Chapter Hundred-fourteen
Young Lions Roar! Goten VS Trunks!
After Vegeta's complete annihilation of the elimination machine, it took twenty minutes for the new machine to be brought out and calibrated. On top of that, when all that business was finally finished, it still took half an hour to whittle down the hundreds of potential entrants to fifteen. During which time, incidentally, no one could find Goku or Suno. Eventually, however, the business was finally done with.
In addition to Goku, Suno, Vegeta, Krillin, and Lazuli; Piccolo, The Great Saiyaman, and Videl also qualified. Outside of these usual suspects, there were a few others who rounded out the fifteen. There was Upa, whose face visibly dropped when he realized that Goku was in the tournament as well; the monolithic Pintar, an enormous dark-skinned man with a ponytail in a vest, pantaloons, and comically small pointed red shoes; the mysterious and enigmatic Xī, who Gohan confirmed to Vegeta as being the God who had spoken to him in his dreams; the tall and muscular Kibito, who wore a similar manner of dress to Xī and whose white hair and weathered pink face made him seem incredibly old; and there were the brothers Yamu and Spopovich, each bearing a black tattoo on their foreheads that made Gohan's blood run cold. So these, he realized, were the minions of Babidi. Rounding out the fifteen non-Hercule qualifiers was the only other costumed hero besides Great Saiyaman in the tournament: the champion of South City known as Mighty Mask.
"Jeez," Videl muttered to herself when she spied Spopovich. "Somebody's been hitting the juice hard since he lost to my dad seven years ago." Then she noticed the 'M' tattoo as well. "Isn't that what you said the guys who worked for that Babidi guy would wear?" she asked in a hushed tone. Gohan nodded slowly, eyeing them suspiciously behind his domino mask. "So why don't we go beat 'em up?" she whispered.
"That," Xī said from behind the both of them, startling the pair as neither had even noticed her sneaking up behind them, "Wouldn't be very smart." However, even more surprising was her massive compatriot, Kibito, who had moved behind them just as silently despite his frame and bulk. She chuckled as the mortal pair stared at them. "The best course of action," she continued, "Is to wait for them to make the first move. They will lead us back to Babidi. With that, we'll be able to find and destroy Majin Boo." She noticed that Videl hadn't run off screaming at this point and chuckled again. "I'm guessing he's told you about who and what I am, then? Like he wasn't supposed to?" she asked while giving Gohan a slightly admonishing look. Gohan said nothing, only blushing and giving a nervous chuckle.
"Yeah," Videl replied as she stepped in front of Gohan and, to his complete disbelief, squared up to the creator. "You're Xī, right?" Kibito's face purpled with indignant rage.
"How dare you!" he protested hotly, sticking a finger in Videl's face. "The great Kaioushin's name should not pass through your mortal lips! I should–" Xī put a hand to her servant's chest to silence him and he lowered his hand.
"It's no big deal," she assured Kibito before turning back to Videl. "Although he's not entirely wrong. I'd prefer Kaioushin," Xī explained, "But, yes, my name is–"
"Well, I'm Videl," she interrupted as she actually started poking Xī in the chest. "And you need to stay out of Gohan's' dreams from now on, got it?" Xi, if anything, seemed amused by this act of open confrontation and defiance. She raised an eyebrow at Videl as if she were somewhat impressed.
"Of course," Xī replied with a smile, one hand raised to her mouth to cover a chuckle. "Gohan," she began while turning her attention to the disguised half-Saiyan before correcting herself, "Oh, sorry," she said before clearing her throat. "'Great Saiyaman'?" Gohan puffed out his chest and did his best to look like nothing was amiss.
"What is it, citizen?" he asked, causing Videl to roll her eyes and Xī to chuckle. She'd never actually seen one of his "performances" before. It was actually quite funny.
"In the intermission between the Junior and Adult Budoukai," she explained, "I would like to speak with your m– with Son Goku. Tell her for me, if you get the chance." Gohan nodded and watched as Xī walked back toward her giant counterpart and the two seemed to engage in some sort of hushed conversation.
"Alright, ladies and gentlemen!" Ken declared as he walked into the room, pushing along a cart with a small box in it with a young woman walking at his side and pushing a large whiteboard with the bracket pre-drawn onto it. Ken seemed virtually unchanged in the last two decades, barring a few wrinkles around his eyes and a slight thickening of his mustache. The girl, who looked to be around the same age as Shouronpo and Ocha, was dressed in much the same way as Ken. She wore a dark suit, sunglasses, and had blonde hair like his. However, hers was longer and she wore it in a pair of twin braids. "We're going to go ahead and draw numbers now for the tournament finals before moving onto the Junior Budoukai," Ken declared as everyone slowly turned to look at him."
'Man,' Goku found herself thinking, 'I wish Chaozu was here. He'd be able to use his telekinesis to make sure me and Vegeta don't fight in the first round.' That'd be such a downer if they just fought right off the bat. 'Oh, wait!' Goku realized. 'I can do that, too!'
"Hercule," Ken continued as the man yet again appeared as if from nowhere in a dramatic column of smoke and sparks, "Shall make the first pick," he said unflappably. Hercule grinned as he reached into the box and pulled out a green ball marked with the number sixteen. He held it up for everyone to see and then showed it to Ken, who nodded. "Hercule draws number sixteen," he reiterated as the girl walked all the way to the end of the whiteboard and wrote Hercule's name at the absolute bottom bracket. Spopovich growled at the sight of Hercule and Yamu put a hand out to stop his brother from lunging at his hated enemy. "Videl Satan," Ken declared, "Please step forward and draw your number." Videl walked up to the box with a smirk and drew out her number.
"Number five," she muttered as she held the ball up and looked at it before showing it to Ken. "I can work with that." She put the ball beside the one Hercule had drawn so no one would draw it again and stepped off to the side while the girl wrote down Videl's name on the bracket.
"Son Goku," Ken announced with a noticeable brightness and excitement in his voice. Goku grinned as she came up to the box and put her hand inside. "I just wanna say," Ken added as he let his showman's veneer drop away for the moment, "It's really great to see you again, Goku." He was clearly trying not to look at Goku's halo. Out of sight, out of mind and all that.
"You too, Ken!" Goku replied before looking at the young girl who was writing everyone's names. "Who's that?" she asked. Ken beamed with pride as he turned to the girl.
"That," Ken informed her, "Is my daughter, Keri. She's my assistant and she'll be announcing the Junior Budoukai shortly. Speaking of which," he stopped to turn to Keri. "Do you still have all your note cards? We don't want you mispronouncing anyone's names for your first announcing performance, after all."
"Yes, dad," Keri replied with a groan as she rolled her eyes. Someone, either Piccolo or Vegeta, cleared his throat irritably and Goku drew her number.
"Number seven!" Goku declared as she picked the ball up and held it triumphantly over her head. She'd kinda hoped to get number four, honestly. That was her good luck number! But she wouldn't use her telekinesis on her own number, that'd be cheating. Now she just had to make sure Vegeta stayed on the opposite side of the bracket from her.
"Spopovich!" Ken announced. The giant of a man lumbered toward the box and awkwardly reached in with his mammoth hand. It would have been comical if he weren't such a disturbing individual. The entire time, he stared unblinkingly at Hercule, who shifted his feet uncomfortably.
"Twelve," he snarled as he held up the ball, squeezing it in his fist until it exploded.
"Y'know, we have to pay to replace those…" Ken muttered under his breath before declaring loudly. "Upa!" Upa walked slowly up to the box, repeatedly mouthing the words "Not eight, not eight, not eight." He drew his box and let out a burst of relieved laughter as he held up number six. "Upa has drawn number six," Ken announced, "And will face Videl in the first round!" Upa stood beside Videl before noticing that Goku was right next to him and that he'd have to face her in the following round anyway.
And so it went on. The Great Saiyaman drew thirteen against number fourteen, Kibito; Xī drew nine against number ten, Piccolo, who seemed less than enthused about this development; Suno drew number eleven to face Spopovich; Yamu drew number three against number four, Lazuli; Krillin drew number one against Pintar, who drew number two. Lazuli and Krillin exchanged a playful glance after they and their opponents had both drawn, knowing for a certainty that they would face one another in the second round. There were only two numbers left: number eight, to face Goku, and number fifteen, to face Hercule.
"Vegeta!" Ken announced. The King of All Saiyans smirked as he walked toward the box and reached in for his number. "By the way," Ken told him, "I just want to say I'm a big fan of your work." Vegeta chuckled.
"Of course you are," he replied, although his face screwed up in confusion for a moment. It seemed that the ball he had reached for decided to roll out of his grip as soon as he touched it. He reached for it again only for it to elude his grasp again. He snarled and thrust his hand forward, nearly ripping through the box, and grabbed the ball tightly in his grip. He ripped his arm out with a triumphant cry and held his number overhead. "I am…" he began to declare excitedly before he actually turned the number over to look at it and let out a disappointed groan. "Number fifteen." Goku snickered quietly to herself as all of the color drained from Hercule's face and he looked as if he could be a cousin of Chaozu's.
"That means that Mighty Mask will take the eighth spot," Ken proclaimed as Vegeta stood beside Hercule. "He will face Son Goku in the first round!" Mighty Mask grinned eagerly and stood beside Goku.
"I like your outfit," Goku said earnestly as she held out her hand for Mighty Mask to shake.
"Thank you," Mighty Mask replied with no small amount of pride as he shook her hand. "My wife helped me make it."
"Ladies and gentlemen," Ken declared, "Your Twenty-Fifth Tenkaichi Budoukai Finals!" As everyone turned to face their opponents and many pictures were taken, Gohan sighed to himself.
'C'mon, mom,' he thought wearily as he put on his best showman's smirk and looked up at Kibito. 'You couldn't have let Hercule win one?' By Gohan's sensing, Mighty Mask was the only person here whose ki was on par with, if not lower than Hercule's.
"And with that," Ken declared with an enthusiastic clap, "We're done for now. You can all go about your own business as the Junior Budoukai will begin in just a few moments." Keri let out a surprised squeal at that announcement and ran off as fast as her legs could carry her, presumably in pursuit of her note cards.
"Ohhh, this is awesome!" Videl declared excitedly as the groups broke up and she followed Gohan and the rest of the gang to take the elevator up toward Bulma's private box. As there were so many of them, they'd have to go in turns. "I can't believe that I'm gonna fight Goku in the second round!" Videl knew that she would almost certainly lose but still, it was the principle of the thing. She was going to fight one of her heroes! How many people got that chance?
"Goku," Suno teased, "Did you mess around with Vegeta's number so that you two wouldn't meet til the finals?" Goku gave a sideways glance at Vegeta and leaned over to whisper conspiratorially in her wife's ear.
"Maaaaybe," she admitted, which caused Suno to giggle. "Why?" Goku asked. "Are you mad I didn't mess with your number?" Suno raised an eyebrow.
"What?" she replied. "That Spopovich guy? He's just a big guy. I can handle a big guy. Heck, I don't even know if he's as big as that Recoome woman." After several dings of the elevator chime, the whole gang was up in Bulma's private luxury box. Although, once again, it was cramped, though thankfully Piccolo and his shoulder pads were up on the roof so as to take up less room. The box had several plush seats so that they could watch the show comfortably as well as a minibar and dining area complete with a Capsule Corp replicator like the one that had been on Goku's spaceship. The box had a bird's eye view of the ring down below although there were several handheld monitors that showed the action from closer ringside camera angles.
"Ladies and gentlemen!" Keri declared excitedly as Lazuli sat down beside Lapis and pulled Marron off of his lap to sit her daughter down in her own. "The second-ever Junior Budoukai is about to begin! Are you ready?!" The crowd roared in approval as Vegeta took his seat beside Bulma, who offered him some of her popcorn. He scoffed at the pedestrian snack… and reluctantly took a handful.
While the audience may have been ready, the contestants were absolutely not. It soon became apparent through a series of incredibly quick matches that Goten, Trunks, Shouronpo, and Mercury were head and shoulders above the rest of the Junior combatants. Goten and Trunks had each won their bouts against the young, obnoxious, mulleted warriors Idasa and Ikose in a single blow apiece (their mother had to be dragged away by security, raging and foaming at the mouth) and Shouronpo and Mercury defeated Koryuu and Mooki without much more difficulty than that. However, as the latter two were about to discover, all was not as it seemed. While they were head and shoulders above the rest of the competitors, Goten and Trunks were standing on a pair of circus stilts above the two of them.
"The first semifinal matchup is about to begin!" Keri announced as Goten and Mercury walked to the center of the stage. "Son Goten versus Mercury! Fighters ready?" Goten bowed to Mercury who smirked and gave a half-hearted bow in return.
"Come on, Mercury!" his family cheered from the stands. Upa tried not to think too much about the fact that Goten was Goku's daughter and had her hair. That didn't mean anything, right? Even if she was strong, she was only seven, for crying out loud! She was, at most, as strong as Goku had been when she'd come to the Sacred Korin Land. Mercury was that strong now from the training Upa had given him, right?
"Begin!" Keri cried. Mercury dashed back away from Goten, using his height and superior reach to put distance between them as he threw out a furious barrage of kicks. Each one was thrown with such force that they seemed to launch miniature cyclones at Goten.
"Incredible!" Keri declared with plenty of flourishes as Mercury launched his attack. "Look at the speed and power on display by young Mercury! Even the air created by his body moving is a weapon!"
"Come on, half pint!" Mercury taunted as he kept on kicking. "I'd like to see you get through this–" he watched the cyclones literally rip through Goten, who dissolved as an afterimage before Mercury's back bumped into something. "...Defense?" he muttered weakly in confusion as he slowly looked over his shoulder. Goten smiled and waved up at him.
"I can kick, too!" she declared. "Look at this!" Then she flipped backward and struck Mercury under the jaw with a flip kick, making the older boy let out a cry of dismay as he was launched rather violently into the air in a silver-black blur.
"Look at that speed by Son Goten!" Keri announced. "Look at the force of that one kick! Look at… uh…" she peered up toward the sky where a black-gray dot vanished into the blue. "Oh, wow, he's really up there…" she muttered. There was a stunned silence of several seconds before someone rushed up to Keri and whispered something in her ear. "O-oh! Okay! One!" she started to count. "Two! Three!" she got as high as "eight" before Mercury plummeted back to Earth at much the same velocity as he left and crashed hard into the ground. "A knockout!" She announced as the crowd cheered and Goten waved at them. "Goten wins in a stunning knockout victory!" Suno squealed excitedly and clapped from the luxury box.
"Yeah!" she cried happily. "Go Goten! That's my baby girl!" She always knew that Goten was going to win the fight, of course, but it was always nice to see her daughter succeed. Vegeta rolled his eyes and scoffed. They would see how much Suno felt like celebrating after Trunks embarrassed Goten in the finals. Of course, if Goten won… Well, Vegeta would have to ask his lawyer to see what was the longest time it was legally permissible to ground one's child.
"And now!" Keri proclaimed once Goten had left and Mercury had been carted away, "We begin our second semifinal match! The winner of this bout will go on to face Son Goten and see who shall be the champion of the Junior Budoukai! It will be Shouronpo versus Trunks!" Shouronpo smiled down at Trunks, being nearly two times his height. For his own part, Trunks was unintimidated and stuck out his fist for the older girl to bump. "Fighters ready?" Keri asked. "Begin!" Shouronpo threw out a kick at Trunks but in the time between when she'd started the kick and when she'd ended it, the boy had completely vanished from sight.
"Hey!" Trunks called from the far end of the ring, waving smugly at Shouronpo. "Over here!" he whistled to get her attention and stuck out his tongue, making her snarl and charge at him, swinging down a huge overhand blow that, once again, went through the air where a Trunks used to be. "Come on!" Trunks taunted from behind her. "I'm standing right here!"
"Don't get frustrated," Yamcha muttered as his family watched their girl fight. "It'll be okay, you've just gotta keep your head in the game!"
"Come on, Trunks," Bulma muttered with no small measure of disappointment in her son's behavior. "Don't be a jerk!" Vegeta only chuckled and nodded approvingly.
"I guess I shouldn't be too surprised," Trunks admitted mockingly as there seemed to be seven of him standing in front of Shou at once. "I mean, it must be hard to move at all, considering how big you are." Shou huffed at Trunks and got into her guard, waiting for an opportunity to strike.
"You're such a little jerk!" she derided. "I can't believe I ever thought you were cute!" That brought Trunks to a screeching halt.
"Say what now?" he asked as he stood still and right in front of her.
"Wolf Fang Fist!" Shou cried as she lunged forward in the perfect opportunity to strike. She battered Trunks with a series of blows that stunned him and knocked him off his feet far more than they actually hurt him before driving the signature double palm blow into his chest to knock Trunks toward the edge of the stage.
"Yeah!" Yamcha cried excitedly as Chi-Chi and Ocha jumped up and down exuberantly.
"Catch yourself," Vegeta ordered his son through gritted teeth as his fingers dug into the armrests of his seat. "Catch yourself. Catch yourself!" Trunks did catch himself, coming to a stop just above the grass, causing Vegeta to let out a sigh of relief as he slumped back against the chair. If Trunks had lost…
Well, that was what the Dragon Balls were for.
"Oh crap!" Trunks muttered as Shouronpo came barreling toward him again and he shot higher up into the air to avoid her lunge. To his surprise, she stayed in the air with him. Until, at least, he kicked her down and she landed hard in the grass.
"Ring out!" Keri declared. "Trunks is the winner!"
"Sooo," Trunks said awkwardly as he drifted back down to Shou's level. "What was that you said about me being cute?" He grinned a little and crossed his arms, trying to be cool. Apparently, he'd taken a sharp turn in the last month about his "girls are gross" stance.
"Thought you were cute," Shou corrected him as she stood up and shoved him a little. "You're still a little jerk." She walked past Trunks, leaving him… confused as he walked back to the center of the ring to wait for Goten. He'd never actually been denied anything before in his life or told "no" in any way. It was weird.
"Come on, Goten!" Goku cheered from the private box. "Keep up the family tradition!" she gave Vegeta a wry, teasing grin and he snarled between clenched teeth before Bulma elbowed him in the side.
"Oh, lighten up," she chided him. "Honestly, you've been living on Earth for more than a decade now, you'd think you'd have learned a sense of humor by osmosis by this point." Vegeta scoffed and rolled his eyes.
"This is it!" Keri announced as Goten and Trunks walked up to meet each other. "Here you have it, ladies and gentlemen! The finals of the second-ever Junior Budoukai! Goten versus Trunks! And I have a feeling that this is going to be the most exciting junior matchup in history!" Ken raised his sunglasses to wipe proud tears from his eyes as he watched his daughter perform her job so effortlessly. "Son Goten! Trunks!" she cried, gesturing to each of them in turn. "Fighters ready?" Goten bowed to Trunks and, surprisingly, Trunks returned it earnestly.
"Hey Goten," Trunks offered, "If you beat me, I'll let you have some of my toys." Goten looked at him excitedly.
"Awesome! And if you beat me," she added, "You can have…" she thought about that for a moment before realizing that she didn't actually own anything that Trunks couldn't buy seven of. She shrugged and Trunks laughed as the two tiny titans got into their fighting stances.
"Begin!" Keri cried. The words had barely left her mouth before Trunks and Goten vanished from sight, reappearing nearly a hundred feet in the air with their forearms bashed together, eyes locked and smirking. They pushed off from each other and disappeared again, reappearing here and there in cross-collisions of fists, shins, and knees, each with a tremendous "Boom!" from the impact. The majority of the audience in attendance was shocked and amazed, although those watching at home had a slightly better understanding of what was going on thanks to Capsule Corp camera technology. Those in the luxury box had the clearest idea of what was going on. Most of them, at least.
"Man am I glad am I retired," Yamcha muttered as Trunks and Goten darted all across the ring. "You have no idea how old watching an eight-year-old and a seven-year-old run around as a couple of little blurs makes me feel."
"Uh huh," Tenshinhan, Launch, Roshi, and Krillin muttered with agreeing nods, even if Krillin was only semi-retired. Suno noticed Tenshinhan's daughter Kani watching the action intently with her third eye and scribbling down everything she saw in a notepad. Not the words, though, but the actions. She was sketching everything, from the way Goten and Trunks' bodies moved, to how their clothes fit on their bodies in motion, to their hair movements and the way their bodies absorbed the blows.
"Taking notes?" Suno asked with a smile. "So you can study for when it's your turn to enter?" Kani shook her head.
"I'm not interested in being a fighter," she replied while never taking her third eye off of the fight. "I want to be a mangaka." Suno heard a sniffling sound and turned her head to see Ten smiling with tears welling in his eyes. Launch smiled and leaned forward between Suno and Goku's chairs to whisper.
"He's very proud," she explained. Meanwhile, in the ring, Goten and Trunks came to a stop, both fighters breathing completely evenly despite their breakneck opening pace.
"Hey, Goten!" Trunks shouted in a challenging tone. "How about we get serious?" Goten grinned, her tail swishing excitedly at the prospect.
"Ohhh no," Gohan muttered as saw what stances they were taking. "No, no, no, no, nononono!" But it was too late. Goten and Trunks powered up to Super Saiyans before the audience's eyes, causing them all to cry out in shock. It wasn't just the general masses who were stunned, either.
"What?!" Launch, Piccolo, Roshi, Chi-Chi, Ocha, Yamcha, and Tenshinhan exclaimed.
"They can do that?!" Lapis, Lazuli, Videl, and Krillin added.
"Awesome!" Goku shouted as she clapped her hands eagerly. She didn't know her daughter could turn Super Saiyan! That was so cool!
"Incredible!" Keri declared. "Absolutely amazing! Who had any idea that these two tyke-tans had such power? Who knew that they could take on these forms?! This kind of power hasn't been seen since those other blonde warriors helped Hercule save the world from Cell!" She was pretty proud of herself for coming up with 'tyke-tans' on the spot like that.
"Come on!" Goten called as she beckoned to Trunks. The pair met in a flurry of punches and kicks, their battle now taking to the skies and all across the arena as their speed and power were boosted drastically. They flew past the still-stunned private box, the windows rattling as they rocketed by.
"Come on, Goten," Trunks teased as he blocked and deflected Goten's strikes. "Is that the best you can do? I guess I shouldn't be surprised since you've been training with your lame ol' big brother."
"My big bro's not lame!" Goten protested hotly. "Janken!" Trunks wondered what the heck that was supposed to mea– "Rock!" Goten cried as she punched him in the stomach. "Scissors!" She poked him in the eyes. "Paper!" she slapped Trunks hard across the face, leaving an angry red mark on his cheek as he was sent hurtling back toward the ring. Goku gave a wordless, whooping cheer of jubilation as Goten flew down with a diving kick that Trunks slid out of the way to avoid, pushing off of the ring to throw himself at Goten with a headbutt when she got her foot stuck in the ring from her impact. Goten rolled off the blow and pushed herself back up with a handspring before launching a ki ball at Trunks, who smacked it away before realizing it would hit the audience.
"Oh crap!" he cried, blowing it up with one of his own. He just hoped his mom hadn't heard that somehow. She didn't like it when he sweared. That distraction nearly cost him dearly as Goten rushed toward him and he ducked quickly to avoid a punch to the side of the head. That duck, however, brought his chin right down to Goten's upraised knee. Trunks rubbed at his jaw while Goten grinned before he came at her with a feint high kick, snapping his leg quickly away to kick Goten hard in the stomach and yank her by her hair into an uppercut.
"Trunks!" Bulma scolded even though she knew he couldn't hear her. "No hair pulling! It's rude!" Vegeta, on the other hand, had very different advice for his son.
"Win, damn it!" he bellowed. "Win!" Trunks grabbed Goten by the ankles after his uppercut launched her into the air and spun her around and around before throwing her into the audience as hard as he could. Goten barely managed to stop herself, coming within an inch of sitting in an audience member's lap before she halted her momentum. She gave the audience a small wave before flying back to Trunks, barreling toward him with both fists. Trunks rocketed forward to meet her, the ensuing tackle creating a shockwave of such tremendous force that the thousands in attendance were knocked off their feet. The two demi-Saiyan demigods were locked in a grapple as they pushed against each other, the ground cracking under their feet as their golden auras twisted and tangled together like flames.
"You pulled my hair!" Goten accused as she pushed forward, bringing Trunks down to a knee. He could practically hear his father's heart attack and forced himself back up to his feet.
"You poked me in the eyes!" Trunks retorted angrily as he pushed down, bringing Goten down to a knee.
"That's different!" Goten insisted as she got back up and pushed against Trunks, the two locked in a stalemate. "That was something my mama taught me! She said it was my great grandpa's!"
"Oh yeah?!" Trunks shot back as he jumped away from Goten, causing her to nearly fall on her face. "Well here's something my dad taught me!" He launched up into the sky and Goten looked up at him in confusion, wondering what he was planning. He brought his hands up to his sides and a purple light shone from his hands, mixing with the gold of his aura. "Galick Gun!"
"Haha, yes!" Vegeta declared in a proud, booming laugh. "That's my boy!"
"Doesn't this seem kinda… overkill?" Krillin suggested.
"Screw that!" Bulma shot back. "Get 'er, Trunks!"
"Uh oh!" Goten muttered as she got into her own stance, trying to remember everything that Gohan had taught her. "Kaaaameeee... haaaame…"
"FIRE!" Trunks roared as he threw his hands forward, purple electricity sparking off of his body as he launched his attack.
"HAAAA!" Goten roared in response as she fired her own blast, the blue beam rushing from her hands straight and true.
"She did it!" Gohan and Suno cried in unison as they threw their hands excitedly in the air.
"Duck and cover!" Keri exclaimed as she threw herself to the ground and put her hands over her head. The twin blasts collided in the air in a dazzling, and somewhat terrifying, display of lights, crackling and sparking as they pushed against one another. Arcs of purple and blue energy lanced off of the point of impact as the smell of burned ozone filled the air and a hum of energy reverberated beneath everything. However, unlike that fateful day more than a decade before, neither beam was more powerful than the other and they exploded in a mutual, blinding eruption, not unlike Goku and Jackie Chun's own battle many years ago. A hush fell over the arena as the blinding light faded and everyone slowly recovered. Goten glared up at Trunks and Trunks glared down at Goten. They both let out fierce war cries and flew towards each other, Goten leaping up and Trunks diving down, with flying kicks.
"Oh man," Goku muttered to herself as she got flashbacks to her first tournament. "I hope Trunks' legs aren't longer than Goten's…" She, Vegeta, Suno, Gohan, and Bulma leaned forward in their seats and watched with bated breath as the two young warriors drew closer and closer to one another, hurtling toward each other like ballistic missiles. As it turned out, neither one had longer legs than the other, their feet crashing into one another's jaws knocking them both out of Super Saiyan and out of the sky. They bounced hard off of the ring and landed in the grass, and for a moment it seemed like the tournament was going to end in a draw. Keri rushed over to the competitors and couldn't tell which one of them had hit the ground first. She ran back to the judges and there was a hushed discussion before a replay of the footage was played on the jumbo-sized screens at the top of the arena. Multiple, slow-motion shots from multiple angles showed that, in fact, Goten's body hit the ground a picosecond before Trunks' did. The understanding rose through the crowd like a wave, the muttering rising into cheers while, in the box, Bulma gripped Vegeta's arm giddily as she bounced up and down in her seat and shrieked with motherly pride and excitement.
"A ring out!" she declared. "In one of the most spectacular finales in the history of the entire Tenkaichi Budoukai, Trunks defeats Son Goten by ring out!" The crowd roared its approval as Trunks and Goten finally recovered from their final blow, each one rubbing their jaw sorely.
"Hey," Goten gasped with sudden realization, "You won!" She cheered excitedly for her friend and threw her arms around him, hugging him and lifting off the ground.
"Why are you so happy?" Trunks asked in utter confusion. "You lost, remember?"
"Yeah but that was so much fun!" Goten replied as she kept right on hugging Trunks, who was desperately trying to play it cool by not reciprocating. "I'm happy for you!" The crowd cheered and chanted Trunks' name, pumping their fists and whooping as he finally disentangled himself from his friend's embrace. He waved to the crowd and played up their cheers as Goku suddenly appeared behind him and the crowd cheered even louder. Trunks grinned, thinking it was for him.
"Hey, Goten!" Goku cheered proudly as she scooped her daughter up off the grass and onto her shoulder. "You did really well! I'm so proud of you!"
"You are?" Goten asked. "But I lost." Goku smiled and patted her daughter on the cheek.
"That's okay," she assured her warmly. "There's nothing wrong with losing as long as you tried your best. It just means you have to work harder. After all, it took me three tries to win the Budoukai. And I didn't even start til I was a few years older than you are now! You've got nothing to be ashamed of." Then a grin spread across her face. "I know what you need," she said as she tapped Goten lightly on the nose. "How about we get an ice cream?"
"Yeah!" Goten cheered happily. "Ice cream!" Goku laughed and mother and daughter flew off, leaving Trunks by himself. He looked around, expecting his own father to appear and congratulate him, but he didn't. Trunks looked up slowly toward the private box and waved, his smile slightly dampened.
"Shouldn't you go down there?" Bulma asked Vegeta. "He won, after all!"
"I always knew he would win," Vegeta replied calmly despite the swell of pride in his chest. "He's my son, after all. He shouldn't need my words for validation. Besides," he added as he directed his smugness to Gohan and Suno since Kakarot wasn't around. "I think we know what this proves, don't we?"
"Yeah," Suno replied, "That your son, who doesn't do any chores, has a private education, access to state-of-the-art technology, and who can train with his dad whenever he wants because his dad doesn't really do anything–"
"I have a job!" Vegeta protested vehemently.
"Ehhhh," Bulma muttered with a little shake of her hand.
"Still barely managed to beat my daughter," Suno continued, "Who does have chores, doesn't have a private tutor, who trained in a field and whose big brother had to make time for her training along with his own schoolwork, his own training, and his other responsibilities." She smirked and folded her arms. "I guess that does kinda prove things, doesn't it?" Vegeta's face curdled with rage as he huffed and waved a hand at her dismissively. She'd see. Once the time came for he and Kakarot to battle, they would all see…
SSVC/N: Hey, guys. I'll be getting a job soon and the hours are... not great. So because of this, the upload schedule is going to be affected and, on some weeks, it's going to be uploaded on a different day. It's not the end of the world and the story will continue, I just want to give you all a heads up so no one freaks out when it inevitably doesn't get uploaded on Friday at 3 PM ET/7 PM UCT.