Still, I figured I should check in on Lunch. And I asked BuIma which she pointed the way to me. I wasn't sure whether to laugh or shake my head at the fact our prince got someone knocked up, I'd have to ask one day to see who made it happen.
I walked through Capsule Corp toward one of the side rooms Bulma had turned into a makeshift apartment for Lunch. Knocking once, I pushed the door open without waiting for a response.
Lunch was sitting on the couch, flipping through some kind of magazine, one hand resting lightly on her stomach. She looked up when she heard me, and for a second, her soft, sweet side beamed at me.
"Hey, Celera," she said, smiling gently. "You're back."
I leaned against the doorframe, arms crossed, giving her a small smirk. "Yeah, for a little while."
She patted the spot on the couch next to her, and I rolled my eyes but walked over anyway, sitting down beside her.
"You alright?" I asked, glancing her over. "Bulma told me the news."
Her cheeks turned a little red, but she nodded. "Yeah… I mean, it's a little scary, but Raditz has been really supportive. Weirdly."
I snorted. "Yeah, I bet. Didn't think Raditz had it in him."
She laughed softly, leaning back against the cushions. "I ended up making the first move and here we are."
There was a small moment of quiet, and I noticed how she rested her hand on her stomach like she was already protective of that kid. For all her crazy sides, she was still soft deep down. I respected that.
"So… have you picked out a name yet?" I asked, trying to sound casual.
She smiled, brushing her hair back from her face. "Not yet… Raditz has some ideas, but—"
"ACHOO!"
I blinked as her whole body jerked with a sneeze, and in an instant, her hair poofed up, shifting to that wild, sharp version.
"Ugh, dammit," she grumbled, rubbing her nose. "I hate when that happens."
I laughed, shaking my head. "You and that split personality thing… Never gets old."
"Yeah, yeah, laugh it up," she muttered, but there was no heat in her words as she held me at gunpoint, but we both knew that wouldn't hurt me.
"So where's Raditz?" I asked, leaning back and throwing my arm along the back of the couch.
She rolled her eyes. "Out getting food. You know, cravings and all that crap."
Right on cue, the door swung open, and Raditz walked in, arms full of food. Like, piled up to his chin. And none of it made any sense together. There was a carton of eggs, a bunch of pickles, a whole watermelon, a box of doughnuts, a jar of peanut butter, and—was that raw fish?
I stared. "What… the hell is that?"
Raditz looked at me like I was the crazy one. "Lunch said she was hungry."
Lunch grinned. "Don't judge me."
I raised both hands in mock surrender, smirking. "Hey, not judging. I just didn't know pregnancy made you wanna eat everything in the store."
Raditz walked over and placed the mess of food on the table, glancing at me. "You back for good, or just passing through?"
"Just passing through," I said, standing up and stretching my arms behind my head. "I gotta head out again soon. Got a trip to Namek planned."
"Namek?" Lunch blinked. "What for?"
"Dragon Balls," I said casually, glancing out the window. "Figured I'd go see if I can get a few things sorted. Got some ideas."
Raditz pulled a chair over and sat down next to Lunch, already peeling the lid off the peanut butter jar and dipping a pickle in it without even blinking.
"Still can't believe you're having a kid," I said, smirking as I looked between them. "Never thought you had it in you, Raditz."
He rolled his eyes but there was a faint smirk on his face. "Yeah, well, guess I proved you wrong."
Lunch grinned and elbowed him in the ribs. "He's been great, actually."
I laughed a little, shaking my head. "Yeah, our prince finally found his princess."
Raditz snorted but didn't deny it. We sat there for a few more minutes, mostly me watching in mild horror as Lunch was eating a weird mix of food. Still, it was… kinda nice. Seeing them like this.
Finally, I stood up, cracking my neck. "Alright. I'm gonna head out before I lose my mind watching you eat that," I said, nodding at the weird pile of food.
Lunch smirked. "You're just jealous you can't have any."
"Sure, that's what it is," I muttered, though there was a bit of a grin on my face.
Raditz stood up too, walking over to me. "Hey… don't stay gone too long," he said, almost awkwardly. "You know. Just in case."
I blinked, surprised for a moment, but nodded. "Yeah. Don't worry. I'll be back before you know it. And I'll take you both to the Toriko universe once I'm back, Im sure Queen Gine would love to hear about her grand kid coming from you two."
Lunch gave me a little wave as I headed to the door. "Be careful, alright?"
I gave her a smirk over my shoulder. "Always."
And with that, I walked out, heading for an open field outside Capsule Corp. I glanced up at the sky, feeling the breeze on my face as I took off.
I soared through the sky over Mount Paozu, my tail swaying behind me in the breeze. The Son family's house was already in sight, tucked away in the hills like a peaceful little speck in the middle of nowhere. I could already feel Gohan's energy. And Im sure he had sensed me coming.
I landed lightly near the house, kicking up a small puff of dust. Before I could even knock, the door swung open, and there was Gohan, standing in the doorway.
"Celera," He blinked up at me. "I thought you were still off doing… uh, whatever it is you do."
I smirked. "What, I can't drop by and check in on you?"
He laughed, rubbing the back of his head. "No, I just—well, I wasn't expecting you, that's all."
"Who's at the door, Gohan?" a voice called from inside.
Chichi.
I stepped past him, nodding as she appeared in the kitchen doorway, her apron still tied around her waist. The moment she saw me, her eyes widened slightly, just surprised.
"Celera," she said, smoothing down her apron. "You should've let us know you were coming. I could've made something."
I waved a hand. "Didn't come here for food, just wanted to check in on you guys." My gaze flicked to Gohan. "Kid still got his nose in the books, I see."
Chichi huffed, walking past him and into the kitchen. "As he should," she said firmly. "Education is important."
I followed her inside, stretching as I glanced around. The house smelled like fresh rice and vegetables, probably whatever she'd been cooking for lunch. It was a peaceful little place, and it made sense why Goku had chosen to raise a family here.
Gohan shut the door behind me and hesitated before saying, "I actually just finished my schoolwork for the day."
"Good," Chichi said, glancing at him. "Then you can help me in the fields. And Celera, since you're here, you can help too."
I snorted. "Oh, so that's how it is, huh?"
She gave me a pointed look. "You're strong, aren't you? Shouldn't be a problem."
I wasn't about to argue with her. I'd helped out on farms before, especially in the Toriko universe, and honestly, I didn't mind. It was something simple.
We stepped outside, making our way toward the small vegetable fields behind the house. Gohan walked beside me.
"I know you're strong, but don't go tearing up my crops," Chichi warned as she handed me a basket.
I nodded. "I understand chichi, I've done this type of work before."
For a while, we worked in relative silence, pulling up vegetables, setting them in baskets, and clearing weeds. Then, after a bit, Chichi finally broke the silence.
"You've seen Gohan fight," she said, her voice steady but firm. "You know what he's capable of."
I nodded, tossing a few freshly picked radishes into my basket. "Yeah. Kid's got potential."
She exhaled slowly, wiping her forehead with the back of her hand. "I don't want him to fight."
I paused for a second, then resumed working. "I know."
Chichi looked at me, her dark eyes searching. "Do you?"
I met her gaze. "Yeah. I do."
She sighed. "Goku is… he's a good man, but he doesn't think about these things. He loves fighting. It's in his blood. He doesn't understand that I don't want that for Gohan."
I nodded. "Not a lot of people do."
She gestured toward Gohan, who was a few feet away, still working, but clearly listening. "I want him to be safe. To have choices. Not to be forced into battle, not to be thrown into danger over and over again."
I understood that more than I wanted to admit. My childhood was war, blood, and killing. There was nothing else, not until I made it to the Toriko universe.
"I get it," I said quietly.
Chichi looked at me again, really looked at me this time. Maybe she saw something in my expression, something that told her I wasn't just saying it to shut her up.
Gohan finally spoke, his voice quiet. "I don't want to fight either. Not like my dad does. But… I want to be able to protect the people I care about."
Chichi's expression softened, and she sighed, pinching the bridge of her nose. "I know, Gohan. I know."
I nodded at him. "That's fair. You don't have to love fighting, but you should at least be able to defend yourself."
He nodded. "Yeah. That's how I see it."
Chichi sighed again, but this time, it wasn't exasperated, it was just tired.
"I just don't want to lose him," she admitted.
I tossed another vegetable into my basket. "you won't, I promise"
She gave me a small smile, and for the first time since I got here, she looked a little more at ease.
We finished gathering the vegetables, heading back toward the house. Chichi started cleaning them while Gohan and I sat on the porch, watching the sun start to dip toward the horizon.
"Thanks for stopping by," he said, glancing at me.
I shrugged. "Don't mention it."
After a while, I stood up, stretching. "Alright, I should get going."
Chichi wiped her hands on her apron, looking at me. "Where to now?"
"Namek," I said simply.
Gohan blinked. "You're going for the Dragon Balls?"
I nodded. "Got some things to take care of."
He hesitated, then smiled. "Be careful, okay?"
I smirked. "You sound like your mom."
Chichi rolled her eyes. "Well, at least one of you two has sense."
I hovered just above the Son family home, arms crossed as I looked down at Gohan and Chichi standing by the porch. Gohan gave me a small bow of respect. "Thank you for visiting, Celera. It was really nice seeing you again."
Chichi, hands on her hips, just huffed. "You better not go getting yourself into trouble."
I smirked. "You know me."
"Exactly. That's why I said it," she shot back, though there wasn't any real bite behind her words.
I chuckled before giving them a two-finger salute. "See ya, kid. Keep up with your studies, your mom's got the right idea, even if she's bossy about it."
Gohan smiled. "I will."
I slowly ascended, letting the wind swirl around me as I lifted higher and higher into the sky. I could still see them watching me as I gained altitude, the little house getting smaller beneath me. Once I broke through the cloud layer, I finally turned my gaze toward the stars.
Alright. What's next?
As I picked up speed, my body pushing through the upper atmosphere, my mind started going through the list of threats that were coming.
The Androids.
Cell.
Majin Buu.
Hell, maybe even more. I'd already fought Turles, which meant the timeline wasn't exactly following the original script. And that meant there was a chance for other non-canon threats to show up.
Like…
Garlic Jr.? Nah, that dude was a joke and that was meant to be early on. Dr. Wheelo? Nope, same reason as the last one. Lord Slug? again no.
Cooler. Yeah, I'd definitely want to fight him. If he could pull off that final form like in the movies, he might actually be really dangerous.
Bojack… That was a maybe. If he and his crew ever showed up, I know Tato would love to be there, he always did have a thing for alien girls.
Janemba? Now that would be interesting. A reality-warping monster would be a hell of a challenge, but that would need me to be dead.... Yeah no, I'd end up in Hell if I died without a body.
Broly, though…
I knew for a fact he was canon. But it wasn't the old Z Broly, the one that screamed Kakarot like a broken record. No, this was Super Broly. The one from the newer movie. I hadn't met him, but I knew he existed because I had checked the records back when I was a kid. And that meant I had no idea what to expect from him, except that he was stupid strong.
And honestly? That was exciting as hell.
I grinned to myself, the stars stretching out in every direction as became even faster in space.
But beyond all that… there was still something else on my mind.
Hanasia's form.
The one she had used against me. It was something more than Ikari. Something primal. A state beyond just tapping into the raw fury of the Great Ape.
I wanted it.
I needed it.
If I was going to fight these upcoming threats, I needed every tool at my disposal. And that form, whatever it was, would push my limits even further.
I clenched my fists, feeling the familiar surge of energy within me. My tail flicked behind me as I propelled myself through the void of space, my aura igniting as I tapped into super saiyan.
Namek was my next stop.