NOTE: Welcome back! Since the last chapter a very tragic event happened. The death of Akira Toriyama, the creator of Dragon Ball. I've already spoken about all of my feelings regarding it, so if you want to read it just look at my list of fics. May he rest in peace.

Yes, I'm aware that I screwed up the timeline in the previous chapter. I'm not good at math.

Apologies to those who are fans of Yoru/War. Future Yoru got the short end of the stick there, but it's supposed to be a bad timeline. War isn't Goku's biggest fan for a few reasons. Present Yoru/War will have a much better future. I have several ideas for her and most of them involve her dealing with the terrible twins and Trunks.

I'm not skipping Buu Saga. There would be no point in me staring here if I skipped it. There will likely be some small CSM-esque arcs later down the line, but major ones are all DB related. I will also be doing some of the movies, like Broly: Second Coming and Fusion Reborn for example.

EDIT: Let me make it clear, I WILL be doing DBS: Broly. The Z-Movies (Not including BOG and ROF) are all non-canon as they usually are. I will be using the movie version for both ROF and BOG. I simply like those so much more than the DBS versions which dragged on too long.

Nayuta will not be learning the fusion dance. I have different things planned her power-wise. I also just want her and Gotenks being a chaotic duo.

FYI: This chapter is very Videl-centric. Wasn't intended to be that way, but I hope you like it.

Enjoy and Review!

Chapter 5: The Interview

If Videl Satan could describe Son Gohan with one word it would be…mysterious.

One year ago, he transferred into Orange Star High School after being homeschooled for most of his life. Now something like this wasn't strange, a lot of kids transfer into public or private schools after being homeschooled. However, Gohan transferred into their school with the highest test scores the country has ever seen. Not a single error on any test he's taken, and all of his prior credentials proved even more that the boy was a genius.

He was the textbook definition of a nerd. Scrawny-looking, dressed in baggy clothing, nervous to a fault, and mostly avoided talking to other people. Though, it didn't take long for him to get roped into her friend group when one of her best friends, Erasa, invited him to sit with them for lunch.

That's when things started getting weird.

Son Gohan, unlike everyone else in her life, did not care at all that she was the daughter of Hercule Satan, the champion who defeated the evil Cell. In fact, he hadn't even realized who she was until after Erasa mentioned it. The look of pure befuddlement on his face almost made her laugh. Almost.

There was also his weird appetite. Who brings ten lunch boxes to school?!

And his eyes…they were weird. He has to be wearing some weird contact lenses, because there was no way anyone could have eyes like his.

After that, for a while, things seemed pretty normal with their group. Regardless of how much of a nerd Gohan was, he was pretty nice. Not fake nice either, but genuinely kind towards everyone, especially her. His strange eyes were always filled with warmth, his childlike smile appearing whenever something caught his interest, his contagious laughter, and the way he'd focus intensely during class.

I̶t̶ ̶w̶a̶s̶ ̶h̶o̶t̶

However, things would change a few months after Gohan joined when another transfer student entered their class. A scruffy looking boy by the name of Denji Hayakawa. This kid was freaking weird! While Gohan was a nice kind of weird, Denji was the strange weird. He treated his male classmates like 2nd rate trash but would fawn over the girls like a fool. All it took was Erasa asking him to hold her purse and he basically became her donkey for the rest of the day. But the only male in the school who he didn't regard as trash was Gohan. Hell, the two seemed like really close friends.

And you wouldn't think something like this would be strange, but considering how Gohan acts like an awkward mess whenever he interacts with anyone his age, this was out of character. When she confronted Gohan about their relationship, he simply answered in that weird mysterious way that he always answers questions about his personal life:

"Uh…family friend!"

And then he'd speed walk away from her as if he had somewhere important to be. How the actual hell was a scrawny dork like him so fast?!

Anyways, things had once again settled into some form of normalcy in her life again. The student body, especially the female students, got 'used' to the eccentric actions of Denji and continued on as normal. As for herself, she continued to do her thing as in helping out the police when they called her in to take down some criminals. Only criminals, since she wasn't properly trained to handle Devil attacks, as ordered by her papa. Those were always left to the Public Safety Commission or free-lancing Devil Hunters. Unfortunately, things don't always go as they should…

One day, after stopping a bank robbery, a crazy weird devil appeared out of nowhere. The sight of the thing alone sent the surrounding civilians into a frenzy. Common sense would be to run away and find somewhere to hide until the properly equipped forces appear, but nope! Videl Satan's sense of justice was too strong to sit idly by and watch as people were getting killed. She rushed in to try and save as many people as she could or maybe even beat the devil herself. But this would prove to be the incorrect move as the devil's sights instantly turned to her. She froze in fear as the monster's attack came towards her at blinding speeds. Before it could land, someone had saved her at the last minute.

Videl opened her eyes to see that she wasn't dead and that she was being held bridal style in someone's arms. Getting a good look at her savior made the local crime fighter wish the attack had landed. He was dressed in a helmet, red cape, green gi with a black bodysuit worn underneath, as well as white gloves and boots. "Are you okay, Vi-I mean-miss?" He asked with a forced deep voice.

"W-what? Who the hell are you?!" Videl asked, trying to escape his arms. The strange man touched down on the ground and allowed Videl to stand back up onto her feet. Before he could answer a loud crazy laughter echoed above their heads. Looking up, Videl watched as a half-naked man with chainsaws protruding out of his body came falling out of the sky. He started ripping through the devil without a shred of mercy, his laughter getting louder with each tidal wave of blood that splashed on him.

Videl felt like she was going to throw up just watching the scene, not to mention the putrid smell.

The Chainsaw freak landed on the ground, whipping the blood off of his blades. "HA HA HA HA HA HA HA! CHAINSAW MAN IS HERE TO KICK SOME ASS, YOU DUMBASS DEVIL! WOMEN, CHILDREN, AND CATS ARE UNDER MY PROTECTION! As for the men…eh."

"WHAT DO YOU MEAN, 'EH'?!" Several civilians, mostly men, screamed at him.

The strange man appeared next to Chainsaw Man. He posed dramatically like a superhero out of a comic book. "AND I-" He started going through a series of idiotic dance moves. "-AM THE GREAT SAIYAMAN!" He declared, bending his knees and forming a 'V' over his helmet with his hands.

It was the dumbest thing Videl had ever seen. But she couldn't deny the fact that the two of them effortlessly dispatched the devil and kept the civilians safe. Most Devil Hunters she's seen couldn't achieve the feat that these two had done. Which made her all the more curious about their identities, but before she could press them about it, the two took off from the scene. Videl's eyes narrowed at the direction they vanished.

Things with those two superhero wannabes only got worse when they started intruding on almost every single crime she was trying to solve! Those jackasses wouldn't let her do her job in protecting her city, and Videl swore she wouldn't let them get away with it! She'd bring their identities to light if it was the last thing she does!

…

"And you want my help with this, because…?" Asa Mitaka asked. Asa is a young teen of average height and build, nothing too impressive compared to Videl or other girls her age. She has brown eyes and black hair that reaches down to the middle of her back in the style of twin tails. She's dressed in a white button-up blouse tucked into a knee-length black skirt with a dark red jacket over the blouse. She carefully balanced the stack of newspapers in her hands as she conversed with her friend.

"You're the only person in our group that I can trust." Videl explained. "Sharpener and Erasa wouldn't take it seriously, so they're out. I could ask Gohan, but he acts elusive all the time that I need someone I can be certain will have my back." Videl didn't notice the way Asa cringed at Gohan's name, her eyes darting to the space next to her as if there was something else there. "There's also Denji."

"Ugh…" Asa made her feelings on him clear as day in this case. Videl wasn't surprised, since Asa was one of the few girls to try and keep clear of the latest transfer student. She voiced her opinion on the boy's interaction with girls more than enough times, especially to Gohan, but the good-hearted boy said that Denji's behavior wasn't too bad. Apparently, he's seen much worse as a child. Which…was a completely different discussion to be had.

Videl rolled her eyes. "It wouldn't be difficult to convince him."

"That's exactly why! He's a pervert who only wants women to sit on him! I don't get why Gohan is friends with him, he's such a nice guy. If guys were more like him then this world would be a much better place!" Asa declared. "Like seriously, men only want girls with model-like faces and big boobs! What's even the appeal with massive breasts anyway?! They just hurt your spine-"

Videl knew she needed to intervene before Asa continued on one of her many tangents. "Asa! I get it!" She stopped the dark-haired girl from continuing. "If you think it'll be a bad idea for me to get his help, then that means you should help me!"

"W-well… I mean…"

"C'mon! What's the harm?" She again didn't see the way Asa nervously glanced to her right, wincing ever so slightly.

"W-well…I can't refute a friend, can I?" Asa reluctantly agreed, much to Videl's relief. The local crime fighter slapped her friend on the back, almost causing her to drop her newspapers.

"Alright then! Starting tomorrow we'll start by following my first lead: Son Gohan and Denji Hayakawa!" Videl declared.

"EHHHH?!" Asa's jaw dropped. "B-but you said that you were thinking of having them as your partners!"

"I did, but that was a lie. The two of them are the most suspicious of the bunch with their secrets, after all. As I said before, you're the only one I could trust to help me with this." Videl gave a cheeky smile. "And you've already agreed, Asa! So see you tomorrow!" The local crime fighter booked it out of the hallway before Asa could say anything else.

The average teenager just stood there in silence before groaning at herself.

"You're a dumbass."

"Nobody asked you!" Asa hissed at her dark reflection, who's face had two scars running across it. "Just keep quiet as I take these to the Newspaper club-WAH!" She tripped over her own foot, causing the stack of papers to go flying out of an open window and into the busy street.

Videl let out a deep sigh as she thought back to all of the hectic mess. She and Asa had never managed to catch those boys in the act, and at one point she was close to just giving up. But one random encounter with the Great Saiyaman during a car chase had put an end to that case. Gohan just couldn't help but forget that he was in costume when talking to her, which made all of her previous interactions with the Great Saiyaman even more humiliating. The dork didn't even act differently in and out of costume, so it was a miracle he even managed to keep the secret as long as he did.

Their ride back to the school also led to Gohan accidently spilling the beans that Denji was Chainsaw Man, but she promised that she wouldn't say anything about either of them as long as Gohan joined the World Tournament. With the added bonus of teaching her how to fly.

When she explained things to Asa, the dark-haired girl faked looking surprised, as if she knew Gohan's identity at least the entire time. Videl decided to deal with Asa's secrets another time, because all of her focus now would be on the tournament.

As she flew over the mountains of Mt. Paozu, Videl eventually found the small house sitting in the forest clearing. Figuring that this must be Gohan's house, she directed her hover vehicle to land a bit away from the house. She grabbed the bag filled with Gohan's share of schoolwork and made her way towards the front door. Videl knocked on the door a couple times and was surprised by how quick the response was. Standing across from her was a woman with long dark red hair, dressed in a white colored shirt with fitting black pants that really complimented her hips, and a black trench coat.

But the most recognizable part about her were her eyes. They were scarily similar to Gohan's, and this made her realize two things: This was his mother, and he doesn't wear contacts.

"You must be Videl." Makima smiled. "I'm Son Makima, Gohan's mother."

"H-how do you-"

"You're the champion's daughter, right? Of course, I know you." Makima answered.

"Right…" Videl muttered, mentally slapping herself. She didn't really know how to navigate this conversation, because it felt like this woman was judging her. She's never been judged by people; she does the judging. Coughing into her fist, Videl stood a bit taller. "Well, I'm here to drop off Gohan's upcoming schoolwork."

Makima was handed the bag, and the mother of three just placed it on the counter. "Thank you. Would you like to come in?"

"I wouldn't want to intrude-"

"I insist. My children will be here shortly anyway." Makima moved out of the way to let Videl in. The crime fighter realized she really had no way of refusing, especially since Gohan was going to be arriving soon anyway. The two women made their way to the dining table, Videl carefully taking a seat as Makima took the one across from her.

Silence filled the space between them as Videl awkwardly stared at the smiling woman across from her. This was probably one of the most uncomfortable experiences of her life and as Hercule's daughter she's had plenty of those to last a lifetime. It confused her on how she could be so similar to Gohan, who was as bright as the morning sun. This woman just filled you with a very unnatural feeling as if she knows much more about you than you know about yourself.

"So, you want to enter the World Tournament?" Makima's question snapped Videl out of her thoughts.

"Y-yes! I will be entering the World Tournament next month!" Videl answered.

"Why?" Makima asked.

"Because of my papa, of course!" Videl exclaimed. "You've seen the news and interviews, right?! He acts like a pompous jerk just because he saved the world once! Ugh! Just once I wanna see him lose, learn some humility! That's why I'm gonna enter the tournament and kick his butt!" During her declaration she had gotten up from the table, slamming her hands against the wood to emphasize her point.

"Then why invite my son?"

"Eh?" Videl felt as if the energy got sucked right out of her with that question. She looked back at the matriarch, who was leaning her head on a palm. "Y-you know about that?"

"My son isn't the biggest fan of fighting. Let's say that his childhood wasn't the best…introduction to the idea." Makima responded.

Okay, now Videl felt bad after hearing that. "I-uh-didn't know that. Gohan doesn't really talk much about his personal life."

"Social interactions are new for him. He'll just hide away in his shell unless you force your way into it." Makima learned forward, creeping Videl out even more. "So again, why did you invite my son to the tournament?"

Videl felt an invisible pressure beating down against her chest as the question hung in front of her like a noose. As if saying if she answered this question wrong, then it was game over for her. Scanning her brain for her answer shouldn't have proven to be difficult, but she couldn't just say because she had some form of feelings for him. Something like that would sound selfish, forcing the guy you like to do something he clearly doesn't want to do.

But that's exactly what she did, wasn't it? She's been forcing herself on Gohan since she met him, trying to discover all of his secrets. Following him all around town, searching through records to find any piece of evidence about his personal life, and blackmailing him into this tournament. Videl realizes she's been incredibly selfish towards him from the very start. She goes on and on about the public refusing to respect her privacy, but as soon as a guy catches her interest, she can't even respect his boundaries.

Was it really as simple as a selfish desire?

Yes. Yes the hell it was.

"I'm selfish." Videl responded. She didn't care how this made her look in the eyes of Makima, but she was never one to run away from the truth. "I found out Gohan was the Great Saiyaman and blackmailed him into joining the tournament."

Makima continued to listen.

"I've been surrounded by strong men my entire life, my papa being the strongest of them all. I've always wanted to be like that growing up, to be strong. I-I wasn't strong enough to stop my mom from leaving us…and seeing someone like Gohan with all of the strength… I can't help but be jealous. If I was strong like him, would I be able to keep my mom from leaving, would I be able to stop someone like Cell, would I be able to be like my papa?" Videl stared at her hands, clenching them into fists. She looked back at Makima with determined eyes. "I've been training for years to get stronger, to protect people from criminals and the like. I want to fight Gohan, because it makes the fighter in me rage with excitement. I want him to join the tournament, because I'm a selfish girl who wants to challenge herself. And…" A twinge of pink littered her cheeks. "...maybe-maybe something-"

SLAM!

"WE'RE HOME!" Goten loudly declared as she slammed the door open. The action made Videl jump with a girlish shriek. Makima just rolled her eyes, knowing she should've expected Goten to interrupt at the worst time.

"GOTEN! WHAT DID MAMA SAY ABOUT SLAMMING THE DOOR OPEN?!" Nayuta bonked her younger twin on the head.

"OW! But I didn't slam it closed! That's what she got mad at me about before!" Goten whined.

"She meant it both ways, Goten." Gohan explained as he stepped into view. Videl blushed a bit from the sight of Gohan's muscles under his gi, realizing just how much those baggy clothes of his actually hid. The older brother looked at the dining table and flinched at seeing his mother and Videl were alone together in the house. "V-Videl! Nice to see that you made it!"

"Y-yeah!" She shook away the thoughts from earlier. Videl huffed, crossing her arms and gave her classmate one of her usual glares. "Of course I made it, Gohan! You owe me flying lessons, mister!"

"Oh! You're getting flying lessons too?! So are we!" Goten exclaimed.

Nayuta narrowed her eyes at Videl, a dangerous feeling creeping up in her chest. The young hybrid was a bit more aware of things than her twin and had noticed the way Videl was looking at her brother's body. "Not on my watch, brother stealer."

Makima stood up from the table, gaining everyone's attention. The matriarch smiled at Videl, but this time it didn't really creep the young girl out. "Thank you for the discussion, Videl. It was nice getting to know you. I have to get going to work, so Gohan will see you off once you're done training."

"R-right. T-thank you for allowing me to stay, Mrs. Makima!" Videl exclaimed.

"It was no bother." Makima walked away towards the door, stopping in front of her kids. She looked up at Gohan, who gulped a bit. "I approve." That was all she said before walking out of the house.

"A-approve…?" Gohan tilted his head.

"Mommy approves? What does she mean, Nayuta?" Goten turned to his sister for an answer. Instead all he saw was his twin's eye twitching, which usually meant that she was annoyed by something.

Videl strolled up to the siblings, hands on her hips. "So? Are we gonna get started?"

"O-oh, right!" Gohan nervously yelped from the close proximity between him and Videl. "There's a clearing a bit away from here that we can go use. Uh, by the way, my mother didn't do anything weird did she?"

Videl hummed softly before giving Gohan a sly smile. "Nope! Nothing that you need to be concerned with. She was just interested in the school workload."

"Well, that won't be too difficult." Gohan shrugged. Which was true, he never found any of the material at their high school challenging. "Welp, let's all head out." He and his siblings turned to leave the house.

"Gohan!" Videl got his attention.

"Yeah, Videl?"

"Uh…" She blushed a bit, twirling one of her pigtails. "I'm sorry about forcing you into the tournament. You don't have to join if you don't want to."

He tilted his head, confused on why she was apologizing all of a sudden. "It's fine, Videl. I wasn't really mad at you or anything. Besides, I want to join the tournament! It'll be fun and our dad is coming back for it too!" He laughed happily.

"Really?" Videl asked.

Goten jumped up, filled with energy. "Yeah! Daddy's coming back from the dead!"

"From the dead…?"

Nayuta punched her brother out of the house before he could say anything else. Goten crashed through several trees, horrifying Videl. The crime fighter was worried that the little boy was dead before cute boyish laughter was heard.

Goten jumped up, laughing like a little goof. "Again! Let's do it again!"

Gohan sighed in embarrassment as Nayuta walked towards Goten to send him flying again. Videl just stared at the kids with eyes as wide as dinner plates. Her conversation with Makima, experience with Gohan, and now the twins left one question burning in her mind.

"What the hell is this family?"

Chapter End

NOTE: Well...good news! Makima approves of Videl! To be honest, from the moment she locked eyes with Videl, Makima had already seen everything she needed to and accepted her. She just wanted to hear it from Videl's own mouth. Videl's response reminded her of Goku, which was simply an added bonus of unknowingly winning Makima's favor.

This marks the first appearance of Denji in this story. Took like...9 chapters, but he's finally shown himself. I still have an intermission planned to show how the Sons meet him. And to be fair, this story isn't about him at all. He'll still play a part in events though, so don't worry.

Asa also makes her appearance! She's already become War's vessel by this point. How did that happen? I'll explain it all later. Asa's story will be a bit different, along with how she and Yoru joined together. They will also be playing a part in the events to come.

Gohan is more than aware that his aunt and Asa are bonded. He just sucks at interacting with people and his aunt hasn't done anything to warrant interference yet. Asa and Yoru being bonded does mean that Asa's aware of things that have happened, how much of that? You'll find out later.

Again, this chapter was not supposed to be Videl-centric, but it just ended up turning into one. Regardless of her motivations, don't expect her to suddenly start fist fighting Majin Buu. That isn't gonna happen.

Next chapter will be a bit of the flight training, and the start of the tournament. Which means Goten and Nayuta finally get to meet Goku. You'll also get to see how a married Goku and Makima interact.