillin, and Chiaotzu, the same applies to you three," Chichi commented. "You can work together to strengthen yourself. Maybe even have 3 on 1 fights with Goku or Piccolo." She smiled. "Unless you don't think you can manage."

'Oh, she and I need to spend some time together!' I thought with glee, watching as Chichi pressed just the right buttons to rile the Z Warriors up.

"We can manage just fine!" Krillin declared. "And when I find that new technique I'll have to move up to work with Goku and Piccolo!"

"Only because I'll surpass them," Tien said firmly, Chiaotzu nodding in agreement.

Chichi turned to Bulma. "And if you come with all of us then you can come up with new ways to help these boys train."

Bulma nodded, having realized a good idea when she saw one. "Yeah… knowing them they'd just keep punching and kicking each other. I can make machines that can push them even further."

I took my chance to chime in. "It also will offer us all some protection. Raditz will honor the deal most likely but who knows what else is lurking out there. Plenty of old enemies that would enjoy taking you guys down and if you are all alone and get injured that could slow things down."

Krillin gulped at that. "Yeah… not feeling like meeting Yamcha so soon!"

"And," Isco stated, "considering that only Kayos here can read the Scroll-"

'So the little bugger caught that… heh, good for him.'

"-You will need him around to answer questions. And rather than us traveling about finding you all it will be easier if we all stick together."

"Exactly," Chichi said with a smile. "All of us. Master Roshi can make sure you boys don't forget the fundamentals and I'll make sure-"

"Wait, you are coming too?" Master Roshi exclaimed.

"Of course I am," Chichi stated. "I might have dedicated myself to being a wife and mother but I DID fight in the last Tournament… I know how to hold my own. And I can make sure none of you push yourself too far." She narrowed her eyes. "Is that going to be a problem?"

"Well… heheh… not at all," Roshi said nervously.

"Well I think its great!" Goku declared. "It will be nice for all of us to be together!" He wrapped an arm around Chichi and her glower at Roshi turned into a soft smile. "So… when do we get started?"

"I think that all depends on Bulma," I chimed in.

"Me?" the young woman asked.

"Yeah. Capsule Corp must have some land sitting around not doing much. Maybe a research facility?"

Bulma considered that. "Hmmm… I'd have to ask my dad but there were a few large islands that we had set up some stations on to do testing. I could find one that doesn't have a ton of wildlife so we wouldn't have to worry about causing too much damage-"

"Or ones with a lot of vicious wildlife to test ourselves again," Tien asked.

Krillin's eyes went wide at that suggestion. "Uh… I don't know about that…"

I watched as the gang began to discuss things, making plans and coming up with strategies.

'Well… you wanted to change things and now you have. Goku won't learn under King Kai so he's not going to have the Kaioken in his backpocket. Chichi being with us is a plus but it also might hurt Gohan's growth. Krillin and Tien hopefully will get stronger but Bulma and Master Roshi might end up in the crosshairs.' I shook my head. 'Yeah… you've changed things. The only question is will it lead to better things… or worse.'