New rivals bring new mysteries

Mai found opening her eyes to be a daunting task, but with the way she was being hammered by the sun made any attempt at keeping them closed just as difficult.

The female commander had a headache, it felt as if someone had just cracked her in the skull with the butt of their gun, and there was the very real pain that came with having your ribs bruised. But other than that Mai would have to say she was alright.

'Which is a real miracle all things considered,' she thought dryly as memories of the night before resurfaced. The night of the full moon.

A roar from some dinosaur off in the distance brought back that first look Mai had gotten at the Oozaru that would later be the cause for Pilaf's castle crumbling to rubble.

The sheer size of the mythical beast was beyond anything Mai had ever imagined; she thought they were merely legend. But then, the dragon balls were said to only be a story too. And yet, as she looked upon the giant ape in all its terrifying glory Mai couldn't help but think back to Kakarot and his final words to her.

'H-He's the Oozaru,' the battered commander realized from her place in the sand. 'It's the only explanation, especially with that tail of his, and yet it's still so hard to believe! Just what kind of person is that kid?'

Images of towers falling and bullets flying once again filled the woman's mind. Memories of how Pilaf's soldiers had tried so desperately to bring down the transformed Kakarot with their military-grade weaponry, only to fail miserably as their titanic foe simply brushed them off like the most annoying of gnats.

Mai easily recalled the fearful awe she'd felt as she watched every armor-piercing round barely even make a mark against the large ape's burly frame.

And then the true destruction began.

Kakarot opened his maw wide, his fangs gleaming even with the moon blocked by heavy black clouds, and began firing bursts of hell-fire red energy from within. Mai likened them to shooting stars; beautiful to look at, but deadly to be near when they came crashing down.

It was with these that the transformed Kakarot eventually decimated Pilaf's castle.

The imp himself had become frothy with rage by this point though, and had rushed to his fighter plane with Shu, thinking that he could bring the gargantuan gorilla down with a pair of missiles.

He was wrong.

They got the Oozaru to stumble, but that was it before the beast turned and swatted the pair out of the sky. Pilaf and Shu survived of course, both being too stubborn to die, but they didn't walk away unscathed.

And, unfortunately, neither had she as the two managed to come crashing down near where Mai had been hiding herself.

Try as she might to outrun the felled plane Mai just wasn't quick enough, and the resounding shockwaves of the crash tore her from the ground and sent her face-panting into the hard mounds of desert sand.

It was after she fought off the waves of nausea and ringing in her ears that the female commander finally managed to roll herself over, at which point she watched Shenron disappear in a blinding light and the dragon balls scatter once again.

Not till this next morning, after she regained consciousness, did Mai finally understand what happened. Kakarot's friends had used the wish to change him back to normal.

'At least until the next full moon.' Mai thought with a grimace.

She only hoped that next time, she wasn't anywhere near the boy when that happened. But...the shouts from her boss were telling her that wasn't going to be an option.

"Mai, where are you! Those rotten mongrels stole my wish, and so now they're going to pay!"

While the female commander was cursing her luck, miles away at Fire Mountain the very same boy she'd been thinking about was just saying goodbye to the Ox-King and his daughter.

Goku was dressed in a new gi, one the color of a deep plum, had just raised from a bow as he finished. "I apologize again for what you and your daughter had to experience last night, Ox-King, and can only hope that with my leave Pilaf won't have any reason to bother you again."

Ox-King shook his head gravely as he countered. "Pilaf is a foul creature whose goal in life is the subjugation of the world; as a king myself, I will always be a target for destruction in his eyes. All I ask is that if anything ever happened to me, that you take care of my daughter Kakarot."

Goku quirked an eyebrow at this, folding his arms as he replied. "Trusting the safety of your child to that of another child? I think Bulma would be better suited to act as Chi-Chi's guardian should you fall Ox-King."

The mountain of a man went to protest, but the crystal-eyed girl in question took that as an opportunity to throw in her two cents.

She could see where Ox-King was going with his request, and wanted to head him off before he unknowingly crushed his daughters budding crush. "And I'll be more than happy to do it; besides I'm sure Goku will visit me a lot, so he and Chi-Chi will have lots of time to get to know each other."

While normally a bit on the dense side, the Ox-King was just quick enough to catch on to the tone Bulma was trying to remind him of their conversation in the hover car. If he wanted there to be any hope for his daughter marrying Kakarot, he would need to take it slow.

So, slapping a smile onto his own bearded face, the burly monarch accepted the older girl's offer. And then a flash of color caught his eye, and the man looked to see his daughter standing beside a waiting Kakarot.

Chi-Chi could feel her cheeks burn with nervous energy but the demure princess didn't dare turn back.

After witnessing the transformation of her handsome savior, and then seeing the angry look in his dark orbs after the Eternal Dragon changed him back, Chi-Chi wanted nothing more than to make it known she still felt safe with Kakrot.

"U-Um, Kishi-kun, I just wanted to say that I-I...Thank you. Thank you for saving me last night, and again for saving my home. I-I'll never forget about you and well, I-I was just wondering...do you think y-you'll still think about me after you leave?"

For his part Goku was still in a mood over the night before. Bulma had explained how, with the help of the dragon Shenron, they had destroyed the moon and thus reverted his transformation before he could hurt too many people.

Unfortunately, they acted a bit too late, and now the young alien had a bit more blood on his hands in the few soldiers lives he'd taken while transformed. However, Goku knew better than to direct his anger at an innocent like Chi-Chi, so before he answered the alien boy took a deep breath.

"It won't be something like where I do it all the time, and it probably won't be a daily thing either, but I'm sure there will be days when I think about you Chi-Chi. You are very...kind, and your hospitality was greatly appreciated."

Chi-Chi ducked her head at his compliments, too bashful to see that her crush held a look on discomfort on his face as he attempted to word his response correctly. For her, it was enough just to know that her knight in shining armor would remember her in a good way.

Chi-Chi had been worried she was too clingy, too obvious.

Unfortunately all things must come to an end, and Goku decided that his words with the village princess would be the last as he called to Bulma and Oolong that it was time to depart.

"Where will you go?" Roshi asked him as he hopped up onto his own air transport.

"I thought it was obvious," the wild-haired boy countered. "I'm going with you, back to your island, so that you can train me for this 'World Tournament' thing you told me about last night."

"Then you'll have to go alone, Goku." Bulma told him with a sorrowful expression. "Because my break ends soon and I have to get back to University; I can' really afford to miss the beginning of my last semester."

Goku turned sharply at this bit of news; Bulma...was leaving?

The alien fighter could only stare at the blue-haired girl with an unreadable expression after he managed to wipe the look of shock off his face.

In the beginning, Goku hadn't given much thought to what would happen after he and Bulma found all seven dragon balls, but now that it was really happening he...he didn't know what to do. She was his only friend, and she was going away?

Such a thing shouldn't bother him, that primal part of his brain told him, he should be able to go on with his life despite not having Bulma around. And yet the other part of him, the one raised by Gohan, told him that her departure was something profound; something he should feel towards.

Goku did not like that part of his brain.

"What is 'University', Bulma?" Was the only thing the kid could get out, but he was mentally proud of himself for asking the question without a hitch in his breath.

"It's school Goku, a place to learn and something I need to go to in order to run my family's company in a few years. I-I'm a genius though, so I've almost finished with it, and I'll definitely be there to cheer you on at the tournament, okay?"

The look had been brief, but Bulma was sure she'd seen a mask of discontent flitter across her friend's face when she announced her plans to depart back to West City.

It pained her too, leaving behind the one person besides her parents who treated her like something more than something to look at, but what she'd told the boy was the truth. Her final term for school was starting in a few days and she needed to be ready; there was no chance of her father's board letting her run any projects without the right degrees.

Failure was not an option, no matter how much it hurt to leave her friend.

Bulma's discomfort was eased though by the way Goku looked at her when she mentioned meeting him at the tournament. She'd apparently said the right thing, and this made her feel better...until another voice filled the air to ruin it.

"U-University, a-at fifteen?" Yamcha sputtered in disbelief.

The shaggy-haired teen gawked at the blue-haired beauty with a look that was one part amazed, and another part dismay. His insecurities reared their ugly heads, telling him that a woman like Bulma wouldn't want anything to do with a high school dropout, until his inner scoundrel managed to bulldoze its way through.

It was brief, as his fear of beautiful woman was sill strong, but having just spent a night worrying if he was going to die Yamcha felt emboldened to take a chance.

So, straightening his back and lifting his quivering chin, Yamcha looked to Bulma and cleared his throat to get her attention.

"B-Bulma," he stuttered out when she turned to him. He tried his best to ignore the dismissive look she was giving him as he pushed on. "I-I was wondering, since you'll have m-more free time what with the d-dragon ball hunt being over, if you maybe wanted to...g-go out on a d-date...with me?"

A single, elegant eyebrow arched on Bulma's pretty face while Oolong scoffed somewhere off to the side. The young genius could even see Goku out of the corner of her eye, his face was a mix of annoyance and confusion.

She guessed that the latter came from not knowing what a 'date' was, while the agitation she figured was from having their moment interrupted. Letting out a breath, as if to show answering such a request was exhausting, Bulma finally turned her attention to the boy known as Yamcha.

"If you clean yourself up, and then ask me again, I'll consider it. I live in West City at the Capsule Corps. main building, so when you think you're scrubbed up enough you can find me there."

Not too interested in seeing the look she knew was on the boy's face at the prospect of taking her out, Bulma turned her attention back to Goku. Offering the younger boy another smile, she released a jet-copter from its capsule and offered a final word before climbing inside. "I'm really glad I got to meet you Goku; my offer to visit goes out to you too, so please feel free to visit me. I hope your training goes well, and I'll see you at the tournament, okay?"

The boy with the monkey tail offered a rare smile of his own before he hopped onto his yellow cloud and followed after Roshi, who had just taken to the air.

'Sure', Bulma thought as she revved her own engine, 'this journey may have come to a close, but something tells me my friendship with Goku is just beginning.'

xXx

At the speed they were going, it didn't take Goku and Roshi long to reach the elderly martial arts master's island. Something the younger of the two was grateful for since he was itching to improve his skills before the World Tournament started.

The pair whizzed down from the air, and after he hopped off the Nimbus, Goku addressed his interest in immediate training with Roshi.

"You wanna start now?" The old man inquired in disbelief. "B-But it's still so early; don't you think it'd be best to start a little later in the afternoon?"

Goku shook his head as he answered. "No, the earlier we start the better, besides I don't see any point in waiting. What do you expect me to do if we're not training Roshi; your island isn't that big, in case you haven't noticed."

"Well no, it's not, but I had hoped to do a little...reading, before I had to start teaching ya Kakarot. And in the meantime you could go over some of the forms I'm sure Gohan showed you, you know, as a sort of warm-up."

"I've practiced those same kata for years Roshi, and I continued to practice them every morning since I left the mountains with Bulma, so I think it's about time I learned something new." At this Goku's face scrunched into a look of curious annoyance. "Unless you weren't serious before; and you don't really have anything to teach me?"

Roshi gaped at the young boy in front of him, his jaw dropping at the sure disrespect that laced Kakarot's tone; never in all the elderly master's years had the Turtle-Hermit met such a pushy, and puzzling individual.

Deciding to try and lay down the law early, Roshi turned his back on the monkey-tailed martial artist and began moving towards his screen door.

"I have much to teach you Kakarot, but I think your first lessons will be on respect and patience."

Goku watched with am incredulous look as his new teacher entered his pink, two-story home and closed the door...in his face. The gi-clad youth blinked owlishly for a moment before the reality of the situation hit him; he was being denied training.

He was being made to wait.

This irked Goku tremendously, as the longer he was forced to wait in beginning his training, the more of an edge his opponents would have on him during the tournament.

But, instead of barging in and demanding the old man get started with his training, Goku instead chose to think back on the night before, to his transformation. The young boy crouched low, his muscles coiling with power, before he leaped high into the air and landed softly atop the roof of Roshi's home.

Once he was sure of his balance Goku settled down into the 'lotus' position and closed his eyes. With his vision cut to black, and the distractions of sight eliminated, the young alien then focused on evening out his breathing; calming his mind.

Slow, deep breaths in through his nose and his mouth had Goku taking in the salty air of the sea aw well as the crisp air that brushed through his wild hair.

That wind was like a calming hand, with delicate and slender fingers combing his dark mane with a soothing tenderness beyond anything Goku had ever experienced. The breeze up in the mountains was never this smooth, never this precise.

Normally Goku was left to deal with a choppy, dry wave that raked him more like a stiff hoe.

But here, out in the open expanse of the ocean, the pre-pubescent youth was easily capable of letting his muscles relax and let his mind open wide. He was able to remember.

They didn't come clearly; each memory was fuzzy, like the screen had been before Pilaf's face filled it in. But it was a better than not being able to remember anything at all. Goku tried to focus on the grainy image of himself as a giant ape and watched snippets of blotchy memories play out of the large creature tear apart the castle that had kept him prisoner.

He could hear the sound of his own roar, and make out horrified shrieks from what Goku could only assume were Pilaf's soldiers as they attempted to bring down an Oozaru. It was like watching something off a T.V. for Goku; seeing himself in third-person perspective. It was surreal.

But he let the memories continue to come, allowed his senses to become drowned in every sound and sensation from that full-moon night. He could feel the bullets now, those stinging little projectiles that Bulma had told him were fired from guns, just the same as when they'd pelted him last night.

They hadn't hurt, but had merely been annoying like a bug bite. And then there was the feeling of being hit by a large fist against his back; Goku guessed this, and the second one following, were the 'missiles' that Bulma told him he'd been hit with.

Those had been the closest thing the alien boy could see as being harmful as the memory fragment played out before him, and even then all his giant ape form had done was stumble.

From there it was a show of white-hot, brilliantly explosive bursts of mouth blasts. Goku marveled at his transformed state's ability to channel ki in such a complicated manner, and fire it off in such successive volleys.

The young alien boy watched as the memory showed him demolishing Pilaf's castle with those same violent attacks before he was finally brought down by Bulma wishing that Shenron destroy the moon; it being the cause for the transformation, and thus being the key to changing him back she surmised.

The great dragon fired a bright, yellow beam from his mouth soon after, one which swiftly obliterated the full moon, and with its destruction Goku watched as his transformation did indeed reverse itself.

The memory ended in a fog after that, as the return to humanoid form seemed to strain Goku's mental expanse he assumed.

It was with the end of that memory Goku opened his obsidian eyes again. His breath remained calm and his muscles were lax, but if one to were look they would see a new sense of fortitude gleaming in those black orbs.

Goku's tranquil state of mind was interrupted however, by the sound of a voice he did not recognize crying out through the air. Turning towards the noise he watched as a boy, looking to be around his age, rolled through a series of flips while making his way towards the island.

Upon closer inspection, Goku could see that the whoever this other kid was had jumped from a small boat from out in the sea. The alien child's brow rose in amusement at this; the new kid was obviously seeking attention through a 'grand entrance'.

'Too bad it'll all be for nothing,' Goku thought with a roll of his eyes. 'Because at that speed, starting from that distance, there's only one way he could land-!'

Goku shook his head as hi prediction came to pass, and the bald boy ended up with his head buried deep in the sand. 'Fool.'

It wasn't until Roshi came out to inspect what all the noise was about, that Goku himself leaped from his perch and landed softly on the ground to check for himself.

It didn't take long for the newcomer to pull themselves together, and when they did Goku found himself to be a bit interested; whoever they were obviously practiced martial arts, and did so with fervor as they clearly showcased a body built from hours of laborious training.

They were dressed in robes as well, there top an odd mustard-yellow with burnt-orange pants; the bald boy also wore pasty, yellow socks with tan shoes to complete the look. Taking note of the other boy's odd choice to shave his head, something Goku could see thanks to his superior vision, he also noticed the six odd marking on the kid's forehead.

They matched his beady, black eyes.

All-in-all, Goku could say that while this new arrival looked a bit funny, he could prove to be an interesting new development with his obvious understanding of martial arts. However, the boy paid no attention to Goku, and instead made his intentions known immediately by setting his sights on Roshi.

"Ah, you're the great Master Roshi right?"

The old man shrugged, attempting to act nonchalant about the obvious brown-nosing. "People tell me that. What can I do for you?"

The young boy bowed low before rising again and introducing himself. "Master my name is Krillin; I am a former member of the Orin Temple. And I have traveled far from the east in humble hopes that you'll take me on as your student, so that I may one day perform martial arts as great as you."

Krillin's over-the-top attempts at flattery had Goku crossing his arms, and wrinkling his nose a bit in distaste. In his mind, such behavior was beneath anyone who considered themselves a martial artist. With the other boy's character taking a huge blow, Goku could only hope this Krillin was at least a decent fighter.

Roshi seemed to have a similar opinion, because the elderly martial arts master turned his nose up at Krillin as he dismissed the boy. "While that is a long way to travel, and the Orin Temple is a fairly difficult institution to be accepted into, I do not train every would-be student that shows up at my door. I'm sorry, but I'll have to turn you away Krillin."

There was a few seconds of charged silence after that, one in which both Goku and Roshi could see a twinkle flicker at the corner of Krillin's eye right before he went rustling around in his pack. It wasn't long before the boy pulled out a magazine...and Goku let out a long, suffering sigh.

A Play-bunny book.

Was every martial artist a pervert?

"Perhaps some light reading would help change your mind, Master?" Krillin teased with a knowing grin playing at his lips. That smirk split into a full-blown smile of victory as Roshi snatched the porn magazine from his fingers and began to flip through the pages, the old man wondering out loud how the bald youth had gotten his hands on the 'latest issue' already.

"I have my ways Master," the kid answered before Goku's scoff caught his attention. Finally turning to the other boy, Krillin gave Goku a uninterested glance before snorting. "And who are you; another chump hoping to be taught by the great Master Roshi?"

Goku's eyes narrowed, but he let a smirk of his own slid across his face as he replied. "My name is Kakarot, and if I'm a chump then what does that make you Krillin? I mean, considering that Roshi asked me if I wanted to study under him, while you were forced to use petty bribery to worm your way in."

This seemed to strike a nerve with the bald boy. And soon Krillin was right in Goku's face. "At least I take martial arts seriously; everyone knows that the greatest warriors shave there head. Just look at Master Roshi! If you were half as good as you're pretending to be you'd know that, and what the heck kind of name is 'Kakarot' anyway!?"

Not one for having his personal space invaded, Goku's smirk slipped into a calculating frown as he pushed Krillin to the ground.

Looking down at the fuming other fighter, the monkey-tailed martial artist crossed his arms again and looked down his nose like he'd done with Yamcha back in the desert.

"And if you were half as smart as you pretend to be, then you'd know that Roshi is naturally bald like most people his age. Kakarot is the name you will address me by after I've pummeled you into the dirt; and as for my fighting ability, why don't you try me before shooting your mouth off kid, I may just surprise you."

By this point Krillin had regained his footing and was glaring hard at the other boy in front of him.

A sneer was twisted around his lips, and the young monk bared his teeth in what he hoped was a fierce display as he spat out a response. "You're on Carrot-head, I'll be happy to wipe that smug look off your stupid face and show you who most deserves to be Master Roshi's pupil."

Off to the side the elderly man in question had sat down on the steps of his home and watched the two boys with rapt attention. Where before he was about to break up their little barking show, the prospect of watching Kakarot against a fighter his own age easily grabbed the man's attention.

He'd seen what the kid could do against a fighter as old as he, but now Roshi could be an outside observer and assess just how much potential the monkey-tailed boy had. It would also help him gauge Krillin in turn as well, and give him a starting point for their training as he was already fully set to take them both on as students.

When they turned to him, and Krillin asked permission for their spar, Roshi was all too happy to oblige.

Staring across the sand at his opponent, dark obsidian eyes were sharp with focus as their owner settled into his fighting stance with practiced ease. His muscles tensed just so, to allow for swift reaction without setting him too firm into one spot, and the boy's tail wrapped snug around his waist.

Goku could see that this last action peeked Krillin's curiosity, and it got a smirk out of the alien boy as he remembered his superior breed. Krillin, while a possibly decent martial artists, did not have his other-worldly enhancements.

'Against a master like Roshi they don't count for much because of the difference in age and experience, but against this Krillin kid I should easily be able to claim victory.' Goku thought with a grin.

This confidence did not mean Goku was a fool however, so instead of charging in to aim for a quick victory, he called to his foe in an effort to provoke the bald youth. "Well, what are you waiting for Cue-ball, didn't you say something about showing Roshi who the better fighter was, why all the standing around?"

The taunt seemed to work perfectly, because Krillin's shiny head turned a deep, tomato-red before he rushed Goku.

Krillin had left out the fact that he'd been bullied heavily back at the temple during his introduction, and hearing Kakarot use one of the many names the older students had called him just nagged the thorn in the bald youth's side.

Letting his vision tunnel so that all he saw was the wild-haired boy in front of him, Krillin pushed off his back foot and rushed Kakarot with a furious battle cry.

Covering the short distance quickly, Krillin launched his fist out in a vicious strike. When that was deflected, he used the momentum to work himself into a spin-kick which he feinted and instead struck out with a harsh elbow.

Watching Kakarot catch his attack only further fueled the young monk's ire, and after wrenching his joint from the other boy's grip Krillin tried for a headbutt.

Goku easily side-stepped this rash move before sliding his foot around and tripping up his furious opponent, right before delivering a powerful knee to Krillin's unprotected stomach.

But Krillin proved that his training really hadn't been in vane as he caught that knee with his hands, and used it as a spring to move out of his dangerous position.

Retaliating with a combo of knife-hand strikes Krillin finally managed to draw enough of Kakarot's focus to where, when he fisted the shoulder and side of the boy's gi, he was left in enough shock that Krillin managed to land the first blow in the form of his own knee driving home in Kakarot's gut.

Unprepared for such a move Goku's natural resistance was left a little lacking, causing him to lose a breath as he felt that blow hit home, but this only fed his growing appetite for a decent fight as he gripped that leg in his young but powerful fingers and copied Krillin's early attempt at a headbutt.

Only with his being successful.

This sharp blow left the bald boy reeling, and open to a swift scissor-kick which landed square against the underside of his chin; but Goku wasn't finished yet. He flipped himself backwards in the air before landing back on the sand, and then rearing back and launching a perfect palm-strike to Krillin's unprotected chest.

That blow felt as if a truck had just rammed into his young ribs, and left Krillin crying out in obvious pain as he was lifted off his feet and sent flying through the air.

Yet the pre-pubescent monk managed still to fight through such agony and plant his palms against the sand before rolling into a crouch once he reworked his momentum.

Taking a moment to catch a few raspy breaths, Krillin was soon launching himself back into the fight with a strong, over-head hammer-strike. When Kakarot stepped back to avoid it, Krillin just lashed out with a swift spartan-kick, which turned into a spin-kick after that first leg was trapped in Kakarot's grip again.

Goku dropped the offending appendage in his hands to throw up a forearm, effectively blocking his opponent's other leg as it aimed for his head.

Even with his advanced strength and durability Goku could feel the force of that blow as it smacked against his skin, and he couldn't help the grin that found its way onto his lips at this realization. Krillin, while an obnoxious fool, was a worthy warrior that offered something Goku had not had in a long time...a true challenge.

Gohan and Roshi were far beyond his current level, which made them nothing but obstacles he needed to overcome, while Yamcha and the Ox-King were both too unrefined to offer more than a warm-up.

But Krillin, with his build nearly equal to Goku's own and obvious devotion to the art, allowed the boy with the monkey tail to truly test his skills against a foe who measured up to his speed and strength, and force him to push past his limits so as to gain even the slightest advantage.

It was exhilarating!

This new sense of splendor made itself known in the way Goku retaliated with his next move.

The alien boy's arms moved just a fraction faster than before, as he reached up to grab Krillin's outstretched leg and haul him up into the air, where he then proceeded to bring him crashing down like if he'd been swinging a hammer.

A spark lit Goku's eye though when he watched the other boy cushion the blow with his own forearms, and then shove his free leg out to try and catch Goku in the stomach. Deciding he wanted to have more fun, the wild-haired youth jumped back to avoid the blow instead of simply leaning out of the way.

On his end however, Krillin was not having fun.

As he worked his way back to his feet there was a burning anger that filled the pit of his stomach; he had trained at the Orin Temple for crying out loud, why was he having so much trouble with this loser!?

The answer came as it always did, in the form of harsh memories and even harsher words that came from the lips of the other monks.

Being the youngest, and as such the shortest, member of the temple had only encouraged the older boys to bully him; his prodigious abilities meaning nothing to their superiority complex's.

So as he stood, glaring at Kakarot who stood no more than a few feet in front of him, Krillin's vision blurred and the other boy was replaced with the image of one of his tormentors. Whatever taunt Kakarot had been saying, was now just a long-since memorized insult or barb against the bald boy's person.

This anger boiled hot, turning into a flurry of emotions that raged inside like a storm. Hurt, embarrassment, anger they all twisted and churned deep within. It was these emotions that powered the kick-off that launched Krillin forward at great speed, and fueled the power behind the punch he had ready to smash into Kakarot's face.

Goku could see this though, had even felt a niggling of danger when he noticed the change in his opponent, so he readied himself for whatever came next.

It proved to be the right thing too, since Krillin's increase in speed had shocked him, and he just barely managed to duck away from the fist that came flying towards him.

From there Goku found himself on the defensive, weaving and twisting away from whatever crazy move his foe tried to hit him with, with a few close calls that he was sure would have left bruises the following day if he didn't heal so fast. And yet, that grin from earlier had yet to slip from his face.

That feeling he'd gotten when battling Roshi, that hunger for more, began to build within.

There was that familiar, tingling rush that buzzed through the length of his tail and exploded out across his body as it reached his lower back. The flood of raw power that filled his veins, and pooled in his every pore, were now recognizable from his transformation but on a smaller and more controlled scale.

Goku flexed his muscles, tensing them as he dodged another vicious punch from Krillin in preparation for a counter-attack. And when his obsidian eyes caught sight of an opening, he took it immediately.

Krillin didn't even see the punch coming, and felt the full power behind the sharp jab that so smoothly slid past his guard. The young fighter felt his neck muscles strain in agony as his head was snapped to the side by that swift, but powerful blow, and for a moment Krillin couldn't keep from being stunned.

This moment though was more than enough for Goku, who pressed his attack the second he saw this, as he unleashed a furious whirlwind of fists and feet in one seemingly endless combination.

A vicious elbow to the throat, a palm-strike to the shoulder that lead to a hammer-strike to the back as Krillin doubled over, and a knee to the stomach as the bald boy looked about to crumple that went on to become another string of blows.

This showcase of precision and speed was brought to an end however by Roshi, whose voice filled the air as he pulled Goku back and away from Krillin.

"I said that's enough, Kakarot!" The elderly martial arts master hollered at the boy in his grip, only to throw up his staff so as to block the blur of a punch that the kid threw out of instinct. "What in the world got into back there kid, you almost killed Krillin; and wipe that smile off your face, this isn't funny!"

Goku hadn't even known he was smiling until one look at Krillin had the look dropping like a stone from off his face. The bald boy was covered in swelling bruises, many of them a deep, ugly purple color that would no doubt take days to heal.

There was even blood dripping from where Goku had hit him in the nose.

Krillin's body was obviously spent as well, because in no time after Goku's pummeling was cut short the other boy dropped first to his knees and then finally face-first into the sand.

Roshi finally let go of Kakarot's gi, and spat at him while going over to pick up his other pupil. "I don't know what that was, Kakarot, but I suggest you get it under control because if you don't...you can forget about learning any martial arts from me."

With that, the elderly man went inside with Krillin in his arms, leaving Goku to stand alone on the beach.

The spiky-haired little warrior stared, wide-eyed and unbelieving at his blood-stained hands; it wasn't much more than splats of crimson, but to him they may as well have been drenched in the stuff. This had been the first time, while still conscious of himself, that Goku could recall losing control like that.

Because it wasn't the bloodshed that bothered him, but the manner in which he'd done it...the way he'd relished in it.

Never before had Goku experienced this part of his hunger before, this need for more, because he most certainly did want more.

More opponents to fight, more victory to soak up, more blood to be spilled. These wants each merged with the other, creating something new, something powerful...something dangerous. It, whatever it was, was a dark and cold surge that still thrummed deep within Goku's core to the point that even his tail found itself hackling under the remnants of such a feeling.

'A feeling that, judging from Roshi's words, isn't normal.' Goku thought with a grimace.

That meant it had something to do with whatever type of alien he was, which meant he was stuck figuring it out for himself, and that in turn only made Goku even more angry.

Why was he alone?

Why hadn't anyone come to find him yet?

And the thing that kept him up the most; what was he?

These questions ate away at young Goku as he continued to stand there on the small beach of Roshi's island. They swirled around inside his head like a tornado and kept his mind in a constant state of confusion and disarray, as he continued to stare down at his red-speckled hands.

And truth be told, he may have stood there all into the night if that ruddy red color hadn't sparked a memory in his brain. One of a bloody bandanna, worn by a man with a scar on his cheek.

Calling to the nimbus Goku felt his chest throb with how heavy his heart was beating beneath his ribs.

Why hadn't he thought of it before, it seemed so obvious now, where he might find some answers.

His space-pod; surely there was a message left behind for him by his father?!

It felt a little like a long shot for Goku, but he'd gone so long without answers, and this thought was the only one he could use to keep himself from breaking apart at the seams at the moment.

Relief flooded Goku's being when his reliable yellow cloud screeched to a halt in front of him, but that was replaced with dread when he went to board the ball of fluff and he fell through onto his butt!

Staring up at the hovering nimbus with shocked eyes, Goku could only think back to what he'd just done to Krillin. Roshi had mentioned that, in order to even ride the cloud, one had to be pure of heart; something he, apparently, could no longer claim after his animalistic beating of Krillin.

Standing back on his feet Goku eyed the nimbus with an imploring gaze.

"I've got a pretty good guess why that just happened, but that's also what I called you for. I'm want to return to my ship, the one that brought me to earth and see if I can't find a message left behind for me somewhere inside of it. Maybe, if I do, it'll help explain what happened during my spar with Krillin, but I can only get there if you help me. So...what do you say?"

It was a tense silence that followed, one where Goku believed the nimbus would spurn him and simply fly away, but then the cloud dipped low in an offer to let him ride and the young alien felt that there was still hope for their partnership yet.

xXx