**Five Weeks have passed since Goku and Ellery's night alone. Today is hopefully the Saiyan's final Check-Up with Bulma. Will he be able to train at full calibur once again? Or will he continue to 'take it easy' for another week?**
Bulma pulled the stethoscope away from Goku's chest. After fighting with him for over an hour to get blood work, they were nearly finished with the check–up. His lungs had cleared all of that phlegm that he was coughing up. His lung capacity seemed to be the same, if not better than before.
Goku's aura felt stronger than ever, like an unwavering source of light. Ellery and Vegeta both observed this during their time in Bulma's lab. Tarro was sitting on his Uncle's lap, playing with a toy that his Mom brought with them.
"Well.." The scientist paused. "Everything sounds good, Goku. I still think you should wait to train on Lord Beerus' planet. However, I'm not going to restrict your training in any other way."
"Really? Alright!" Goku pumped his fist in the air, clearly excited about the wonderful news. He jumped from the doctors table, ripping the white paper that was underneath him. The Saiyan immediately began to stretch, glancing at his comrade.
"So Vegeta, whaddya say we have a little warm up?"
"Are you sure you haven't gotten too soft? You may need to fight your youngest son before you fight me." The Prince laughed at his own joke.
"Come on! Please!" Goku was jumping up and down with anticipation. He wanted more than anything to get his muscles working once again.
"You're not going to pick a fight with me just yet." The Prince chuckled darkly. "Work your way up the ladder, maybe then you'll be able to beat an elite Saiyan such as myself."
The spiky haired warrior did his best to not roll his eyes. It's been so long since he's heard crap like that coming from Vegeta, it took him back to the old days.
"Fine… If you won't spar with me, I'll find someone who will!" Goku placed two fingers to his forehead, disappearing from sight.
Ellery groaned as she looked at the Prince. "Look at what you've done!"
"What? He's probably going to go to baldy's house…" Vegeta shrugged. "None of his friends should pose a threat to him, even in this state."
"You're unbelievable." Bulma rolled her eyes.
As the Saiyan woman glanced around the room, she noticed her brother whispering to her son. Tarro suddenly got a very excited look on his face.
"What are the two of you doing?" The mother raised a brow.
The Prince shrugged, standing from his seat across the room. He carried Tarro with him as he left the room. "We're gonna go spend some time together."
"Uncle 'Geta!" Tarro yelled happily.
"You better not be training him!" Ellery yelled. "He's not ready to fight with the adults!"
"What was that? Can't hear you… So far away…" Vegeta's voice became even softer as he continued to walk down the hall.
"You'd better bring him back in one piece!"
"Can do!" Vegeta shouted. The little warrior was cheering the entire way down the hall.
Bulma shook her head as she chuckled. "Boys…"
"Right?" Ellery snickered as she leaned back in the chair. The events of the day had already tired her out.
"Honestly? I think it's adorable he's got a little buddy." The bluenette chuckled. "Having Tarro around has been wonderful." The bluenette mentioned.
"I'm glad." The mother grinned. "It's nice for him to have others to play with, even if it is his Uncle." Ellery mentioned "There are days I wonder if a girl Saiyan is just as hard to raise as a boy one." She laughed as she looked at her friend. .
"If Bulla is any indication, they're just as unbearable for different reasons." The bluenette sighed deeply. "It seems my little girl has developed her mother's attitude and her fathers, something I wasn't prepared for."
Ellery laughed, seeing the distraught look on her friend's face. "I'm sure it's not that bad!"
Bulma sighed. "I wish I could tell you it's not."
"MAMA!" A little girl screamed from the other side of the home. "TRUNKS WON'T GO AWAY!"
As if to prove her point, the bluenette glanced at Ellery, an exasperated look on her face. "It's been like this for weeks. Recently she's turned into Vegeta and wants to be left alone."
"Oh come on… I thought having a girl would be fun." The Saiyan woman chuckled.
"Speaking of fun…." eyeing her best friend, the older woman grinned deviously. "Did the two of you have a good time while we were babysitting."
Remembering their night together caused Ellery to shiver. She couldn't remember the last time the couple took their time with each other. It was a truly magical evening.
"Damn… it must be good if you're daydreaming about it…" Bulma mentioned, giving her the side eye once again.
"It really was…" The Saiyan woman grinned, feeling her entire body glowing at the thought of that special night with her mate. "I can't thank you enough for babysitting."
"Anytime, we all love when he comes over!" The older woman smiled at her friend. Seeing her glow in such a way made her curious. Maybe it was a feeling she had, but something told her a new adventure was just about to begin.
Ellery smiled and nodded. "We'll have to let you babysit overnight more often."
"MOMMYYYYYYY" Bulla screamed.
The bluenette took a deep breath. "I should probably take care of that." She chuckled as she stood from her chair, attempting to prepare herself for whatever she was about to face.
"Is that all you've got?"
The Nemakian yelled towards his student. After the two picked up regular training sessions, his pupil has seen a major improvement. Since the first Tournament of Power, Piccolo and Gohan train on a semi-regular basis. Neither of the warriors from Universe Seven could stand being left even farther behind in the race for power.
The half-Saiyan has improved tremendously, tapping into all of that unused potential he had.
"HAAA!" Gohan yelled as a large energy blast flew from his palms. His comrade had a certain look in his eye. Piccolo took a firmer stance in the ground and braced for impact, instead of his usual dodge technique.
The blast hit the Namekian like a freight train. Initially it pushed him back several feet, almost digging his own grave in the dirt. However, Piccolo was able to use his power to thrust the ball of energy into the sky, allowing it to go off with a mighty roar.
After the last Tournament of Power, Piccolo has gotten an uneasy feeling. Knowing there are beings even stronger than Jiren in the Cosmos was unfathomable to think about. To watch Sinthe just brushed every single blow away like it was nothing, was hard to comprehend. The Namekian thought he'd seen the apex of power after encountering Jiren of Universe Eleven.
"Wow… I didn't think you'd be able to do that." Gohan rubbed the back of his head, a signature move of his father's.
"You're just like your old man, underestimating your opponent and getting over-confident." Piccolo rolled his eyes. "Let's get ready to go again."
"Are you sure?" The half-Saiyan looked at his friend, concerned about his injuries. "We can always take a break."
"Does the enemy take a break when they invade the Planet, Gohan?"
A deep sigh escaped his lips, understanding what his comrade/sparring partner was trying to say. "Yeah… Let's go again."
"Hey guys!"
The spiky haired Saiyan waved at his oldest son and friend.
"Goku?" Piccolo raised his eyebrows, surprised that he was even out of bed. After he heard about his comrade's recent escapade, the Namekian was shocked that he wasn't dead. To see him already smiling and looking fully healed was something else entirely..
"Dad? What are you doing here?"
"I just got done at Bulma's! She said that I'm allowed to start training again!" The warrior excitedly looked at them. "I see the two of you were already in the middle of a spar."
"Why didn't you ask Vegeta to train with you?" Gohan questioned.
"I tried!" Goku whined, even stomping his foot for added effect. "He said I need to 'work my way up the ladder'. Whatever that means."
A chuckle escaped the Namekians lips. "Leave it to you, to not notice when you're being insulted. He basically said you didn't have what it takes to defeat him."
"Well.." The warrior rubbed the back of his head. "To be honest, I don't really know how strong I am right now. The only training I've been doing lately is some light stretching and work with my students. I got knocked off balance by one of them a few days ago."
"In other words, you've got a long way to go before you can fight Vegeta again." Gohan sighed, knowing his father must feel absolutely helpless in moments like these. To be vulnerable and open up about that experience must've taken a lot for him. The half-Saiyan wanted to help his father more than anything.
"Can I spar with you guys? Please?"
The two comrades looked at each other, having a silent conversation before they turned to Goku.
"Sure thing!" Gohan smiled.
"I don't see why not." Piccolo shrugged.
"AWESOME!" The spiky haired warrior cheered, jumping up and down.
"Piccolo, do you mind going first?" The half-Saiyan questioned his mentor.
The Namekian chuckled, his neck moving from side to side. A loud popping noise could be heard as he did so.. "Not at all. Maybe I'll actually stand a chance. Should we set rules for this match?"
"Good idea!" The Professor mentioned. "Since we're unsure of Dad's fighting state, no aerial attacks. In that same spirit, no flying will be used of any kind."
"Awe, why not?" Goku pouted.
"If your energy gives out on you mid-air. I don't want you to get even more injured because we didn't act quickly enough." Gohan emphasized. "While we want to help you get stronger, it won't be at the cost of your life."
"Fine.." The spiky haired warrior agreed reluctantly. He watched as his green friend moved into his fighting stance. Goku did the same, looking at Piccolo as he gauged his first move. Both warriors stood in waiting, thinking the other was going to attack first.
The Saiyan was the first to make a move, lunging forward to strike his comrade. Piccolo decided to block the movement with his forearm, sending the duo backwards. The Namekian dug his feet into the ground, stopping him only a few inches from where he first stood. While the hit packed a punch, it wasn't anything near the sting Goku's used to giving his opponents.
Piccolo chose not to say anything, instead he retaliated with an assault of his own.
The two fighters continue their match in this manner for several minutes. As Gohan watched, he began to pay close attention to his father's moves. While they were as fluid and natural as ever, the half-Saiyan couldn't help but notice his body being pushed to it's limit. At this point in a fight, Goku would've easily gone Super Saiyan already. However, he's chosen to stay in his base form for far too long, and Piccolo was gaining an advantage.
The Namekian watched his opponent and was able to block the last moves easily. However, the Saiyan nearly got caught by the kick to his ribs. Goku placed two fingers to his forehead and transmitted himself behind his sparring partner.
"Kamehameha!" The warrior yelled out as an energy blast emitted from his palms.
"Haaaa!" Firing a ki blast of his own, Piccolo stood his ground as he attempted to overpower the Saiyan in front of him.
The two warriors battled it out, each one putting more and more energy into their blasts. The beams went back and forth dominating one another.
"You're stronger than I remember!" Goku admitted to his old friend.
"I haven't been sitting around, ya know?" Piccolo couldn't help but chuckle at the warrior's comment. "I've been training your son, and he's helped me get a lot stronger."
Gohan watched his father struggle against his mentor. Why was he not turning Super Saiyan? Was this part of his training? The half-Saiyan didn't understand why his father was choosing to fight this way. There were several techniques in his arsenal, yet he was choosing to use his most basic of forms.
Suddenly, the bright lights dissipated. Goku and Piccolo were standing across from each other, attempting to catch their breath. Gohan ran up to them, seeing their little match was clearly over.
"Are you guys alright?" The half-Saiyan questioned as he looked at his father.
"Never better!" The warrior grinned as he panted. "This was great! My muscles are on fire!"