They opened their eyes, surprised to see they were on a barren world. They looked around, taking in the dark atmosphere of the landscape. Buildings were toppled over and in ruins as far as they could see. The sky was dark, almost pitch black, with no stars. The ruined architecture around them was also eerily strange, nothing they had ever seen on Earth, with dark bulbous windows that were protruding outward.
"Where are we?" Chaozu asked.
"I don't know, but there's been some serious fighting." Tien remarked, surveying his surroundings.
"No doubt." Krillin seconded.
"It looks like the fighting has stopped. Don't let your guard down guys." Nia said.
Behind them, on a crumpled mountain of debris, a body clattered to the ground, a furry brown tail unfurled.
Goku's eyes widened. "A Saiyan!"
"Not alive anymore." Raditz commented.
A shadow flickered, skittering across the ground. It shot across the buildings faster than the blink of an eye.
"Listen." Kurisu said, looking around.
"You heard that too?" Tien asked.
"That could've been anything." Yamcha remarked. "Let's check this place out."
They didn't miss the stark contrast of this world. As vibrant and verdant as earth was this was ruined and littered with bodies. All long past the stages of decaying and decomposition. They were skeletons. They were all in various stages of battle, the buildings deeper in were all in shambles. There was a huge fountain with a statue of a warrior holding a sword in the center of the whole area.
There were bodies littered around it.
"Man, these Saiyans must be tough." Yamcha said. "There's so many of them."
"Yeah, but Mr Popo could've been off on his calculation."
"No, he wasn't." Piccolo said.
Goku nodded his agreement. "We're one hundred years in the past."
"Are you sure?" Kurisu asked.
"Positive." Goku said.
"There's bound to be a few Saiyans alive." Yamcha said.
"We'll just look for them." Tien said.
Raditz, Goku, Kurisu, and Nia narrowed their eyes, surveying their surroundings.
"Be careful. There's someone around." Raditz said, brows drawn together.
"Are you sure?" Yamcha asked, arching a brow, looking around.
"Yeah. Let's just say I know when I'm being hunted." Raditz said.
"Let's keep moving in that case." Tien said.
Three Saiyan warriors surveyed the group from the shadows, shrouded in a purple aura. They kept their energy suppressed to avoid detection, but they could tell a few of them were aware of their movements.
The first, Shorty, had a similar look to many others of his race with long jet-black hair and donning the usual Saiyan armor and scouter.
The second was Scarface, a short Saiyan, bald with navy blue hair around his head, with two scars running down his face, and he had long and sharp canine teeth.
The third was rainth, very tall, she had black spiky hair that went to her waist and slightly tanned skin.
They tapped the buttons on their scouters, honing-in on the detected power levels.
"Combined power level of 3782."
"One has a power level of 1500."
"Three of them have a power level in the four hundred range..."
Shorty smirked for a second. "It looks like they're closing in on this location."
"Do you think those four high power levels belong to Saiyans?" Rainth asked, smirking.
"Let's go have some fun with them either way." Scarface said.
They slowly phased away, dissipating into a green glow.
"I don't think we're going to find any training here." Tien remarked, stepping over a swath of buildings as he moved through a long corridor. Buildings were crumbled on both sides, and huge walls, slightly cracked, loomed ahead of him.
"How do we get back?" Krillin asked.
"You're a fool." Piccolo remarked.
"It doesn't hurt to ask." Krillin said, putting his hands up when Piccolo glared at him.
"Goku. Nia. Do you know?" Kurisu asked.
"We have to get through whatever this is." Goku said, shrugging his shoulders. "That's the way I remember it."
"Is it that simple? Mr Popo didn't tell us a way." Tien said.
Chazou had wandered off and was staring at a helmet through a broken window. He wasn't sure what about it caught his fascination, but he looked at it with rapt attention.
"Let's go." Kurisu said.
"Yeah, don't want to stay around here too long." Tien agreed.
Chazou went to follow Tien but stopped, seeing red glowing eyes, immediately freezing him in his place. The helmet began to melt, twisting and contorting, revealing Shorty's face with a sinister smirk lighting up his features. Chaozu ran, screaming, but it was already too late. Shorty busted through the wall, kicking up a cloud of smoke and debris as he reached out and gripped Chaozu by the skull, crushing his fingers in.
Chaozu screamed in pain, clenching the brawny wrist that tore into his skull.
"Hahahahahaha!"
"Let him go!" Tien yelled, charging up a blast.
Scarface fired off a triangular blast, laughing as it rocketed, but Tien, Piccolo, and Raditz were quick to fire their own blasts, the four blasts meeting in the middle sending smoke flying around them. Shorty flung Chazou into a chasm that must've been torn into the world by an energy blast, his cry of pain echoing as if it came up from the bottom of a well.
Piccolo and Tien clenched their teeth, leveling glares at the three newcomers.
"What's the matter?" Rainth taunted, tail flicking left to right.
"You'd kill other Saiyans?" Raditz asked, scowling.
"They wanted to fight." Shorty said with a sinister chuckle. "Too bad they weren't up to muster."
"Are you responsible for what happened here?" Nia asked.
"If we are?" Scarface asked, chuckling.
Nia came on in a sudden rush, fists and feet snapping right to left. But, with only a slight movement, Scarface blocked, rotating the attacks, then moved his arms left and right, forcing each attack to fly harmlessly off the mark.
They split their numbers to better coordinate the attack. Nia and Kurisu on the left flank, Goku, Yamcha, and Raditz in the middle, and Krillin, Piccolo, and Tien coming on the right flank. The three Saiyans shot forward, using their offense as defense, though they were outnumbered, and it appeared they'd be able to keep up with the group, they pushed themselves towards one of the nearby buildings, stopping short by an intersection that cut into a mountain of debris.
With a jerk of her hips, Rainth stabbed straight ahead with a kick, and Krillin had to throw himself backward, bringing his shin across as he did, trying to parry, but Rainth already retracted her leg by then and had settled back into an offensive rhythm. Against these Saiyans, their sudden flurry of attacks seemed inefficient, for the trio blocked and countered each strike with a slight hand movement.
For while they were martial artists, these Saiyans were ruthless mercenaries, they had a killing style, one more effective against people in large groups, than a single person like their own. Now, as the battle played out between them and the trio, the Saiyans' ruthless style was starting to show its brilliance. While they all leapt and spun, slashing side to side with feet, knees, elbows, and fists, flying all about with great acrobatics, all of the trio's movements seemed far more efficient. They seemed far more direct.
They followed a single line, front and back, their primary focus being the head and center mass, their feet and hands shifting to keep them constantly in perfect balance as they came on suddenly with devastating chops that had all their attackers stumbling backward.
"Is that the best you can do!? You're starting to disappoint me!" Scarface shouted.
His words spurred them forward, Raditz racing ahead, vanishing into another series of spins and slashes, but Scarface only angled left and then down, just enough to send his slashing hand shooting off to the side. The group had to retreat soon after getting their footing, gasping for breath.
"You're a Saiyan. Let's make it good for sport." Rainth curled her lips in a wicked smirk.
Nia steadied herself. Goku shifted from foot to foot, getting a better grip on the ground. Kurisu steadied himself. Then they exploded into motion, flashing ahead of Raditz, ramming their elbows into Shorty's and Scarface's forearms, their limbs flashing all about as they attacked with twice the fierceness than before. Goku and Kurisu measured their strikes, reversing their angles as much as they could, turning knees into sudden reverse kicks.
Shorty snarled, working furiously to keep them at bay.
Tien pressed forward more forcefully, trying to expose Rainth's flanks. And then, to his horror, Rainth began pressing her own attack, her hands stabbing and retracting so quickly that most of his swift parries and quick punches hit nothing but air. He had to jump back, and then back again, as Rainth moved ever closer to hitting home. Rainth stepped forward suddenly, breaking her steps so they were like a stutter, and swung her shin low for Tien's thigh.
Rather than intercept the blow, Tien lunged back, but shockingly, Rainth shot right for him, never losing any speed, and thrust her fist right back out, up high and across the other way. There was no way he could block or slide back fast enough. Rainth's fist smashed hard into his stomach, and as he lurched forward, the long-haired Saiyan retracted her hand and snapped it back out along its original course, digging hard into his spine.
Tien flew back and away with a cry of pain, crashing through the debris meters away.
"Tien!" Goku cried out.
Krillin stumbled backward, tripping and crashing hard against the ground on his knees, but even as he fell, Scarface was right in his face, his fist rocketing as it reached terminal velocity, and with a sudden crack, he sent Krillin bouncing across the ground. Shorty shouted in joy, laughing as he slammed his fist forward, watching with glee as Yamcha's arm cut under it.
"I thought you would learn your lesson."
"I'm stubborn." Yamcha replied.
Yamcha came on, entire body whirling with such speed that he seemed almost encased by his limbs. For the first time, Scarface allowed his little confident smile to lessen. He had to work furiously to keep their coordinated attacks at bay, dodging and blocking. He tried to fly out to the side, but stopped, and his eyes widened a bit when he realized that Krillin, in the midst of his kick, pivoted and swung his knee around.
"Impressive!" He congratulated.
His grin widened, and with ease, Scarface put himself back on even footing with the group, trading kick for punch and forcing them to dodge and block as often as they tried to strike. He came on hard, thinking to drive them back and off balance as he had driven Goku back. But, to his surprise, they struggled to hold their ground, stubbornly trading punch for punch so forcefully and precisely that none of their attacks got through the combined defense.
"Go for their faces!" Piccolo shouted.
Together they pressed the three of them. Goku and Raditz on the left flank, Nia and Yamcha on the right, and Piccolo, Kurisu, and Krillin in the center, their combined efforts finally forcing the Saiyans into a more defensive stance. Their reactions were so keen, their combat instincts so pure, that they were able to sense and anticipate just not what the trio was going to do even as it happened, then use their attacks to their own advantage, but they could sense and anticipate what the other would do.
They were at an impasse, none of their attacks able to connect with the Saiyans.
Shorty shot towards Nia again, his fist changing directions so quickly in mid attack that it looked almost as if his entire arm was bending. Nia barely held off the assault with a furious defensive flurry, breathing harder and harder with each strike. Each time she made a move, she was forced to expend desperate, frantic energy, to keep Shorty's elbows from stabbing into her. Another exchange drove her backward.
The Saiyans were starting to cut off the landscape, pushing them into a corner to limit their movement, to limit their agility. Knowing she was no match for Rainth's strength, and there was nothing she could do about it, Nia took another step back. Goku understood that they couldn't hold out. All of them were expending many times the energy of the much stronger Saiyans, and as soon as they tired, they'd make their move.
Krillin watched as Piccolo and Kurisu worked strikes in perfect harmony, spinning them over and about with blinding speed and precision. And he watched with horror as Shorty's and Rainth's limbs surged, flashing ahead and back with equal precision, picking off attack after attack and even countering once or twice to interrupt the flow of the barrage.
Yamcha's heart leapt in hope as Krillin charged forward suddenly, while Goku stabbed forward with a reverse high kick. He understood immediately, even before he noted Krillin's other leg coming up and over the other way. The attack would push both Shorty's and Rainth's fists out of the way, clearing the path for a victorious strike!
But Rainth and Shorty reacted impossibly fast, and the duo's down cutting strikes hit the ground. Goku's spinning reverse kick flew off Rainth's wrist, but he swung around his other leg, igniting his ki as it came into contact with an upraised forearm, clenching his teeth as he contracted his core, forcing his shin deeper into Rainth's forearm. Rainth contracted her core, swinging her leg high, her heel cracking across Goku's chin, sending him flying back.
Kurisu rushed the Saiyans with a frenzy he'd never known. Nor had they. They locked forearm to forearm. When Kurisu pushed back to break the clinch, Shorty struck his head with a chop. He stumbled backward even farther, and Shorty pursued him relentlessly, coming upon his other foes in the process. Blow upon blow, he forced them to retreat-back onto the mountains of debris that crossed the vast, seemingly bottomless wasteland to the ruins.
Krillin and Yamcha were driven to their knees. They raised their arm to block yet another onslaught, and Rainth slashed Krillin's and Yamcha's right hands off at the wrist. The hands, along with blood, thudded on the ground while the duo tumbled over their feet. They stared at their twitching, severed hands. They had little time for anything else. Rainth stabbed straight ahead clenching her fingers, then with a sudden twist, ripped the limbs from their elbow sockets.
Half of their arms flew to the side, hands still half clenched on the ground several feet away. Krillin's arm thudded uselessly on the ground. Shorty channeled his ki into his fist, moving far too fast for Krillin and Yamcha to even trace. He fell on them like a shadow, viciously stabbing with chops, punches, and kicks, leaving them to stagger back until he grew tired of the drunken dance and rammed his elbow hard into their cheeks, sending them hurtling towards buildings.
"Krillin! Yamcha!" Nia screamed, watching in horror as the buildings collapsed onto them, sending reverberations through the area and smoke and debris billowing high into the sky.
"Now there's only five of you." Rainth said, eyeing them with a smirk.
Piccolo growled, looking around for the others. "Finished just like that."
"Hahahaha! You'll be joining them soon enough." Shorty laughed, crossing his arms over his chest.
"You three are Saiyans. Let's make it good for sport." Rainth said.
Goku scowled.
Scarface chuckled. "It doesn't matter if they are Saiyans. They're not getting out of this alive."
Nia staggered, the blistering pain that poured from Rainth's hands only intensified.
"Nia!" Goku called. "This is our chance!"
Nia felt Goku's leaps from the ground to the air, felt his approach right behind her.
The three Saiyans weren't concerned the slightest.
"Come on!" Rainth's voice rose over the roar of energy.
Goku was in Rainth's face, firing off punches, gritting his teeth as the burning pain in his muscles overwhelmed him. Rainth decided to make no offensive move, instead she increased the speed of her hands, subtly bending the line of Goku's attacks. The five of them were able to attack thrice in a single second, integrated by combat experiences from their past, each of the twenty strikes came from a different angle with different speed and timing
Not one touched the Saiyans. After all, they had walked unscathed through swarms of blasts on assignments, defended only by the might of their ki. Countering twenty blows wasn't even difficult, not the slightest. Shorty's arms wove with sharp curves, just fast enough, each motion of his strikes interfering with three or four of his foe's strikes, the rest sizzling past, his precise, minimal shifts of weight and stance slipping them.
Piccolo snarled furiously, ramping up the velocity of his attacks. Twenty. Forty. Sixty. Until finally, at nearly eighty strikes, he still struggled to overload Scarface's defense. So he used his defense to attack. A subtle shift in the angle of a single block brought Piccolo's elbow in contact with the leg of the oncoming kick.
Piccolo managed to move just a hairbreadth before it would have cleft through his arm. Scarface moved forward, following through on the next strike, a stiff stabbing chop into the neck that sent Piccolo spinning backwards. Goku rammed his fist into Shorty's gut, then hit him again in the same place, shaking the armor plate, aiming for the joints where it met the larger, thicker plates of his chest as Shorty flailed to regain dominance.
He spun around for his next strike. Shorty's hand rammed itself against the middle of his neck and seized him, yanking him upright against him, his face coming within a centimeter of his nose.
Shorty chuckled. "Do you think a weakling like yourself can break my armor?"
Instead of waiting for an answer he spun around, heaving Goku with effortless strength, whipping him over his head to slam him to the ground. Raditz could barely make Shorty let go, only an ill-timed punch by him allowed Goku to angle his fall into a roll. Scarface and Rainth sprang after them both, Scarface swinging his heavy leg around, Rainth stabbing her hand forward, one slamming across Raditz's flank before he could retract his strike, the second struck Goku, the impact sent him tumbling sideways and he leapt off the ground with a discharge of ki, flinging himself upside down.
Meanwhile Nia recovered quickly, spinning out of the way when shorty followed up with a high, snapping straight punch meant to break her nose and buckle her at the knees. Nia retaliated with a quick jab toward his face, snapping her leg up high. Scarface intercepted the kick with one of his own, angling it so that the momentum of Nia's attack was redirected to the side, sending her flying off target, angled towards the ground. This should have exposed her, but she was already reacting, driving her entire body forward into the ground with a handspring, launching herself skyward alongside Goku before Shorty could get his hand up.
Shorty grinned, while Rainth snickered, watching them regroup high above.
"KA...ME..."
"Eh?" Scarface tapped the button on his scouter, his eyes narrowed as the device honed in on the two detected powers.
"HAAA!"
From the corner of his eye, he seen that Goku and Nia had taken similar stances as each other, their power increasing rapidly. The stance was one he would have blown off or even scoffed at. Cupped hands, drawn to their sides. The energy streamed, like blue supernova.
That level of concentration wasn't normal.
"MEEEE!"
"They can increase their attack power by focusing it on a single point!" Shorty adjusted his scouter. "The spiky haired one has a power level of 924. The long haired one has a power level of 916."
Rainth's words stuck in her throat, her scouter making its distorted sound as another power caught her notice, the surge of lightning made her snap her head to the side. She took note that Piccolo had taken an even wider stance, and right on his head was a massive surge of energy.
"His power level has jumped up to 1480."
"HAAAAAAAA!"
Shorty, Scarface, and Rainth watched with smirks as the white-blue beams of energy approached them, spiraling around them was pulsing yellow electricity corkscrewing. The beams held them in place firmly. Knowing they were unable to avoid the attacks, Rainth lifted both of her arms to brace for the attack. The intensity of the blasts and their flash was more than enough to nearly blind her, huge chunks of the ground snapped apart at her feet as the two blue beams morphed into a single white, massive beam, forming lattices and crystalline extensions against the spiraling, yellow electrical blast.
Lightning blasted the ground, it blasted the clouds above, and it ripped across the terrain, striking the nearby buildings and landscape. Rainth screamed as the light began burning into her retinas, forcing her to bring up a ki shield. The massive shockwave shook everything around her and inside of her. The concussive blast had more than enough power to shatter every bone and burn her flesh into dust.
Everything exploded into great chunks of rubble. The ground collapsed in a shower of devastation, burying the area beneath tons of rock. A second later the rest of the nearby terrain caved in, devoured by the blast.
When the smoke and dust cleared, two of the three Saiyans were still standing.
"No way!" Goku exclaimed. "That should've finished all three of them!"
"Now to finish-" Piccolo roared, cut off as a hand smashed through the ground, gripping his ankle and pulling him down.
"Piccolo!" Goku yelled.
"You should worry about yourself!" Shorty said, he waited until the last possible second before unleashing the rage built up within him in a tremendous rush of power.
He channeled it through his tendons, ligaments, his heavy muscles and heavier limbs, moving so fast it seemed as if time had stopped for everyone else. He smashed his fist into Kurisu's stomach, crushing down viciously, feeling the bones buckling and giving way. He then raised his boot again, crashing it into his face, sending him flying through a building.
Shorty waited until the last possible second before unleashing the rage built up within. He channeled it through his tendons, ligaments, and his heavy muscles, moving so fast it seemed as if time had stopped for Goku. He smashed his knee into Goku's stomach, crushing in viciously, feeling the bones buckling and giving way.
"Now there's only two of you." Rainth taunted, staring at Raditz and Nia.
Raditz clenched his teeth, throwing himself at the duo. He threw combination after combination, but the Sayians just moved left to right, dodging his blows by inches each time. Raditz overstepped, and reached too far on his next punch, and Shorty slammed his knee into his side. Raditz let out a choked scream of pain as he was flung off the ground.
Raditz could only hear their laughter as he struggled to keep the edges of his vision from turning black.
"You're a persistent little weakling." Rainth said, appearing beside him.
Before Raditz could say anything, Rainth slammed her palm into his chest, crushing his sternum and rib cage, her hand stabbing through his back. With a quick yank, Rainth took her arm out of Raditz, leaving him to plummet towards the ground.
"HAAAAA!" Nia yelled, shaken by seeing Raditz run through, bringing her full power to the forefront. She shot forward, unleashing combination after combination, her legs and arms snapping out so rapidly it looked as if she had more than four limbs.
Shorty and Rainth dodged and blocked, moving their wrists a fraction each time. Seeing an opening, Rainth snapped her hand out, catching Nia's fist and forced it back. Shorty slammed his knee into Nia's stomach, buckling the bones and sending her flying skyward. Rainth raced ahead of her, gathering up an energy blast and launched it, watching with a smirk as it slammed into Nia, rocketing towards the ground and exploding in a shower of light.
Sparks flew in the pendulum room, the room was electrified as everyone came back to the present. The laugh of the three Saiyans echoing in their ears. Goku was the first to open his eyes and look around, Nia followed him, both noting Kami was standing looking at them with a grave expression. They remained silent, taking a deep breath, adjusting to being back in the present.
"Mr Popo. Kami." Tien said, trying not to blink in surprise.
Everyone else was touching their faces and pinching themselves.
"I'm alive." Yamcha said, looking at his limbs.
"I have both of my arms still." Krillin said, almost in awe.
"So, that's what it's like fighting Saiyans..." Kurisu muttered, frowning slightly.
"Kami, how did we get back here?" Krillin asked.
"You never left. You've been standing there the whole time." Yajirobe clarified.
"Only your physical bodies remained here. Your spirits traveled into the past." Kami supplied.
Everyone set their jaws, eyes narrowing as they reflected on the experiences. Those Saiyans had been a lot stronger than Raditz, their combined blast only managed to take one of them out.
"Well, you guys? How did you do?" Yajirobe asked.
"They did very well, Yajirobe. They fought valiantly against very powerful enemies." Kami said.
Tien looked at Kami carefully. Did he know what they went through?
"The Saiyans on the way to Earth are even more powerful than the Saiyans you faced off with."
"I remember Raditz saying something about that. Are you sure about that though, Kami?" Yamcha asked.
"Hmm." Kami nodded. "I can understand if any of you want to back out of this. But if you must leave, go back now. There will be no looking back for those who stay."
Everyone contemplated those words, but they weren't afraid. Instead, they were invigorated and inspired. They were ready to train their hardest.
Yamcha smirked. "I would never run from them."
"Me either." Kurisu said.
"You can count me in." Tien said.
"I'm in." Chaozu said.
"Me too." Krillin said.
"I'll stay in that room twenty-four hours if I have to." Yamcha said.
Popo and Kami regarded each other, nodding slightly.
"From here on we always stick together through thick and thin." Goku said.
"Excellent." Nia said.
"Piccolo. What about your ulterior motives?" Yamcha asked.
Piccolo smirked. "I'll put my plans on hold. We have to take care of these Saiyans and anyone else coming here."
Kami tapped his staff on the ground. "Kurisu, Yamcha, Tien, Chaozu, and Krillin. I will do what I can to teach you."
"I'm going to train in the wild. Any of you are welcome to try and keep up with me. I'll be back here again to fight those Saiyans." Piccolo said, nodding with a stern expression.
He left without saying another word.
Kami smiled as he looked at Goku and Nia. "Both of you will be getting training from King Kai."
"King Kai? Who is that?" Nia asked.
"You'll be finding out soon."
"I wanted to train with the both of you." Raditz said.
"We'll be able to train together." Goku said, smiling.
Nia snapped her fingers. "That reminds me. I have to talk to Chi Chi about the twins and Gohan being trained."
"I don't know." Goku said, looking doubtful. "She may not agree to that."
Nia looked at Raditz, narrowing her eyes slightly. "What if you trained the twins and Gohan?"
Raditz's eyes widened for a brief instant before he crossed his arms over his chest, not looking the most enthused at the prospect. "I need to do my own training. I can't be worrying about brats."
"That's your niece and nephews." Nia said, her tone breaking no argument.
Raditz sighed, rolling his eyes. "Fine. I'll train them. I'm not going to go easy on them."
Nia nodded, smiling. "That just leaves Chi Chi."
Goku could see that Chi Chi wanted to keep Gohan away from fighting. She had raised Gohan quite well. She was devastated to know that Goku and Nia wanted Ryoo, Mugen, and Gohan to train. Goku knew a little about how she felt, but he couldn't pretend it bothered him a great deal. He and the gang would be able to train, and their children would grow up to be strong and righteous.
Goku smiled as he took in her image. She was very pretty, a fierce fighter, and he did enjoy her company.
"Chi Chi, about Gohan..."
"Do you expect me to allow Gohan to do martial arts?"
"Come on, Chi Chi. Gohan should learn to defend himself, just in case." Goku reasoned.
"I don't know. All of us should be more than enough."
Nia looked at Chi Chi with a small smile. "It wouldn't hurt for him to know how to defend himself."
"What do you mean?"
Nia frowned, looking away. She replayed the battle in the pendulum room over and over, remembered each bone breaking blow drilling her. No matter what she did, the outcome had been the same. There was no way she could get around the stabbing attacks, nor the power gap. They all needed to get more powerful.
Arguing with Chi Chi on the matter was pointless. The Saiyans could possibly try to take Earth for themselves. They had no issue wiping out billions. There was no greater motivation for them other than to wreak havoc and carnage.
As much as it may devastate the women, Gohan, Mugen, and Ryoo would have to fight.
Therefore, Nia remained silent, struggling to find the right words to convey everything.
"Nia, I asked you a question."
"Gohan, Ryoo, and Mugen should learn to defend themselves. There's always a threat looming." Nia said.
"This is Gohan, Mugen, and Ryoo we are talking about here. They are only children."
Nia nodded slightly, looking at Chi Chi with a small smile. "No harm will come to them."
Chi Chi could sense something was troubling Nia. She was barely paying any attention as she rejected the idea of not training the children. She didn't know what was bothering her. In truth Chi Chi didn't care, as long as it didn't interfere in her Gohan's studies.
"I don't want them fighting. Ryoo and Mugen may be fighting all of the time. Gohan loves studying, but he could start fighting more as well." Chi Chi finished her tirade.
Nia smiled softly. "They can train and study. They can alternate it during certain days. They can also train during the spring and summer."
Chi Chi looked frazzled, her jaw dropping. "You and Kurisu have both decided you're going to put your little boy and little girl on a battlefield? Speaking of which, where is Kurisu?"
Nia kept her sigh down, smiling instead. "Chi Chi, we aren't putting them on the battlefield. We're training them. Training them will help them stay strong, and they should know how to defend themselves. My husband is training with Kami."
"Sounds irresponsible. You should be focusing on their studies, not fighting."
Nia smiled. "My husband is strong, and I am strong. It is only natural our children want to be strong."
Chi Chi only shook her head.
Nia smiled, slightly amused by the whole scene. "Chi, you're just being over dramatic again. There is no harm in them knowing how to defend themselves and training really hard. Kurisu has already begun to teach Mugen and Ryoo some of the Turtle Style."
"Yeah, but..." Chi Chi wavered.
Obviously, they had different ways of bringing up their children.
"I can handle my own training. I just have to know that I can count on these three brats to pull through if we need them to in this possible fight against my comrades." Raditz remarked.
Chi Chi scowled, turning so she could look Raditz in the eye. "Fat chance of that happening. I already made it clear I don't want my little Gohan fighting."
"Listen earthling. I am not going to die on account of anyone's lack of skill or ability."
"My little Gohan won't be fighting!"
Raditz grunted, crossing her arms over his chest. "I'm not wasting time with this asinine conversation."
"You're not going to blow me off like that." Chi Chi remained firm.
Nia put her hands up, groaning as the two glared at one another. "Come on you two, stop fighting."
"He shouldn't be so abrasive." Chi Chi remarked.
"You shouldn't be such a handicap. Those children have Saiyan blood running through their veins." Raditz said.
"They're children! They should be studying and playing. Not fighting!"
Raditz snorted. "I'm just going to ignore you."
Goku smiled and gently clenched Chi Chi's shoulder, dispelling some of the tension. "They won't be rough housing all the time, Chi Chi."
Chi Chi sighed. She knew there would always be evil, but it shouldn't have to fall on them to handle those evil forces all of the time. If the world was destroyed, there was no way they'd be able to send their children to one of the best colleges. She wouldn't be able to lecture Nia and Kurisu about their lack of parenting skills if everything was destroyed.
Chi Chi crossed her arms over her chest. "If Nia wants to train Mugen and Ryoo that's her decision. I still don't want my little Gohan learning martial arts."
"Thanks for understanding, Chi Chi." Nia said, smiling.
"I want to train with mom, dad, and Goku!" Mugen said with a wide grin.
"You'll get hurt." Chi Chi said.
"Mom-"
"Mugen." Nia said, tone growing firm. She put her hand on the boy's head, roughing up his hair. "Raditz will handle your training. It is better if he teaches you the basics."
Mugen nodded.
"I'm not going to take it easy on you." Raditz said, a warning in his tone.
Gohan and Ryoo looked at each other, exchanging blank expressions before they looked back up at the adults.
Ryoo looked at the adults with a searching expression. "I'm training?"
"That's right! It'll be a lot of fun!" Goku said excitedly.
Ryoo tilted her head. "I don't know if I want to fight."
"It's okay, Ryoo. You learn to protect innocence. You learn discipline as well." Nia said in an understanding tone, putting Ryoo at ease.
Ryoo grinned wide, eyes shining. "I help animals."
Nia nodded. "Yes. Very much so."
"I train!" Ryoo said, putting her fists up.
"You want to stay at my house for the night?" Goku asked, looking at Raditz.
"No, thanks." Raditz said. "My presence could be a little aggravating. That island home we were at earlier, being home to multiple people, may be a little more suitable for me. One more person there shouldn't matter too much."
"I guess." Nia said, shrugging slightly.
Raditz hovered up into the air. "I'll meet you at that Lookout tomorrow to see both of you off."
Raditz shot away, quickly vanishing over the horizon.
Goku looked up towards the sky. You get all of that, Kami? Can you let them know Raditz is on the way?
I shall. Kami replied. I'll also contact Piccolo. I want to make sure we're on the same page.
Goku nodded, looking to Chi Chi. "Hey, Chi Chi. Is dinner ready?"