My Life's Stranger Than Yours
How To Catch a Predator? Building the Ultimate Trap
Nighttime at Kame House, a jovial Nabiki appeared jaunting down the stairs, an equally as happy Roshi right behind her. Bringing up the rear was Ranma, back in her usual garb, a dejected look on her face.
"Hey, look who's finally back," greeted Goku.
"Please don't…I'm not in the mood."
As he and Krillin chuckled, Ranma took note of their missing guest.
"Hey, where's Pantyhose Taro?"
"DON'T CALL ME THAT!"
Taro appeared from seemingly nowhere, kicking Ranma across the room.
"Keep it down! Marron's sleeping,"18 admonished them.
Not wanting to invoke 18's wrath, Ranma, Taro, Roshi and Goku all stepped outside where Ranma once again asked Taro where he'd been.
"I've good news and bad news," Taro explained.
"What's the bad news?" Ranma deadpanned.
"We're officially on a clock for catching the old man."
Ranma stiffened at Taro's declaration, but quickly shook it off before asking, "So what's the good news?"
"I've ensured that he will change my name before this whole ordeal is done. However, I'll need the cooperation of your son," Taro turned to Goku as he finished.
Goku nodded before placing two fingers to his forehead.
[]
Night fell on the mountain village and the girls were once again relaxing in the heated lake (courtesy of Rouge). All the while, Tien, Yamcha and Gohan were off on their own discussing their progress.
Videl had, rather expectantly, handled her time with Yamcha well. Thanks to her previous training with Cologne, she was able to keep up with the ex-bandit in a casual match.
Akane had similarly gotten more accustomed in bringing her energy forth and could even fire a weak blast, but it'd be a while before she could reliably fire off a blast as powerful as the Mafuba.
Just as they were pondering what the next move was, the trio was subsequently joined by Ranma, Taro, and Goku who warped back.
"Dad, Ranma, you guys are back."
Before Goku could greet his son, Taro stepped forth and pointed to Gohan. "You!"
"Me?"
"I realize I'm probably not in a position to ask, but I've a request to ask of you."
As Gohan was about to ask for details on Taro's request, the group was quickly joined by Launch and Puar, the former announcing that dinner was fast approaching. Unfortunately, the moment Ranma set eyes on the floating shapeshifter, she let out a piercing scream that echoed across the mountain.
[]
Videl, Akane, and Rouge were for once, enjoying the quiet ambience of the forest as they reveled in the comforting warmth of their own personal, natural bath. Unfortunately, that serenity would be hastily quashed as the unmistakable sound of a girl screaming entered their ears.
"You girls heard that too, right?" asked Akane.
The others nodded before Videl asked, "Think we should check it out?"
The decision would be made for them as the screaming seemed to be getting louder. Seconds later, its source would reveal itself to be a frantic female Ranma who, in her fearful stupor stumbled over a rock and dove headfirst into the heated water.
"The hell…did this hot spring come from?" Ranma asked hacking and spitting up water.
As he wrung out his pigtail, Ranma paused as he took in his surroundings and shrank as he realized his fatal blunder. He could only mutter a startled yelp before an angered call of his name echoed across the region.
"RAAAAAANMAAAAAAA!"
[]
Moments later, the girls garbed in towels stood apologetically behind a thoroughly thrashed and burnt Ranma.
"So he freaked out after seeing Puar, got it," Videl noted.
"Is Puar even a feline? I thought he was more like a little fox," said Akane.
"I thought she was a rabbit," said Rouge.
"Never mind that," Ranma interjected. "Just get dressed and hurry back to the campsite. Pantyhose Taro's got somethin' to tell everybody."
Later, everyone reassembled at the campsite, Puar having been removed for Ranma's sake (Though it didn't stop Yamcha from taking a few jabs at Ranma's phobia). With all eyes on Taro, he began recounting his recent meeting with Happosai.
[Last Night]
"You say you have a proposition for me?" Happosai asked.
With a sharp gaze, Taro turned to face the old master. "First, let me ask you this; what guarantee do I have that you'll allow me to change my name if I do defeat this Saiyaman character?"
Happosai pouted and flitted his eyebrows. "You honestly think a poor old man like me wouldn't keep his word to his beloved godson?"
"Hmph, I honestly think that your promises aren't worth a single damn…which is where my proposition comes in." Reaching into his shirt, Taro pulled out a laminated scrap of paper and presented it to Happosai. As soon as he laid eyes on it, his expression alit.
"Is that…!?"
"A photograph of the Capsule Corp CEO taking a bath? Yes it is."
"WHERE ON EARTH DID YOU GET THAT!? And why are all the good bits covered up!?"
Taro proceeded to capsulize the photo before replying. "My methods aren't important, and the picture is in its full under the lamination, but what IS important is this: Keep your end of the bargain and let me change my name and the picture is yours."
A nonchalant Happosai trotted away with a capsule in hand. "Hmmmm…let me think about this for a moment…."
"What the…when did you…!?"
"Happo Fire Burst!"
Lobbing a firecracker at the stunned Taro, a manically guffawing Happosai bounded away before popping the capsule open. "At long last I'll finally be able to say I've-!"
Happosai froze when he laid eyes on the capsule's contents and was met with a picture of Shen amidst a thick blanket of steam. As he came out of his disgusted stupor, the sound of a taunting laugh came up from behind.
"Did you really think I wouldn't expect you to try and steal my leverage?" said Taro.
"Clever boy," Happosai backhandedly praised.
"Now that you realize how serious I am, I ask you again. Swear on your honor that you'll change my name should I defeat Saiyaman, and the photo is yours."
[]
As Taro wound down his tale, Ranma let out a disapproving huff. "If you think that old freak has any honor to swear by, you're a fool."
"Ordinarily, you'd be correct cross-dresser, but who said he swore as a martial artist?" Taro replied with a smirk.
"Don't tell me: He swore on his honor as a lecher?" Akane guessed.
"Bingo."
"If he went that far, it's almost a miracle he and Master Roshi don't get along," Yamcha chuckled.
"Please…don't give us that visual…" said Videl.
"Anyway, he ultimately agreed to my terms, but with a caveat. If I haven't defeated him within a week, the deal's off and he'll go back to trying and steal the photo off of me," Taro motioned to Gohan.
"So we've got a week to master the Sealing Blast, huh? No problem," said Ranma.
"It's not just that Ranma, what about Gohan?" said Akane.
"I'm not opposed to taking a dive. We just have to make it look convincing, right?" said Gohan.
Taro smirked. "Then it seems my time was well spent, though I'm not too keen on your implication that I can't defeat you in a real fight."
"I think we can both agree that fooling Happosai is more important right now, but if you want to have a real rematch once this is all over, I'll be more than happy to give it to you," Gohan declared with a soft edge in his voice.
"Then I shall take you up on that," Taro smirked.
"Gee Son, it's not like you to go around accepting challenges like this," Goku noted.
Gohan coyly chuckled. "Just trying to do my part."
"So…how should we go about this?" asked Videl.
Ranma spoke up with a mischievous grin. "Leave it to me!"
"Ranma, the last time you thought up a performance to make Happosai change Taro's name, everything that could've gone wrong, did go wrong," said Akane.
"Okay Ms. Critic, then if you've got an idea, let's hear it!" Ranma challenged.
"No, the girl's right. Your plans never go right, which is why I've taken the liberty of coming up with a screenplay all on my own!"
Taro pulled out a large scrap of paper with crudely drawn images of him in cursed form, Saiyaman, and Haapposai. The makeshift comic strip showed Chimera Taro presenting a battle worn Saiyaman to Happosai, the old master giving a happy nod, followed by an ecstatic Taro flying away.
Everyone viewed the illustration with embarrassed disbelief.
"What the hell kind of plan is this!?" Videl snapped.
"Its simple. Gohan's already agreed to take a dive so I just hand him over to the old man, our deal is done and you all capture him afterwards."
"So you're saying you just want us to do all the work while you get what you want?" asked Akane.
Taking Akane by the hand, Taro said, "Thank you for understanding."
Taro was hastily knocked to the ground by Ranma. "Sorry Nylon Boy, but if you think you're gettin' outta this without lifting a finger, you got another thing comin'!"
While Ranma an the girls argued with Taro, Gohan took Taro's plan and began examining it, quickly followed by the other Z-Warriors. After a moment of thought, Gohan proclaimed, "This could work."
The verbal fight stopped and everyone present let out a unified, "Huh?"
"Taro's plan. It could work, but it just needs a little bit of adjusting."
"What adjusting? My plan is flawless!" Taro snapped.
"Not quite pal," Ranma interjected. "Even if Gohan 'plays dead', what's going to stop the old freak from just changing his mind the moment he gives you the permission? Or if he realizes that he wasn't actually beaten? Remember last time?"
Taro remained silent as he contemplated Ranma's point. He was right. There were still many variables he hadn't considered.
"It's been a long day for all of us," Tien noted. "I think it's best if we sleep on this plan of yours and hash out the details when we're all of sounder mind."
"Yeah…that's probably for the best," Gohan concurred.
The others all agreed and made their preparations to turn in for the night. Those rebuilding the village returned to it, Gohan and Ranma went with Goku while Taro stayed behind at Tien's request.
Once the two were alone, Taro inquired why Tien wanted to speak with him.
"I want to talk to you about Master Shen."
[]
And so, many days have passed since the group meeting in the mountain village. While Akane, Ranma, and Videl all committed themselves to their own diligent training, Gohan assisted where he could while also making necessary preparations.
Before long, seven days had passed and for many citizens of Satan City, the day was as normal as could be.
[]
The last bell at Orange Star High finally rang, signaling the end of the school day. As they gathered their belongings, Gohan and Videl shared a stern nod with each other before heading to the door.
"And where are you two going?" asked Sharpner.
"Out," they said in unison.
"Oh, is it date night or something?" teased Erasa.
"It's something alright," Videl replied. "Let's go."
As the couple left the room, Sharpner and Erasa shared a look with each other.
"Now what kind of 'something', do you think they're up to?" he asked.
"I don't know, but I want to."
"So we're following them?"
"Oh yeah."
[]
Moments later, Sharpner and Erasa found Videl and Gohan on the roof, as usual. As they peered through the door, they could hear the two discussing…something.
"So, is it go time?" asked Videl.
"Yeah. I can already sense him somewhere in the city," Gohan replied.
"Alright then. Get over there and do your part, and I'll do mine."
"Right."
The two nodded then floated off before shooting in opposite directions, much to the two blondes' confusion.
"Hehe, what do you know, they really aren't going on a date," Erasa chuckled.
"Great observation Erasa," Sharpener said with an eye-roll. Jokes aside, where do you think they're going?"
"I don't know, but do you think we should go find out?"
"Should we? Probably not."
"But are we going to anyway?"
"We will if you're up for it."
Erasa paused before giving a cheeky smile and nodding her affirmation. "So who are we going after, Gohan or Videl?"
Normally I'd say Videl, but I want to know who Gohan's meeting with, so we're following him."
With a nod, Erasa zipped back into the building, Sharpner slamming the door behind her. They'd find out what Gohan and Videl were up to one way or another."
[]
Though it took a bit of searching given Gohan's aerial mobility compared to Sharpner's basic mode of ground transportation, but thanks to Satan City's surprisingly on point news casting, the pair were able to get a lead on Saiyaman's location before eventually following him to a tall building with an antenna. The real surprise was that there was a person already perched on said antenna. Saiyaman approached the stranger calmly and merely floated before them.
"Who's that?" asked Sharpner.
"I don't know, but it looks like they're…talking about something?" Erasa guessed.
"Quick, in the glove compartment. I have a capsule with a pair of binoculars in it!" said Sharpner.
"Why do you have binoculars in your car?"
"For…emergencies."
"Right~," smirked a disbelieving Erasa.
Erasa quickly retrieved the capsule, but before she could open it, both Gohan and the mystery man flew off.
"Where are they going now?" she asked.
"Don't know, but we're following them."
[]
The ensuing drive took the two to the outskirts of the city, to a spot that Erasa was more than familiar with; a certain highway path overlooking a patch of forest.
Once Sharpner pulled over and exited the car, Erasa to his surprise, hung back. "Hey, is something wrong?"
"Fine…I'm just still a bit rattled from what happened the last time I was over here."
"Oh right…isn't this the place where Videl fought that monster guy and got kidnapped?"
Erasa hugged herself, shuddering at the mere mention of that 'monster guy'. Sharpner, in a moment of genuine concern, put his arm around her shoulders.
"Hey, don't worry. I'm sure it must've been a scary experience, but that was then, and this is now. You're safe here with me, and if you aren't, Gohan's right there to lend us a hand."
Taking a quick breath, Erasa's tension seemed to ease up. Nodding, she joined Sharpner as he led her to the edge of the cliff. Though they had to stay on the elevated path, the two had a scenic spot to view the exchange between Saiyaman and his guest.
"You got the binoculars?"
In response, Erasa popped the capsule and peered through the scopes. As she scanned the area and saw Saiyaman's flowing cape, she let out a loud gasp, dropping the binoculars when her eyes fell on the other person.
"Hey, easy with those!" Sharpner snapped. His ire quickly vanished when he noted Erasa once again hugging herself and shaking. "Erasa?"
"That…that's the same guy from before…!" she whipered.
"What?"
Sharpner quickly grabbed his, thankfully not too damaged binoculars and glanced through them to get a full look at Gohan and Pantyhose Taro.
"That guy's the monster? But he's built like a stick."
Erasa nodded. "That's him alright. I couldn't forget a face that hot, no matter how creepy he is."
"You think he's hot?"
"I'm just saying, he has a very nice face…even if he is kind of scary."
"Wait, are you really saying…!?"
"Nah. His whole monster shtick kind of kills any real interest I might've had."
"Guess that's something else that separates you and Videl," Sharpner snickered.
"What was that?"
"Just wondering what those two are talking about." Sharpner replied zooming in on the pair.
[]
"You're sure about this?" Taro asked.
Gohan nodded. "Yeah. I've handled worse before, so don't hold back."
Taro flashed Gohan a menacing grin before making some space between them and then pointing his finger at Gohan. "Last warning, I can't guarantee I won't accidentally kill you."
"I'm not afraid of dying." 'For more than one reason.'
"Very well then. Take this, DODONPA!"
In a flash, Gohan was forced back as the flash of light pierced through his shoulder.
"Ggh…okay…really felt that…."
"Dodonpa!"
Another beam shot into Gohan's body, this time his leg.
"Dodonpa!"
Taro continued firing shot after shot at Gohan who made no attempts to defend himself. Erasa and Sharpner could only watch, mouths agape as Saiyaman endured every blast, the chimeric fighter steadily gaining an ever-growing sneer with each shot fired.
"The Hell is going on? Why isn't Gohan fighting back!?" Sharpner snapped.
"I don't know but…maybe we should…do something…?" whimpered Erasa."
"Do what exactly!? We can't go down there…for a couple of reasons!"
"Yeah…but…we can't just leave Gohan alone like that…right…?"
"You're right but…what can we do…?"
The panicked duo pondered for a moment before they realized what they needed to do. "Call Videl!"
[]
Videl hastily flew beyond the city limits toward the next town. She wasn't sure how long Gohan would take, but either way, it was best to get to her destination and finish her task quickly. Her focus would be lightly barred by the familiar beep of her communication watch.
'Erasa?' "Guess I could at least see what she wants." Pressing the button, she was quickly met with her friend's distressed voice.
"Videl! Thank Kami you picked up. We've got a situation!"
"What kind of situation?"
"A serious kind! That monster guy is back, and he's beating on Gohan! I know Gohan's tough, but I think you need to get back here stat and lend him a hand."
Erasa's panic changed to confusion as Videl gave the most unexpected response ever. She was…laughing.
"Videl, the Hell's wrong with you?" came Sharpner's voice. "Your boyfriend's getting his ass kicked and you're laughing!?"
"Calm down you two. Believe it or not, Gohan and I are actually working with Taro for a case."
"Say what!?"
"I'll give you two the abridged version." She quickly informed the two that they were trying to catch a common enemy and Gohan and Taro needed to damage each other for their trap to work and that Gohan was more than tough enough to not be seriously damaged at the end of things.
"Why the Hell…do they need to damage each other?" asked Sharpner.
"No time to explain, but you guys may want to get clear, especially you Erasa."
"Wait, why me?"
"Oh! Sorry, got to go. I'll call back later and give you the highlights when I can."
Videl hung up and quickly dialed a new number. It was time to give Ranma and Akane the signal.
[]
The befuddled blonde duo could only stare blankly at each other trying to fully grasp the situation at hand. Their attention would quickly be re-grabbed by a pained shriek from below. Peering back at the scene, Gohan looked completely ragged with his costume full of holes and his skin with numerous burns courtesy of Taro's repeated attacks.
Finally, the assault seemed to have stopped as a panting Taro stood above a knelt over, smoking Gohan.
"That…should do it," breathed Taro.
Gohan stood up and shook himself off. Despite the outward damage, he still seemed to be in top physical condition, a fact that Taro made sure to keep in mind.
"Alright, then, I guess it's my turn," said Gohan.
"Very well…" Taro sighed. Let's just hurry and get this over with."
Gohan nodded and brought his hands together up to his forehead while Taro defensively crossed his hands over his chest.
"Masenko!"
Taro braced himself as Gohan fired a blast that encompassed his whole body. Taro fought against the wave, desperate to not let himself get overwhelmed. Despite Gohan using significantly less than his full power, Taro was still forced away by the force of the blast, getting launched into the retreating forest.
[]
"What was that light?" asked Erasa.
"Gohan just blasted the guy!" replied an ecstatic Sharpner.
"Really?"
"Yeah…it looks like…Gohan's going into the forest now…."
"Let me see!"
Erasa snatched the binoculars from Sharpner and looked to see Gohan take into the sky and land indiscriminately into the forest.
"What's happening now?"
"I don't know, they disappeared into the trees."
The two remained still, waiting for something to happen, but for a moment, there was nothing. No movement, no noise aside from a light wind, not even other people or animals. The calm air was shortly disturbed by a notable rustle of the leaves.
"What was that?"
"What was what?"
Sharpner once again reclaimed his binoculars and glanced in the direction of the movement only for the rustling to steadily grow more intense. A few seconds later, another beam of golden light shone through the trees, followed by another and another.
"What the hell are they doing in there?"
Zooming in the binoculars, Sharpner tried his darndest to make heads or tales of the situation in the forest. The struggle seemed to have paused until there was another rustle in the leaves. As Sharpner turned his attention to it, he squealed as a large dark mass burst through the leaves and shot off into the sky. Erasa also toppled back with a scream as she recognized Pantyhose Taro's cursed form, in hot pursuit was Saiyaman and they seemed to be flying back into the city.
"What…what…the hell…was that…!?" stammered Sharpner.
"That…was the other guy's monster form…" replied a shaken Erasa.
Picking himself up, Sharpner slumped over to his car and sat against the door. "You…gotta be kiddin' me! What the Hell are Gohan and Videl up to with a guy like that!?"
"I don't know and part of me doesn't want to find out, especially with the warning Videl gave us…."
"I…think I'm with you there. I really do want to find out just what's going on…but I think it's time to bow out."
With a nod, Erasa quickly hopped back into the passenger seat and buckled up. Needless to say, she was eager to get moving. Sharpner on the other hand, remained still, staring up at the sky.
"Sharpner?"
Shaking out of his trance, he got behind the wheel and said, "Let's go."
[]
Back in Nerima, Akane was doing her usual shtick of smashing bricks while Ranma was practicing forms in the dojo. Today was the day they'd finally put Happosai away, if all went well at least.
Thinking back to their strategy meeting at the mountain village, everyone mutually agreed that the best plan was for Gohan to play possum until Happosai finally gave Taro what he wanted, though to sell the act, they both had to look disheveled, as if they'd fought the most epic battle that nobody got to see. An easy task for Gohan to endure Taro's attacks, and luckily Gohan had more than enough control of his strength to return fire to Taro without putting him down.
After that, everyone would have to do their part to keep Happy distracted so he wouldn't change his mind, and they'd do it under the guise of trying to rescue Gohan from whatever Happy had planned for him. Once they found an opening, they'd take their shot and seal the old pervert away for good.
In addition to the strategic planning, they and Videl had been preparing themselves physically, using what each of them had learned from their respective teachers and doing their best to refine it, with varying degrees of success. Ranma was the most successful in performing the Mafuba, so the honors would have to be done by him, but as expected, against someone like Happosai, who still outclassed Ranma himself, he'd only get one chance.
The girls each individually were able to raise their power enough to fire the technique, but neither could fully control it and against Happosai, the energy needed could be fatal. Whatever happened today, they were in for one hell of a battle.
Akane had another stack of blocks all lined up, ready to smash some more but paused when she was called by Kasumi.
"Akane, Videl just called. She says she's on her way here."
Akane took a breath before proceeding to smash the bricks in a single blow. Turnng to her sister, she gave a single nod.
A moment later, Akane made her way to the dojo to be met with a flipping Ranma. "What's up?"
"Videl's on her way, so get ready!"
With a confident smirk, Ranma cracked his knuckles. "Of course."
Moments later, Ranma and Akane dashed through town to meet up with Videl who quickly descended before them.
"You two ready?"
"Oh yeah!"
Quickly boarding Videl's plane, the trio made their way back to Satan City.
[]
The midair chase quickly caught the eye of many an onlooker. Taro's previous visit to the city remained largely unknown to the general populace, but there was no way anyone could miss Saiyaman chasing a giant winged beast. The pair continued to fire low powered blasts at each other, in order to minimize collateral damage, but if Happosai was near, they both knew they'd need to kick things up a notch in order to sell the performance. As Taro swerved in the air in a faux attempt to shake Gohan off his tail, he could barely swell the feeling of expectation welling up inside him.
Taro wouldn't dwell on his thoughts for too long as he was swiftly checked by Saiyaman slamming into him from the side. Taro quickly fixed himself in midair and launched his tentacles out at the costumed hero.
Saiyaman made a number of exaggerated dodges before attempting to fly away, only for his cape to be caught by the aquatic appendage. Swirling his tentacles like a carousel, Taro swung Gohan around and launched him towards the streets below.
Gohan was able to fix himself and land safely on his feet with a deafening crash before launching himself back at Taro who shielded himself with his arms and tentacles. Enduring the brunt of Saiyaman's tackle, Taro continued guard against his follow up, barrage of punches. An easy feat given how low power his blows were. Gohan's attacks did however, force Taro backwards and the two of them kept soaring back through until they were near the city limits, away from the masses.
With the coast clear, the two broke their apparent stalemate, staring each other down in midair. As their eyes locked, they both smirked at each other in silent confirmation. The pair proceeded to circle each other, neither one taking their eyes off the other. The first to move was Taro who fired a quick Dodon Ray which Saiyaman easily deflected.
Taro tried to Rush in but Saiyaman warped away managing to get behind him. As Taro turned to reface his opponent, he was met with the sight of Saiyaman charging the Turtle School's signature move.
"Kamehame...HA!"
Once more wrapping himself up with his tentacles, Taro braced himself, taking Gohan's blast head on. With a quick burst of his energy, Gohan's blast soon encompassed Taro blowing him to the ground below.
Gohan slowly descended to the crater Taro's impact had made and stood cautiously before him. He could see that Taro wasn't moving but could tell from his still heightened energy that he was none the worse for wear. He held a great deal of power back in that last attack, but they needed to make their fight look as convincing as possible.
Gohan once again held still, inspecting the fallen form of his faux foe. Peering deeper into the crater Gohan was caught 'off-guard' by Taro's tentacles lashing out and grabbing his wrists. In a burst, Taro zipped out of the crater and into the air. Facing downwards, he proceeded to restrain all four of Gohan's limbs with his tentacles before bringing his hands together in a similar diamond shape pose.
With a bellowing 'Mooooo!', Taro fired a full strength Tri-Beam at a fully exposed Saiyaman, releasing him right at the moment of impact. With no way to defend, Gohan was harshly forced into the ground, deep within a large, rectangular crater. A shaky Taro descended over Gohan's landing spot. Sure enough, a firm, but seemingly disheveled Gohan appeared from the crater, grinning beneath his helmet.
"So, you are still alive," read a sign Taro pulled out.
"Yeah…and I think this should be convincing enough. Now you just have to 'deliver' me."
Nodding with a twisted sneer, Taro pointed at Gohan and fired one final, good measure Dodon Ray at Gohan, right at his chest, blowing the front of his costume away. Shortly after, Taro ascended once more with an 'unconscious' Saiyaman in his tentacles, flying back towards the heart of the city.
Despite the literal weight on his back, Taro couldn't help but feel hopeful about their success. Despite the numerous things that could go wrong, something about this plan in particular felt like it had a high chance of success. In just a few moments, he'd finally be rid of his accursed title and be able to be known by a more respectable name. After that, the world would be his oyster, thanks to his newfound power (and a little assistance from a respectable enemy).
Speaking of that power, the thought of his current level up brought Taro back to his conversation with Tien.
[Several Days Earlier]
"Once this is over, do you plan to remain as Master Shen's Disciple?" asked Tien.
"Hmph, that depends. I'm willing to stay with him a little longer, but once he's outlived his usefulness, I'll leave that old crow in a heartbeat."
Tien's eyes narrowed at Taro's response. Though he did find solstice in Taro's willingness to leave the Crane Master, he couldn't say he agreed with his reasoning. Despite his shortcomings as a person, Shen still deserved due respect as a master at the very least.
"Now I'd like to ask you something," said Taro. "Why did you leave him? I know I have little room to judge given my own loyalties towards him are paper thin, but from the way he spoke of you, he made it sound like you literally stabbed him in the back.
"Figures he'd still feel that way," Tien chuckled. "But frankly, I did sort of turn my back on him. I'll always be grateful for the teachings I received under his tutelage, but at the end of the day, his goals and mine just didn't align. I wanted to see how far I could push myself as a fighter, he just wanted to turn me into an assassin."
"An assassin?" asked a surprisingly intrigued Taro.
Tien nodded. "When I refused to deal a fatal blow to a certain opponent, Master Shen didn't take it too well, and the rest is history." Tien paused in reminiscence before continuing. "I can tell that you're a very talented fighter. I won't tell you what course of action is best for you, but I think it'd be wise to strongly consider the path you choose to take before making any commitments.
[]
He'd been so focused on the mission at hand, Taro really didn't think of what would come next after he finally got his name changed. Oh well, he'd have plenty of time t think it over once the shame of his current title would be erased for good.
[]
Meanwhile, a familiar yellow plane zoomed into Satan City. Despite how brief her trip to Nerima was, Videl was gone just long enough to receive a call from SCPD of Saiyaman fighting some sort of winged, bull monster and that he may need some assistance.
All was going according to plan. News travels quickly around Satan City so if word had already gotten out that Gohan and Taro were fighting, then there was no doubt that Happosai was privy to it. Now they just had to find Taro and stay out of sight until the moment was right. Good thing Taro's cursed form is so conspicuous.
(A/N: Long time no see, but I'm back, and happy late new year. I didn't intend to take this hiatus, but after a personal project or two (as well as exhausting work hours for a time) took a lot out of me, I needed more time to recharge. Either way I'm back and we're near the title fight. Before anyone gets the wrong idea, I'm just going to say this now and emphasize: Taro did NOT defeat Gohan in a real fight. Gohan took his attacks to appear damaged, and Gohan held his power back to not harm Taro too much. They're trying to sell the image of them having an intense fight that Taro won. I don't wanna see any reviews about Gohan being nerfed, because that's not what's going on here. Just needed to get that clarified. In other news, Erasa and Sharpner make a return. Will they have a hand in the final battle? Maybe, maybe not. Either way, I thought giving them a small little misadventure would be a nice lead-in/breakaway from things since we've been at Tien's village for so many chapters. In other, other news, some of you will be happy to hear that, I actually DO have a plan to introduce Vegeta properly now. I can't say how many chapters it'll take, but it WILL happen. Also can't say if it'll be worth the wait, but again, he isn't a priority character in this story. Regardless, I'm glad to be back and hopefully it won't take four to five months for the next update.)