Dragon Ball: Legacy Chapter 14 (Patreon)

Hey friends and fans! Kairomaru is bringing you a new chapter! Goku goes off in search of the Dragon Balls once again! But this time around, he has more of a reason than JUST getting back his grampa’s memento! He needs the wish to help Launch with a favor that she’s asked of him! That should boost his determination even more! But right off the bat, he’s going to find out that there’s OTHERs that want the Dragon Balls as well, and they’re not nice people at all!

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R.I.P. to Akira Toriyama, the man, the myth, the legend that created this world that I’m exploring through my own writing. Your work touched hundreds of millions of lives and single-handedly changed the face of Manga as an artform. You will be forever missed, but NEVER forgotten.

So, without further delay, please enjoy.

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

Chapter 14 – The Red Ribbon

The morning sunlight shone through the window of a capsule house in the middle of nowhere. The light touched the face of the sole occupant in the bedroom and woke them up a short time later.

“Yaaawwwnnn~” Goku opened his eyes and sat up in bed. “Morning already?” He looked out the window to see the sun just over the horizon. Stretching his arms above his head, Goku hopped out of the bed and went to the kitchen of the small capsule house and got a drink of water. The case of capsules that Bulma had given him before he set out included this one-bedroom capsule house, and two storage capsules filled with food. “Let’s eat!” Goku beamed as he opened up the pantry and gleefully took out an entire armload of food.

After a short (thirty minute) breakfast followed by washing up in the bathroom, Goku left the capsule house and returned it to its capsule form with a push of a button. Putting the capsule pack into its case and the case back into his pocket, Goku hopped on Nimbus (the dutiful cloud having hovered outside the capsule house all night) and flew off back into the air.

As he flew, Goku took out the Dragon Radar and clicked the button on top. “Looks like I’m getting closer!” The yellow dot on the green screen was much closer than it had been before. “That way, Nimbus!” Goku pointed to his left and the golden cloud veered towards the direction before blasting across the sky again.

-Wilderness-

A middle-aged man yawned and stretched as he emerged from a small capsule house next to a large rocky plateau. He scratched at his scruffy chin, having not shaved in a few days. His clothes were a simple white long-sleeved shirt and brown pants with suspenders going over his shoulders with black boots on his feet.

“Do you know what time it is? It’s already past eight.” A man’s voice snapped out and the middle-aged man flinched at the tone before turning to the speaker.

“C-Colonel Silver…sir…g-good morning!” The older man saluted the younger one.

Colonel Silver had dark red hair and his face was clean shaven. He wore a blue trench coat with no shirt under it, exposing his well-muscled torso, matching blue pants, and brown boots on his feet.

“Don’t waste my time. Resume the operation!” Colonel Silver ordered the man, and shot a sharp look at the wolfman that had just emerged from the same capsule house.

“Y-Yes, sir!” Both men saluted again and headed for the truck they were using to scour the area.

Colonel Silver followed after them and watched the two men hop into the vehicle and start it up. “Commander Red has been pushing me to find it quickly…” He ground his teeth at the constant hounding from his superior. “It seems Brown Squad already found theirs yesterday, which only increases his urgency for this one!” Colonel Silver glared at both of his subordinates. “The Commander’s patience is short; any more dawdling could mean our executions! You must find it at all costs! Understood?”

“Yes, sir!” Both men nodded before driving off in the truck to resume their search.

“Dragon Balls…” Colonel Silver said tersely as he watched the truck drive off.

-Later-

The middle-aged man hacked away at some brush with a short machete as he searched for this ‘Dragon Ball’ thing that they were ordered to find. “How’re we supposed to find the consarned thing anyway?! A little ol’ ball in the middle of the wilderness?!”

“We were all woken up in the middle of the night when the radar started picking them up, then rushed out to all corners to find them!” His wolfman partner agreed with a grunt as he continued to search the area. “We’ve been at this for two days from morning ‘til night already!”

“Reckon our features ain’t lookin’ too bright.” The middle-aged man agreed as he adjusted his wide-brimmed hat to better cover his eyes from the sun. “How the hell did Brown Squad find theirs so fast anyway?”

The wolfman looked over his shoulder at his buddy. “From what little I heard when we were all scrambled, Brown Squad was sent out to Paprika Wasteland…place is mostly flat with only some grass and the occasional bush around. They probably spotted their target easily given that it’s supposed to be orange and shiny.”

“Some people have all the luck.” The older man grumbled as he moved on to the next bush. When he didn’t get a response from his partner he turned around, only to see the wolfman staring up at something in the sky.

“What the heck is that?” The wolfman pointed at what was approaching their location quickly.

Goku zoomed downwards on the Flying Nimbus before coming to a stop not too far from the men. “Hi there!” He waved as he hopped off the golden cloud. Goku pulled out the Dragon Radar and twisted the button on top. “I’m close now…gotta make the picture bigger.” Once the radar was as zoomed in as possible, Goku beamed at how close the yellow dot indicating the Dragon Ball was. “Hmm…” He walked over to where the radar showed the Dragon Ball, completely ignoring the two men.

“Who do you think you are?!” The middle-aged man questioned, pulling out his pistol.

“Get outta here, pup, or yer buzzard food.” The wolfman said as he pulled out his own pistol.

“There!” Goku smiled as he put his hand between two large rocks on the ground that were partially obscured by brush. He pulled out a Dragon Ball, much to the shock of the two soldiers, and started counting the stars. “Aww, this is the Six-Star Ball…” He was a little bummed about not finding the Four-Star Ball first. “Oh well, I need all seven anyway.”

“Gah!” The middle-aged man gaped and pointed at the Dragon Ball in Goku’s hands.

“Don’t tell me that’s the Dragon Ball!” The wolfman exclaimed.

Goku blinked and looked at the two men. “Huh? You guys know about Dragon Balls?” Bulma had said that they were from ancient legend and very few people in the world should know about them at all.

“Do we know about ‘em!” The wolfman scoffed.

“You’re a lucky li’l fella, huh?” The middle-aged man took a step closer to Goku, his pistol in his right hand pointed at the teen while his left hand was held out, palm up. “But I reckon we’re even luckier! Hand that ball over easy, now.”

“Sorry, but I need it.” Goku apologized to the man with a short bow. “Why do you want it anyway?”

The middle-aged man glared at Goku. “So I don’t have to kill ya, how’s that fer an answer?” He pointed the pistol straight at Goku’s face.

“Nyeeeh!” Goku stuck his tongue out at the man threatening him. “Says you.”

“That does it! Hand it over!” The man grabbed at the Dragon Ball to try and take it from Goku by force.

Goku’s eyes narrowed and he lashed out with a sidekick into the man’s midsection. “Hyah!”

The middle-aged man went flying and slammed into the side of the truck that the two soldiers had driven here. He slid down from the, now dented, door and collapsed to the ground.

“Wanna play rough, huh?!” The wolfman opened fire with his pistol.

Bang Bang Bang

Goku saw where the shots were coming from and predicted their path, allowing him to keep his feet on the ground while moving his head and torso left and right, easily evading all three bullets.

“Huh?!” The wolfman’s eyes nearly bugged out at what he’d just seen.

Goku leapt and landed directly in front of the soldier before punching him in the gut. The wolfman hacked out a painful cough as all the air in his lungs was knocked out of him. “Yah!” Goku kicked him away, sending the wolfman crashing to the ground several meters back.

Seeing that both of his attackers were down, Goku hopped back on Nimbus after putting the Six-Star Ball into his pocket. “I hope the next one is grampa’s.” Even if he was planning to make a wish, he wanted to find his grampa’s Dragon Ball as soon as possible. He took off on Nimbus flying in the direction of the next Dragon Ball.

Unseen by Goku, the middle-aged man he’d kicked into the truck was still conscious. The man groaned in pain as he managed to grab the handle of the door and open it. With slow and painful movements, the soldier grabbed the radio and pressed the button on the side. “C-Colonel…come in…s-something terrible…has happened…”

-Colonel Silver’s Camp-

“He WHAT?!” Colonel Silver tossed the radio aside after getting the information. Without hesitation he grabbed an RPG and busted out of the capsule house he was in and looked up into the sky. “There he is!” He took aim at the golden cloud flying through the air and fired.

The explosive round rocketed towards Goku and the Nimbus, but the Saiyan heard it coming and turned to face it. While he had no idea what the round was called, Goku did remember it from when the Ox King’s car had been blown up when it had been hit buy a similar thing back when he and Bulma had been going after the last Dragon Ball.

“Hup!” Goku slapped the round out of the air, diverting it off to the side where it impacted the ground below.

BOOM

With a glare, Goku leapt off of Nimbus and landed in front of Colonel Silver. “What was that for?!”

“Oh? You’re a tough one, aren’t you?” Colonel Silver said without a care for the hostility that Goku was showing him. “Answer my questions…” He ordered in a cold tone. “Why are you collecting the Dragon Balls? And how are you able to find them so quickly? With the Red Ribbon Army’s radar we can find their approximate locations…but your radar must be far more advanced.”

“I’m not telling you anything!” Goku denied with a scowl.

Colonel Silver shrugged off his trench coat, revealing his muscular body. “Boy… Don’t underestimate Colonel Silver of the Red Ribbon Army.”

Goku stood his ground, not backing down to the taller man.

“Do yourself a favor. Answer before Colonel Silver becomes angry.” He tossed his trench coat aside. “Why are you looking for the Dragon Balls, boy? And what kind of radar do you have?”

“Not telling.” Goku denied Colonel Silver’s questions.

Colonel Silver narrowed his eyes and took up a boxing stance. “It seems that I’ll need to physically force you to comply. I’ll begin by stopping your breathing.” The man rushed in and threw a left jab at Goku’s face.

But Goku wasn’t there anymore.

“Gauugghh…” Colonel Silver’s eyes were wide as Goku had tilted his body and slammed a sidekick into the colonel’s stomach, stopping the man cold.

Goku put his foot back on the ground as Colonel Silver doubled over in pain. When Goku turned his back on the other man, his tail slapped the colonel across the face so hard the officer’s feet left the ground and he landed almost four meters away with a thud.

Colonel Silver, one of the Red Ribbon Army’s highest-ranked officers, a man that could (and had) fought four professional boxers in a four-on-one fight and come out the winner. All without taking a single punch. Had been knocked unconscious in just two blows without being able to land a single hit.

“Nimbus!” Goku called out to the golden cloud still hovering in the air. The cloud shot downwards, leaving a golden trail behind for a moment before stopping in front of Goku. The Saiyan hopped onto the cloud and took off back into the sky. Once he was at a higher elevation than before he’d been shot at, Goku pulled out the Dragon Radar and tapped the button on top a couple of times. “Hmm, looks like that one is the next closest one.” He saw one north of where he currently was. “It’s pretty far away though.” He patted the Flying Nimbus. “Let’s go, Nimbus!” The magical cloud shot forward at a faster speed, the ground below passing in a blur.

-Later ~ Red Ribbon Army Headquarters-

A short man with red hair, an eye patch over his right eye, wearing a fancy tailored suit, was smoking a cigar with an aggravated expression. “My army’s supposedly searching full force… We’ve got those Dragon Balls on the radar… But when are we gonna have something to show for it?! Why haven’t we found all of these balls?!”

This was Commander Red, the head of the Red Ribbon Army, the most powerful military threat to the current government of the world.

“Patience, sir. Our radars cannot locate them precisely.” A tall black man with a shaved head and wearing a three piece black suit requested of the commander. This was Commander Red’s right hand man, Staff Officer Black.

Knock Knock

Two quick knocks on the office door got both men’s attention.

“What is it?” Staff Officer Black questioned and the door opened a second later.

A bearman stepped into the office, but didn’t take his hand off the door. Unlike Colonel Silver or his two subordinates, the bearman wore a full military uniform like most of the soldiers at headquarters. “Emergency, sir! There’s been a problem with the Dragon Ball that Colonel Silver has been searching for! We need you in the command center, sir!”

Commander Red stood from his desk, though his height didn’t change much at all, and followed the bearman. Staff Officer Black followed one step behind and to Commander Red’s right.

Once the three arrived at the command center, Commander Red quickly saw the issue on the large main screen. “It’s moving! Did they find it?!” He smiled brightly at finally getting another of the Dragon Balls in his army’s possession.

“Well sir, that’s kinda the thing.” The bearman pointed at the screen. “If you observe, you’ll see that the Dragon Ball that Colonel Silver was after is on the radar and moving rapidly towards where General White is searching for one of the other Dragon Balls up north.”

Commander Red nearly growl, clenching his fists at his sides. “What’s going on?! Get Colonel Silver on the radio, now!”

The bearman quickly jumped onto a free radio connection and tried to reach Colonel Silver’s camp.

-Colonel Silver’s Camp-

Beep-beep

Beep-beep

Beep-beep

Colonel Silver had just regained consciousness a few moments ago and was struggling to get off the ground. Hearing the beeping from the radio, he staggered his way across the space separating him from the capsule house. With shaky steps, he eventually managed to reach the building and nearly collapsed. Crawling his way towards the beeping radio, Colonel Silver finally managed to reach up and grab the receiver before lying flat on the floor.

-Red Ribbon Headquarters-

“Anything yet?” Staff Officer Black questioned the bearman.

“Not yet, sir.” The bearman shook his head, still waiting for an answer.

Commander Red took his cigar out of his mouth and exhaled a cloud of smoke in agitation. “What the hell is Silver playing at?”

“Contact, sir!” The bearman reported as Colonel Silver spoke over the radio receiver.

“Give me that!” Commander Red ordered and the receiver was placed in his hands immediately. “Silver! What the hell is going on?! Report!” What Colonel Silver began to report to him only got worse and worse as Commander Red continued to listen. “Wh-What?! Someone that has a better radar than ours?! They what?! How did they survive that?! They beat you?! Who is this enemy?! How many of them are there?!” The answer came and Commander Red’s lone eye widened in shock and disbelief. “One… Single… Boy…?” A vein pulsed on the commander’s forehead. “You idiot! YOU’RE SENTENCED TO DEATH!!!” He slammed the radio receiver down in his fury.

“Quite mysterious.” Staff Officer Black commented on what he’d been able to overhear.

Commander Red was still furious. “What’s mysterious is how a moron like Silver made colonel!” He looked up at Staff Officer Black. “Contact General White! Tell him to kill this punk and take that ball!”

“Yes, sir!” Staff Officer Black nodded.

Red realized that he was craning his neck to look up into Staff Officer Black’s eyes. With a grimace he took two steps away from the tall man. “Haven’t I told you not to stand directly next to me! You make me look like a midget!” The commander revealed his (no so secret) inferiority complex when it came to his height…a true Napoleon Complex if there ever was one.

“S-Sorry, sir!” Staff Officer Black apologized and took one large step back.

-Goku-

“Huh… It’s starting to get cold.” Goku noticed as he rubbed his arms. He’d been flying for a while, only stopping long enough to have lunch earlier from one of the food storage capsules. Looking down at the ground, Goku saw snow covering the entire landscape. “Huh? How did it become winter?” Regional biomes were not a subject that Bulma had gone over with Goku yet.

Pulling out the Dragon Radar, Goku realized he was getting very close to the next Dragon Ball. Directing Nimbus towards the ground, Goku hopped off and let the golden cloud returned to the sky. Twisting the button on top of the Dragon Radar, Goku made the range zoom in and started heading in the direction of the ball, shivering the whole way.

“Who’re you?” A small red-haired girl in a thick coat and a black fur hat asked Goku a few minutes later as he reached a field at the edge of a small village. “And what’re you doing out here in such thin clothes?!” She looked at the shivering Goku like he was insane.

“I-I-I-I j-just ar-arrived h-he-here…” Goku chattered, his arms wrapped around himself as best as he could to try and keep warm.

The girl took pity on Goku and introduced herself. “My name’s Suno, this is Jingle Village! You can come to my house to warm up!” She took his left hand and almost dragged the nearly frozen older boy towards her house.

-Red Ribbon Base ~ Muscle Tower-

“You saw an unidentified flying craft?” General White questioned the report that had just come in over the radio. “What did it look like?” He waited a moment for the answer. “A golden cloud? That’s what the target from the report was supposedly using! Spread out and find him! He has a Dragon Ball!”

“Yes, sir!” Came the quick reply over the radio before it went silent.

General White was a large man wearing a green sweater and thick beige combat pants. He put his hands into his pockets with a smirk as he looked out over the nearby Jingle Village. “I don’t know who you are… But I know that you’re finished!” The General smirked in reassurance that with all of his soldiers, his base, and his special weapons from Gero, that no single person could hope to stand up to his ‘Muscle Tower’ and live.

-Jingle Village ~ Suno’s House-

Suno stopped in front of the front door to her house and knocked with her free hand. “Mom! It’s me! Open the door!” A series of clicks and clacks were heard before the front door opened and a kindly older lady in a dark, traditional dress motioned them inside. “I found this boy walking around near the outskirts of the village.” Suno explained as she had to almost drag Goku’s stiff body inside.

“In such thin clothing?” Her mother commented on Goku’s orange gi. “Sit him down in the chair in front of the fire, sweetie. I’ll make us some hot drinks to warm us up.”

Goku was lead to a chair in front of the fireplace and Suno kindly put a thick woolen blanket over him to help him warm up faster. “Th-Thank y-you…”

“No problem.” Suno smiled at Goku as she started taking off her coat and fur hat.

After several minutes, Goku was handed a warm hot chocolate in a mug by Suno’s mother. “Here, dear, drink this and it’ll warm you up from the inside.”

Goku took the warm mug, enjoying the heat on his still cold hands. “Thank you.” He gave her a smile before blowing on the steamy drink and then taking his first sip. “Yum!” Goku’s eye lit up at the hot chocolate and he slowly (by Saiyan standards) downed the entire drink.

“What were you doing outside in such clothes anyway?” Suno asked curiously, clearly enjoying having someone not from the village to talk to.

“I’m on a journey to find these things called Dragon Balls to help a friend of mine.” Goku told Suno without even thinking about it. In his mind she’d kept him from freezing, and her mother had been nice for sharing her tasty hot chocolate with him. There was no reason not to answer Suno’s question honestly.

“Dragon Balls?! Are you with the Red Ribbon?!” Suno asked loudly as she ran into her mother’s arms.

Goku tilted his head at the sudden change in tone. “What’s this ‘Red Ribbon’ thing? The last guys I met said something about it too, and they threatened me and attacked me on top of that.” That made them bad people based on what he’d learned from his grampa and Bulma.

-Edge of the Village-

“Hey! Come over here!” One soldier called out to another. When the other soldier rushed over the first man pointed at the snow in front of him. “Look, tracks, two pair.”

“Hmm, we were only told about one person. You think there’s an accomplice from the village?” The second soldier asked.

The first soldier looked at the pair of tracks again. “Let’s follow them and find out.” The two men quickly started following the prints left in the snow.

-Suno’s House-

“Huh, so they’re searching for the Dragon Balls too… I wonder what they want them for?” Goku hadn’t gotten any answers from Colonel Silver or his two men.

“No one knows.” Suno’s mother shook her head.

Goku pulled out the Six-Star Ball and showed it to Suno and her mother. “This is a Dragon Ball.”

“That’s what all the fuss is about?” Suno looked at the ball curiously. Aside from being sort of pretty, it didn’t seem special enough for the Red Ribbon Army to be so desperate for it.

“Such a small thing.” Her mother commented as she looked at the Dragon Ball.

“There are seven Dragon Balls, when you get them all the Eternal Dragon appears and grants you any one wish!” Goku explained to the two girls.

Suno’s mother gasped. “So that’s it!” The people of Jingle Village were rural folk and still held to many of their old stories and myths of magic and spirits. “The Red Ribbon Army must be plotting some sort of evil and they need that magic wish to do it!”

Goku pointed towards the front door, but indicating the village as a whole. “There’s supposed to be one lying around here somewhere.”

“I know,” Suno looked down at the floor. “Cause my dad and the other village men are searching as hard as they can for it. The Red Ribbon hasn’t been able to find it with all of their soldiers, so they forced the men of the village to help them look too.”

“Why don’t you just kick them out?” Goku questioned her. That’s what he would do in her situation.

Suno looked at Goku like he was crazy. “They’re too powerful! We can’t fight them!” She went over to the window and pointed at the white tower that sat a distance away from the village. “They’ve also got the mayor held hostage in that tower! If we don’t obey them, then they’ll kill him!”

“Hmm…” Goku looked at the tower in the distance. “Okay. I’ll go take care of them for you!” He smiled at Suno and her mother. “Think of it as my thanks for helping me out earlier!” He adjusted the Nyoibō on his back, knowing it would come in handy for this.

“What’re you talking about?!” Suno cried out. “These are all grown men…and they have guns! You can’t fight them!”

Bam

The front door was kicked open and two Red Ribbon soldiers stood in the doorway, the lead man training his rifle on the occupants of the house.

“Aieee!” Suno’s mother screamed and grabbed her daughter, putting herself between the soldiers and her child.

“There he is!” The rifle wielder said as he focused on Goku.

The bearman next to him grinned nastily. “Yeah… just like I thought, he did have an accomplice in the village!”

“So, kid, I hear that you have something on you that we need!” The rifleman said with a hostile tone.

“It’s the Red Ribbon! Run!” Suno yelled out to Goku from behind her mother.

“Alright then!” Goku grinned before blurring forward. A fraction of a second later and both soldiers flew out of the house and landed in crumpled heaps on the snow about five meters from the doorway.

“H-Huh?” Suno’s mother blinked in shock.

Suno wasn’t any better, but she managed to get out a question. “Wh-What did you j-just do?”

“Six punches…and four kicks.” Goku said as he closed the front door to keep the chill out.

Suno could only stand with her mother in sheer surprise. “Wow… I didn’t see anything.”

Goku stretched and then gave the two girls a smile. “Okay! I’ll go take care of the rest of them for you!” He opened and closed the front door in a blur and was charging across the snowy plain towards the tower in the distance a second later.

“Mom… Do you think there’s something, strange, about him?” Suno asked her mother.

“Yes… But it’ll be a shame if dies.” Her mother replied, clearly the woman was worried about Goku’s wellbeing.

The front door opened and Goku stood there, shivering fiercely with his arms wrapped around himself. “I-I’m c-co-cold…”

Both women nearly face faulted.

“Of course you’re going to be cold in those clothes.” Suno’s mother brought him inside and had him stand near the fire again. “I’ll get you some of my husband’s spare clothes, you’re not too much shorter than him.”

A short time later and Goku was decked out in a warm coat and a fur hat similar to Suno’s. “Alright! Warm as toast now!” He patted himself down with a grin.

“I don’t mean to mother you, but please don’t overexert yourself, dear.” Suno’s mother cautioned Goku.

“Don’t worry about me! I know what I’m doing!” Goku assured them with a smile.

Neither Suno or her mother looked entirely convinced of that.

Goku opened the front door again. “Anyway! This time I’m really on my way!” He closed the door and then bolted in the direction of Muscle Tower.

-West City ~ Capsule Corporation-

Bulma was at home enjoying time with her parents, and especially some time in the lab getting to tinker and work out some ideas that she’d had during her training. One thing that she’d noticed was her father, Dr. Brief, having many video calls with military advisors and such types. From what her father had told her, the Red Ribbon Army was being more active than usual and the government was worried. But since Capsule Corp didn’t operate a weapons division, her father was being asked directly for his insight into several potential ‘risk mitigators’ as the military people were calling what they wanted.

‘Dad doesn’t make weapons. He firmly put his foot down about that shortly after he founded Capsule Corp. I don’t know why they think he’d ever change his mind.’ Bulma sighed and stretched her arms over her head. It was time for a break from tinkering. She headed out of the lab and walked towards the kitchen, only to hear a familiar voice that she hadn’t heard since she’d started her hunt for the Dragon Balls.

“So, the new book is coming along well enough, I should have the first draft in with my publisher in the next few months.” A young woman with short blonde hair, dressed in blue jeans and a black t-shirt with the sleeves cut off, was talking to Bikini with a smile.

“Tights!” Bulma beamed and rushed towards her older sister.

“Oof!” Tights laughed as she turned and caught her little sister’s hug with a smile. “Bulma!” She squeezed her tightly. “Oh wow! You’ve really been working out, huh? You’re so tough!” She playfully squeezed Bulma again.

Bulma laughed and gently squeezed her sister in return. “Yeah, I’ve been training hard!” She pulled back and flexed a little, showing off the tone of her arms in her t-shirt.

Tights stood up and looked Bulma over, turning her this way and that. “You don’t look any different than before, really.” She gently took hold of Bulma’s tail. “Well, except for this part.”

Bulma laughed and wrapped her tail around Tights’s wrist and forearm. “Mom and dad told you about my situation, huh?”

“Of course we did, honey.” Bikini smiled at her daughters. “We wouldn’t hide something like this from your sister.”

Tights smiled and hugged Bulama again once her arm was freed. “I don’t think you’re the scary, planet conquering, space-faring warrior race that Jaco was so worried about.”

“Those do exist…or maybe they still do…we’re not really sure.” Bulma shrugged as she sat down at the table to join her mother and sister for snacks and a chat. “There’s four Saiyans on this planet right now.”

“I’m sure Jaco would be thrilled to hear that.” Tights giggled just imagining how the Galactic Patrolman would react to that news. “He was so freaked out about the idea of a single Saiyan on Earth back when I first met him.”

Bikini giggled too, recalling the friendly alien cop they’d met years ago. “Given the times, I’m pretty sure it was Goku that Jaco was worried about.” She might not be a genius like her husband or Bulma, but she could easily enough put two and two together. “But he’s such a sweet boy.”

Bulma smiled warmly as she thought about Goku. “He really is.” Her tail flicked back and forth a bit, catching Tights’s eye.

“Oh~” Tights grinned at Bulma with the air of an older sibling about to tease their younger sibling. “I didn’t know that it was like that. Why don’t you share with your big sister?” Tights giggled as she playfully pried for details about her sister’s obvious affection for this ‘Goku’ guy.

“Tights…” Bulma playfully (and gently) pushed her big sister away. “We haven’t done anything like what you’re thinking of!”

Tight pushed back with her hands now clasped with Bulma’s. “That’s exactly what a girl that had gone further with her boyfriend would say!”

“Oh, you two are still so cute.” Bikini smiled happily at her daughters’ playful fighting. She sipped her tea before deciding to break it up. “So, Bulma, why don’t you tell your sister about what you’ve been up to since you went on that trip for the Dragon Balls.”

“Sure.” Bulma agreed with a grin. “But it’ll sound more like fantasy rather than sci-fi, so I’m not sure how much inspiration it’ll give you, Tights.” She laughed lightly at her joke.

Tights laughed with her. “Tell me and I’ll see if I can’t change a few things up and add it to one of my works sometime.”

And so, Tights and Bikini listened intently as Bulma told them about her trip to search for the Dragon Balls. How she’d found the Five-Star Ball in a cave after almost two weeks of searching the vast North Valley. Then how she’d et Goku…looking away when she admitted to accidentally hitting him with her car…and how they’d started traveling together. Tights had started taking small notes on Bulma’s journey by the time that she mentioned meeting Master Roshi on the beach after helping his turtle return to the ocean.

“Wait, wait… Saiyans can just learn stuff that takes the creator fifty years to master?!” Tights was amazed by how fast Goku had managed to use the Kamehameha for the first time.

Bulma nodded with a little grin. “Yep! Saiyans have ridiculous kinesthetic learning abilities, especially when it comes to fighting and techniques.”

Tights wrote that down too. “I think I’m starting to see why you became one…they seem to have all sorts of advantages.”

“So many.” Bulma agreed with a little laugh. “Anyway, after Goku accidentally totaled our car, the Ox King was nice enough to give us his old one to continue our journey.”

-East District ~ Mount Paozu-

Krillin breathed in the fresh air as he rode in the back of a truck filled with bales of hay. The kind local farmer had offered to take him a fairly good distance towards the actual wilderness of the remote mountain for his next step on his path as a Martial Artist. “Still, I can see why Goku had never met another person until now.”

The East District was a peaceful place of rolling hills interspersed with stretches of flat grasslands. Very few people lived out this far, and those that did were almost all farmers by trade. But where Krillin was going was even further than this already remote and rural location. The former monk was headed for the actual mountain of Mount Paozu. Goku had lived there his whole life and it had honed his senses and his body to the impressive levels that he’d had when Krillin had first met the other boy. It would be the perfect place to start his next couple of years as a wandering Martial Artist building up worldly experience.

“Just you wait, Goku. I’ll show you how much stronger I’ve become at the next Tenka’ichi Budokai!” Krillin punched his fist into the air as he gazed at a few wispy clouds passing through the blue sky.

Almost a half-hour later and the farmer stopped at the edge of a forest with another road forking off to the right that led to the village the man was heading for.

“Sorry, youngster, but this is as far as I can take you.” The old farmer apologized as Krillin hopped out of the back of his truck with a large bindle of supplies over his shoulder.

“It’s more than far enough, sir.” Krillin gave the older man a polite bow. “You’ve saved be quite some time with your generosity.”

“Such a polite boy.” The farmer chuckled lightly. “You be safe now, you here? Mount Paozu is a dangerous mountain filled with all sorts of beasts. If you’re not careful they’ll make a meal out of you!”

Krillin gave a short half-bow to the man. “Thank you for your concern and wisdom, elder. I will make sure to be as safe as I possibly can.”

The old farmer nodded to Krillin. “Good lad. You have fun on your trip once you leave Mount Paozu!” He waved and then turned his truck onto the other road before driving away.

Krillin looked up at the tall trees and smiled. “Well, no time like the present!” He breathed in deep, filling his lungs with the fresh air. With a blur Krillin raced down the dirt road and deeper into Mount Paozu. If he was lucky then he’d be able to find Goku’s house as he followed the road. His friend had told him it was fine to stay there for a while if he wanted. “I’ll make sure to leave it as clean as possible when I’m done here.” It was only right that he not trash his friend’s house, after all.

The former monk had no idea that it would still take him multiple hours to actually get to Goku’s house. It was a testament to just how remote the place was and why Son Gohan had chosen it for his hermit lifestyle.

-End Chapter-

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Goku has encountered the Red Ribbon Army!

They don’t make a good first impression on the Saiyan.

They’ll soon come to regret that! Kek!

Already the Six-Star Ball is in Goku’s possession, and now he’s about to storm Muscle Tower!

Elsewhere, Bulma is enjoying some time with her family (and all the things she can tinker with in the expansive labs). She’s surprised by her big sister Tights visiting and happily tells her about her journey to collect the Dragon Balls and what came after! Warm family time is always nice!

Krillin, unlike in Canon, has left Kame House to begin his own worldly wanderings on his path to reach greater heights as a Martial Artist! His first stop? The place that made Goku such a formidable person so young, Mount Paozu! By living like Goku did for a while, Krillin plans to gain more awareness and insight as well as strength and mental fortitude.

It’s pretty cool what you can do with his character if you don’t let him just flounder and stagnate, right? He’ll surely have some improvements to show to Goku, Bulma, Kale, and Caulifla when the next Tenka’ichi Budokai comes around!

How will the storming of Muscle Tower go for Goku?

Keep reading to find out!

Power Levels

Goku – 183

Bulma – 161

Krillin – 158

Roshi – 163

Launch – 5

Caulifla – 134

Kale - 138

Until I get your reviews, later!