My Life's Stranger Than Yours
Two Tales of Two Faces; Tien's New Students
The heated, hectic scramble finally reached it's end as Tien regrouped with Chiaoutzu and the girls, the kettle holding Rouge in hand.
"So girls, did you enjoy the demonstration?" he asked with a prideful grin.
"Wait, what…just happened?" asked Akane.
Tien shook the kettle and answered. "That girl…Asura…whatever she was, she's inside here now."
"Ummm…okay, I know I've seen some crazy techniques, but how exactly does that work!?" Akane exclaimed.
Tien gave a quick summation of how the Mafuba works, putting special emphasis on the two most important aspects of performing it correctly; specifically, the lidded container and the seal. He promised to go into more detail later, but for the moment wanted to focus on what to do with Rouge. Not to mention Launch's role in the whole ordeal.
"Tien, what about the village?" asked Chiaoutzu. Sure enough, in the wake of the battle, much of the village had been decimated. Thankfully, the fires had died out and the crops were mostly okay, but nigh all the buildings and some surrounding trees were destroyed.
"One step at a time Chiaoutzu. First, we need to figure out what to do with her." Tien motioned to the kettle.
"We just need to change her back to human form," said Akane. "But where do we get the hot water?"
"Where'd you get it the first time?"
"Well…"
[Moments ago]
After explaining the situation to Launch and Chiaoutzu, Akane and Videl led the two to the village pond. Launch happened to have a kettle capsulized with her (she enjoys tea while taking breaks in her food truck) so a simple fill-up later, Chiaoutzu used his kinesis to hold the kettle over one of the still open flames to heat it up.
[]
"I see…well Launch having a kettle was certainly convenient, but what are we supposed to use to boil water now?" asked Tien.
"Oh we don't have to boil water again," Launch spoke up. Reaching into her pocket, she pulled out a capsule and tossed it to reveal a house. "We can just use the bathtub."
The four fighters looked at the innocently smiling lady with a look of disbelief. The kettle was one thing, but this was just TOO convenient. Then again…it wasn't too farfetched to think she'd have a capsule house if her deliveries went far or long. Opting not to ask questions, the group piled inside.
[]
After everyone gathered in the living room, Akane appeared with a basin full of heated water from the bathroom.
Tien set the kettle down, and as he was about to open the lid, he paused. "Akane, are you sure this is a good idea?"
"Trust me. Rouge is harmless in human form, she's not even a fighter. I just need to splash her with this as soon as she comes out of the kettle…and that still feels weird to say."
"You do seem rather sure about this…alright then." Taking a breath, Tien grasped the lid and slowly uncapped the kettle. For a moment, nothing happened. Suddenly, the kettle began to glow green and an aptly colored mist sprang from it. Suddenly, a bewildered Rouge emerged from the kettle, panting profusely as she tried to get her bearings.
"What happened? Where am…?"
SPLOOSH!
The instant the water touched Rouge's head, her three faces became one. Her six arms, retreated into two, and the sharp-eyed, fang-toothed glare she sported was replaced with a confused, but ultimately docile expression.
"What…what happened?" she squeaked out.
Tien and Chiaoutzu were taken aback. To think that this scared, confused, innocent girl was the same destructive, multi-limbed nuisance that destroyed the village. Had Tien not seen it himself (or been acquainted with Saiyans), he'd probably disbelieve it too.
"Hey Rouge, are you alright?" asked Akane.
"Oh! I remember you now. You were part of that nice family who saved me from that thieving pervert that one time!"
Videl raised an eyebrow. "Thieving pervert?"
"It's a long story…although now that I think about it…it is kind of related considering who the 'thieving pervert' was," she realized.
"Don't tell me…"
[Elsewhere, on a more rugged mountain]
"KEER-CHOO!"
A large, bovine figure let out a powerful sneeze, unintentionally causing a rocky avalanche to tumble down on his giant form.
[]
"To think, that horrid beast of a man would be the one to lead to us meeting again," Rouge dramatically proclaimed.
Akane could only bashfully chuckle. "Well…I guess you could say that, but we're actually here for a different reason."
"Oh?" Rouge scanned the room, the events of the past few moments slowly coming back to her. The moment her eyes fell on Launch, her face alit.
"Oh! Its you!"
"I'm glad you remember me too," Launch sheepishly replied.
"Wait…so you two are on good terms with each other?" asked Chiaoutzu.
"Why wouldn't we be? I owe this nice lady far too much!" Rouge exclaimed.
That revelation left quite a few confused glances aimed at Rouge. "Wait, if you owe her so much then whey were you trying to…?"
Tien put a hand over Chiaoutzu's mouth before turning to Akane and Videl who both nodded. It didn't take much thought to realize what the situation was, but they still needed answers.
"If you don't mind my asking, how exactly did you two meet?" said Tien.
"Well…"
[Some days ago]
Launch recalled the day she'd taken a much needed trip to a luxurious hot-spring resort. After getting acquainted with a little old lady and her young granddaughter, she was prepared to get back to work. On her way down the mountain, her truck was thrown off course by what looked to be some bright, fiery comet? Whatever it was landed in a lake just off the main road, prompting her to investigate.
As she arrived at the lake, she noticed that what definitely should've been cold water was now steaming, almost like a hot bath. From the water came Rouge who looked all but exhausted. Bringing her back to the food truck, Launch offered her some provisions, much to the younger girl's gratitude.
Rouge went on to explain how she was looking for a specific hot spring resort, but had managed to get herself lost in the mountain. She also said something about her power draining due to her not bringing enough…sources? Whatever she meant by that, she was running low with only a couple left on her immediate person that she wanted to save for emergencies.
Thankfully, Launch wasn't too far down the mountain where turning back wasn't an option so in another act of kindness, she offered to give Rouge a lift to the resort, again elating the young girl.
While driving up the mountain, Launch's truck began to malfunction, sputtering before grinding to a halt. She may not have been as mechanically inclined as Bulma, but Launch was used to these sort of small mishaps happening from time to time. While Rouge stayed put, Launch got to work examining the problem.
With Launch distracted working on the truck, Rouge, probably against her better judgement, opted to try and take one more piece of Launch's merchandise. She was vehemently against stealing, but she figured that since Launch had offered her the same food earlier, she wouldn't mind if she had just one more for the road.
When Rouge exited the passenger seat and headed towards the trailer, Launch was quickly met with overpowering engine fumes and a tuft of smoke blasting in her face. As she staggered away from the truck coughing, the intense scent of burnt car parts ultimately made her sneeze and her soft indigo hair turned blonde.
Briefly bewildered, the now irritable Launch quickly recognized the truck and made the realization she must be on a delivery of some kind. That thought would be pushed aside as she noticed someone trying to scramble their way into the trailer. Not one to be 'out-thieved', Launch quickly procured a pair of twin pistols and had them trained on her would-be robber.
An even more confused Launch lowered her guns when her target turned out to be a scared, crying, girl she didn't recognize. Fear overtaking her senses, Rouge did the sensible thing and bolted into the woods beside the main road, leaving Launch alone. Deciding to just move on for now, Launch noted the state that the truck was in and got back to work on fixing it. Thankfully, this form of hers was much more mechanically savvy.
Rouge sifted through all the mountain foliage, fearing for her life from the gun-slinging, blonde lady. As she finally found a moment to recollect herself, she'd wind up stumbling over a root and falling face first into a puddle where her fearful face would be replaced with three glares of fury.
Meanwhile, back with Launch, she'd finally managed to get the truck back up and running and was prepared to make her way…wherever she was going. She hadn't yet recalled what she was doing before changing personalities, but if all else failed, she could always visit Tien at that village.
As soon as she was prepared to take the wheel again, the previously blue sky turned a blazing reddish-orange and in the sky flew a lone figure with multiple limbs and faces. "I shan't let you harm her you fiendish wench!"
Launch barely had time to capsulize the truck as Asura Rouge began raining down fire from her front mouth. Scrambling to not get burned, Launch uncapped a faster, more maneuverable jet-bike and made her way down the mountain, with Rouge in hot pursuit.
[]
"After that, I remember chasing after that scary woman onto the boat that left the island. She managed to get away in some kind of capsule plane, but I managed to take her down with my lightning. Unfortunately, she crash landed in the forest and I hadn't managed to find her until earlier today," Rouge concluded.
Turning towards Launch, Rouge took her hands apologetically. "I'm so sorry for leaving you to fend yourself in the clutches of that crazy witch, but I…was just way too startled to help…at least until…."
Launch gently pulled away from Rouge with her own apologetic glance. "No, it isn't your fault. You see…."
Chiaoutzu cut Launch off, "Uhhh…Ms. Rouge, there's something you should probably see." He then proceeded to procure a feather out of seemingly nowhere and rubbed her nose with it. Launch inhaled a few times before letting out a high pitched sneeze, transforming her hair once again, earning a shocked squeal from Rouge.
"What the hell?"
"Kyaaagh-!"
"Hey, I remember you! You were that truck thief!" Launch accused.
A panicked Rouge darted for the bathroom, but was halted by Akane and Videl. "Whoa, whoa, whoa, hold on!" Videl dissuaded.
"But…but that's…!"
"You just saw her change right?" Akane pointed out.
Chiaoutzu tickled Launch's nose with the feather again, making her sneeze again and Launch changed back to her docile persona. That seemed to do the trick as an astonished Rouge watched the transformation play back a couple more times.
"So she's…?"
With Rouge now at ease, Launch took the moment to properly explain her condition, and Rouge (as well as Videl who'd yet to see this side of Launch either) seemed to accept it surprisingly gracefully.
"Oh wow…your condition is a lot like my Jusenkyo curse," Rouge noted.
'Now I get why Goku compared Ranma's curse to Launch,' Videl whispered.
'Yeah but boy or girl, Ranma's the same jerk-ass.'
"But wait…if your condition just changes your personality, how come you attacked me?" Asked Rouge.
Launch gave an apologetic bow. "Sorry but, it sometimes takes a moment for me to remember what my other half was doing…it goes both ways I think," she explained.
"So in the eyes of your other persona, Rouge was a thief, but from Rouge's point of view, you were some sort of assailant," Tien finalized. "So this whole crazy chase was just the result of one massive misunderstanding."
"Huh…I feel like I'm experiencing deja-vu," said Akane.
Launch and Rouge both turned to the other and bowed profusely. "I'm so sorry!"
"While it's nice you two made up, I think the real apologies should go to the villagers. Regardless of who started what, the fact remains that your conflict with each other scorched this entire village to the ground," scolded Tien.
"It's kind of miraculous the crops managed to survive, but a lot of houses and other buildings were destroyed."
With an uncommonly stern face, Launch proclaimed, "I know…but I promise I'll do whatever I can to fix this mess!"
"As will I," added Rouge. "It truly is a tragedy that such calamity had to befall such a peaceful place. I will do as I must to ensure that it returns to its former glory. Even if it takes the rest of my days!" she proclaimed into a microphone.
'But…you were the calamity….' Videl inwardly droned.
Tien turned to the two teens. "Sorry girls, but given all that's happened I don't think I'll have the spare time to show you the Mafuba, much less train you to handle it."
"Unless we help you guys out with the cleanup you mean?" Akane smugly added.
"Akane what are you…?"
"No, I couldn't ask you two to…."
"No, we get it. You're about to be very busy and won't have time to waste on just a couple of girls you barely know…unless of course they can pull their own weight," Akane glanced to Videl and gave a knowing wink.
Finally understanding what her friend was doing, Videl followed up. "Oh, don't worry. I've helped my father with construction projects before and learned a little farming from Chi-Chi. I assure you, I can more than handle what needs to be done."
"Hey hold on a minute, I didn't agree to…!"
Launch could only giggle as Chiaoutzu pulled Tien aside, cutting him off. "Tien, maybe you should just let them help. With a village this big, we'll need as many hands as we can get. And would training them really be all that bad? It's obvious they're both really serious about it."
Tien glanced back at the girls before pondering Chiaouztu's words. No matter how he thought about it Chiaoutzu was right. He still had some hesitance on signing two young girls onto a task like this, but thinking back, merely standing up to Rouge's Asura form, no matter the circumstances took guts. Speaking of Rouge, he did owe them a solid for helping to stop her…with minimal bloodshed at least.
Managing a small chuckle, Tien relented. "Well, I guess I can't exactly turn down a couple of volunteers now, can I? Especially two who are willing to learn at all. Okay girls welcome aboard."
"Yes!" The pair gave a quick high-ten before straightening themselves up.
"I'll work out details of a schedule later, but here's a warning; If you don't put your all into restoring this village, I may not put my all into training you two."
The pair nodded in understanding, to Tien's delight. "Alright then. First things first, we should probably let the villagers know what's been happening."
"Wait a sec," Akane chimed in. "If all the houses are destroyed, where is everyone supposed to sleep until their all fixed again?"
"I could lend my Capsule House?" Launch suggested.
"Do you have enough to shelter a whole village?" asked Akane.
"No…."
"But I think we know someone who does," Videl beamed. Chiaoutzu and Launch soon followed suit, understanding her idea. "Bulma!"
"I'm sure if we explain the situation, she'll lend us a hand."
"Isn't she like, really busy with…I don't know…CEO stuff?" asked Akane.
"No it'll be fine. Bulma actually has more free time than you think…which now that I think about it, between running Capsule Corp, being a mom, and a scientist in general, is kind of insane…." Videl pondered.
"Yeah. And this village isn't too big, so we shouldn't need that many Capsule Houses as long as the villagers are willing to share," noted Chiaoutzu.
"Hold on a minute," Tien interjected with a stern, contemplative look on his face. "As great an idea as asking Bulma for help is, I don't think we should ask for Capsule Houses."
"What? Why?"
"As you can no doubt tell, this village is a very low technology zone. There's the occasional vehicle, and they do utilize empty capsules to help them in their daily lives, but otherwise, they prefer to keep things as natural as possible," Tien explained. "If we do go to Bulma for help, I think it'd be best if we asked her for tents and building materials instead to keep things as they were."
The group nodded in understanding and Tien gave a confirmatory smile. "Alright then," he turned to Akane and Videl. "You girls call Bulma and let her know what's going on here. Chiaoutzu and I will go and tell everyone it's safe to return."
"What should I do?" asked Launch.
"You can stay here with them or come with us, it doesn't really matter," Tien replied "And you…" he sharply turned to Rouge.
"You are definitely coming with us. I think you have a few words to say to the people out there."
A flushed Rouge nodded in understanding.
[]
The villagers all breathed a sigh of relief as Tien lead his group back to the villagers' refuge where they were met with a hero's welcome. After a quick explanation, everyone was distraught to learn that their village had been destroyed. Even more so when it was revealed that Rouge was the culprit behind it. Her overly dramatic apology did manage to sway some, but not all of the onlookers to her remorse.
Before anyone could object to her however, Tien stepped forth to take the heat, explaining that they were hopefully due to receive some fresh materials and that he'd make sure Rouge assisted in rebuilding the village and promising that he and the others would keep her in check. Despite some warranted skepticism, everyone relented when they saw the apologetic look on Rouge's face. The welcome was far from warm, but they accepted Tien's proposal and returned to the village, prepared for a long and arduous process of rebuilding.
[Meanwhile]
A blinding golden flash alit the fields as Gohan transformed into his Super Saiyan form, Piccolo's arm still wrapped around his waist against his tail stub.
"How do you feel Gohan?" asked Goku.
Taking a stance and throwing a few warm up punches, Gohan tested himself and things felt comparatively normal. "So far, so good."
"Hmph. It seems once you transform, the power you gain is enough to outstrip the sensitivity in your tail," noted Piccolo.
"That makes sense. I remember when Gohan became a giant ape against Vegeta, he grabbed his tail but that didn't slow him down."
'I almost wish I could remember that too,' Gohan inwardly added.
"I guess brute forcing it was the right way to go…at least in this case," said Piccolo
"Yeah but…what'll happen if I power down?"
"Let's find out."
With a nod, Gohan exhaled and returned to his base form, Piccolo still pressing into his tail. He looked a little shaken, but much less so than earlier. Doing a few more warm-ups, Gohan found himself feeling significantly stronger than earlier. Not quite up to full power, but he was able to move freely now.
"You're doing great Gohan," praised Goku. "It took me much longer to get this far and here you are already so resilient after only a day."
"I guess having Super Saiyan gives me something of an unfair advantage," he joked.
Retreating his arm, Piccolo added "Considering your tail is almost completely gone to begin with, I'd say it balances out."
"True."
"Well, we've made considerable progress today, but it is starting to get a little late," said Piccolo. Sure enough, the sun was beginning to set, bathing the area in a red-orange glow.
"Huh…we really have been at this all day, haven't we?"
"If you want to turn in for the night and pick it up tomorrow, I won't blame you," said Piccolo.
"Not just yet. I want to try one more time," Gohan turned to Goku and the pair exchanged a knowing glance.
"Hmph, if you insist."
The trio assumed their positions, Goku and Gohan faced each other while Piccolo stood aside, his arm wrapped around Gohan's waist.
"Ready Son?"
"Always Dad!"
In unison, the pair chanted out, "Kaaa-Meee-Haaa-Meee…"
Piccolo braced himself for the incoming brilliant flash.
"HAAAAAAAA!"
Pulling their arms back, the simultaneously thrust them forward, unleashing their respective blasts and entering an energy standstill. Compared to earlier, Gohan was more even with his father. Despite Piccolo's hold on him, he was able to push Goku's attack back, though the older Saiyan wouldn't let his son overtake him so easily. Pouring more energy into his attack, Goku's blast began to push Gohan's further back. This time however, Gohan was able to keep the beam's steady.
The struggle continued for moments more until Goku's attack once again began to swallow up Gohan's. Determined not to repeat his earlier failure, Gohan nigh instinctively burst into Super Saiyan, his blast enlarging against Goku's. Following suit, Goku too transformed and the beams broke even before exploding, throwing everyone back.
The trio were quick to spring back to their feet, everyone seemingly satisfied with the results (not the resulting damage mind you but…you know what I mean).
"Wow Gohan, you really are almost past this," Praised Goku.
"Yeah. In fact, we may not even have to wait till tomorrow. If we can, I'm willing to pull an all-nighter since we're so close!"
"Your dedication is admirable, but that may not be up to you or me," Piccolo replied.
"What are you…?"
"Chi-Chi."
"Oh yeah…I guess she is expecting us to be back right about now, won't she?" said Goku.
"Think maybe she'll let us back out after dinner?" asked Gohan.
"She may let me come back out, but I think she'll be keeping you on a tighter leash Gohan," Goku teased.
"I don't know…she's been a little more relaxed than usual lately."
"I don't think you can count on Videl to be your 'get out of study' free card forever Gohan," teased Piccolo.
"Oh it won't be forever right? I mean, once they get married, they'll have their own place, right?"
"DAD!"
"Sorry Son, I had to do it at least once!" Goku guffawed.
Even Piccolo couldn't hold back a snicker at Gohan's flustered expression. Exasperation on his face, Gohan merely strolled away from his teachers before calmly ascending, frustration etched on his face.
[Elsewhere]
Waves crashed and sand erupted on the Kame House beach as the island master and it's newest occupant traded blows, the latter with a large, metallic shell strapped to his back.
"You're doing well to keep up with me with all that extra weight, Boy." Roshi praised parrying a strike.
"This is nothing!" Ranma bragged as he unleashed a swift barrage. Roshi spun his staff in place, deflecting Ranma's attack before darting through his defenses and striking him in the forehead.
The attack didn't hurt Ranma too much, but there was enough force to knock him off kilter, which when coupled with the intense weight of the shell, through Ranma completely off balance. As Ranma struggled to regain his footing, Roshi casually walked up to him with with a cheeky smile.
"Looks like I win this one." Swatting Ranma's foot with his staff, the young fighter tumbled into the sand with a loud thud.
Roshi let out a hearty chuckle before offering Ranma a hand. Despite the be grudgingness on his face, Ranma accepted and rose to his feet, shell and all.
"I do have to say, the fact you've been hoisting that bad boy around so easily makes me think I should up the weight a little," Roshi pondered.
"How many of these things do you have!?" Ranma snapped.
"Well generally, I only have two in a couple of weights and sizes and what you're wearing now is the heaviest I've got, clocking in at a quarter-ton."
"A quarter ton…that's…?" Ranma began counting on his fingers when Roshi gave the answer.
"That's five-hundred pounds boy! You're a student, aren't you? I figured a simple equation like that wouldn't be a headscratcher."
Ranma dejectedly crossed his arms. "I'm a martial artist. What do I need to know that kinda stuff for anyway?"
"I'm not going to preach to you the importance of a decent education, but I will say, don't undercut it either."
"Whatever you say gramps," Ranma shrugged.
"Now come on, it's almost dinner time…as well as…." Roshi's face grew into an expectant smile and Ranma planted his foot firmly into it.
"I know, I know, just let me get this damn shell off first."
Moments later, Roshi and Ranma returned to the house to find 18 and Marron lounging on the couch while Krillin was in the kitchen.
"I thought it was 18's turn to cook tonight," noted Roshi.
The blonde fighter shot him an annoyed look. "I'm just saying."
"So how'd things go today?" asked Krillin.
"Ask me again when I get out of the bathtub…my back is killing me…" Ranma groaned as he retreated up the stairs.
"Hey Mama, can we take a bath with Ranma too?" asked Marron.
"No sweety, we cant."
"But why?"
"Ask your father."
"H-hey, why me!?"
As Marron looked to Krillin for an answer and he stammered to come up with one, Roshi took the moment of confusion to slip up the stairs after Ranma, pausing when he heard 18 sharply clear her throat.
'Patience Roshi…you'll get your chance,' he resolved.
[Back at the ruined village]
Many of the villagers had begun salvaging what they could, surveying the destruction of their homes. Needless to say, they were all devastated from the battle's results.
Hope wasn't all lost as the survival of the crops, plus the delivery of food from Launch's trucks kept everyone's spirits up. As everyone indulged in the calming 'festivities' (if you could call it that), Tien stood atop a discarded pillar, his face as stern and stoic as always.
Finally, Videl had to ask, "What is he doing up there? It's been like, what 20 minutes?"
"Twenty-five I think," Launch corrected.
"I don't know why, but he's just letting his Ki rise," Akane answered.
"Wait, you can sense his energy?"
"Yeah but…not too deeply. I can feel a strong pressure coming from him, but not much beyond that."
"Hey Videl, when you called Bulma, when did she say our supplies was going to get here?" asked Chiaoutzu.
"She said she was sending Trunks too…"
"Well that explains it," Chiaoutzu interjected. "He's making a beacon for Trunks."
"Oh yeah, that makes sense."
"Trunks is…Bulma's son right? How old is he again?" asked Akane.
"A year older than Goten."
"What?! But Goten's like, 8 years old! How is a kid supposed to…?" Akane cut herself off as a familiar, loud whooshing filled the air. Turning towards the sound, she could barely make out a figure bathed in a whitish aura.
'What's that?'
'It's about time.' Finally removing himself from the pillar, Tien leapt down to meet with the smoky figure who, upon landing, revealed himself to be a small boy with a purple bowl cut.
'He…he can fly too…why am I even surprised anymore?' Akane pondered.
"Trunks, it's been a while, hasn't it?"
"What's up Tien?" Trunks casually greeted.
"Hey!"
Glancing aside, Trunks strolled over to greet the others, high-fiving Chiaoutzu and Videl. "What's up you guys?"
"Quite a bit," Chiaoutzu replied.
"What are you doing here Videl? And who's your friend?"
"Hi, my name's Akane," she introduced herself.
Trunks' face turned contemplative before erupting. "Hey wait! Are you that girl who turns into a boy Goten told me about!?"
"I what-!?"
"N-no Trunks, that's her fiancé, and he's not here right now," Videl corrected.
"Awww man, I kinda wanted to see how it worked," Trunks groaned.
Shaking off the shock of the question, Akane continued to study the young saiyan. 'Goten's cuter…and much nicer.'
"Not that we're not glad to see you again Trunks…" started an approaching Tien. "…but don't forget, your mom sent you here for a reason."
"Oh yeah!" Reaching into his pocket, Trunks pulled out a capsule case and handed it to Tien. "That should be enough to put this place back together. I don't know what happened, but it looks like that giant bug monster was here."
"Giant bug monster!?" exclaimed Akane.
"That's…a story for another time," Videl dismissed.
Tien studied the case before taking a capsule and popping it open. An ear shattering crash rang through the village as a baker's dozen of large trees slammed onto the ground.
"That's…definitely a good amount of wood…" Tien stammered.
"Ummm Trunks…are all of those…?"
Trunks nodded. "No, not all of them. Some have tools, others have some metal, I think there's a few bags of cement in one…she said it was just all the essentials."
"Leave it to Bulma to go above and beyond," Tien chuckled. "Tell her I said thanks."
"No problem. Now I gotta get back home quick. It's almost dinner time!" Trunks strode off about to fly but was halted by Launch tapping his shoulder.
"If you want Trunks, you could have a quick bite from my food truck," she offered.
"Really!?"
"Yeah. You Saiyans always have such massive appetites, so I'm sure Bulma won't mind."
While Trunks did a quick victorious jump, Akane whispered to Videl, "Hey, what's a Saiyan?"
Videl could only stammer, attempting to come up with a response. Finally, she replied, "I…don't know. Gohan won't tell me either."
"Huh…" Akane shot her friend a skeptical look, but decided to buy it before joining the others at Launch's truck.
Before following suit, Videl inwardly mused, 'Sorry Gohan, but that explanation's on you!'
[]
"Gachoo-!"
"Gesundheit."
"Maybe we shouldn't come back out after dinner after all…."
(A/N: Welp, after the intensity last time, I think a little breather was in order. Plus, we get to see Kid Trunks, even if it's only briefly. Don't worry though, he's not going away too soon (and before anyone asks, I don't know when, how, or if I'll include his father). That being said, I'm slowly but surely running out of primary characters to introduce on both sides of this crossover. Though I'll say that a certain reviewer has sparked an idea for a couple more characters. One of them I already had plans for (in the immediate future, wink wink) while the other one, I barely even considered. That person's idea probably won't happen for a long while, but I have an inkling of what I want to do with them when the time comes. In other news, we get a small glimpse into the training of Gohan and Ranma. The former seems to be doing fine while the latter, may have a ways to go. We'll get a bit more into his side next time, alongside the girls when they begin their training with Tien. Not much to say except I wish I could've gotten this out in February. Stay tuned.)
PS. By the time this goes up, my birthday will have passed.