EPIC Side Story: Dragon Ball

"You mean to tell me that man, Vahn was it? You're trying to tell me he's some all-powerful God with magical, wish-granting powers? You sure he isn't some alien trying to pass off advanced tech as some kind of magic...?"Exhaling a sigh, Bulma set aside the coffee she had been nursing before stating, "He plucked the sun out of the sky, Tights. Even if he was an alien with advanced tech, he may as well be a God..."Recalling the incident that had occurred a few weeks prior, Tights's eyes widened as she asked, "Are you serious? That was him...?"Nodding her head in affirmation, Bulma emulated Vahn's actions of reaching her hand up, a lazy expression on her face as she grabbed at empty air with her thumb and index finger, saying, "He just reached up and plucked it out of the sky like it was no big deal. If I hadn't witnessed it with my own two eyes, I would have thought that the world had gone mad or that the media was pulling some kind of prank..."Though she was tempted to insist it had been some kind of hoax, Tights had witnessed the Sun's disappearance alongside Jaco, a veteran of the Galactic Patrol, and Dr. Omori, the world's most preeminent Theoretical Physicist. The latter was brilliant enough to design and construct a Time Machine with the power to temporarily halt the flow of time, yet, even with all his instruments, he was unable to make heads nor tails of the anomalous astrological event. As for Jaco, he received an emergency summons from Galactic Patrol Headquarters. The disappearance of a celestial body the size of a star, even for a short while, wasn't something that went unnoticed."Wow..."Not sure what else to say, a pensive expression developed across Tights's face as her Bulma's words gradually settled in her mind. She still found it difficult to believe that Vahn was actually a God, but, as Bulma had pointed out, it didn't really matter. If he could pluck stars out of the sky and generate anything he wanted out of thin air, he may as well be.Setting Vahn's status aside for the moment, Tights decided to focus on the more pressing matter at hand, asking, "And you're engaged to this guy...?"Exhaling yet another exasperated sigh, Bulma briefly shifted her attention to Sarina before looking towards the kitchen and muttering, "Yeah...at least, that's what we agreed to. To be honest, I'm not really sure at this point..."Snorting through her nose, Sarina interposed before Tights could ask what Bulma meant, stating, "If you stopped acting like the entire world revolves around you, there wouldn't be anything for you to feel confused about. Like, you knew Vahn was a God before you proposed to him. He accepted your proposal and didn't even protest when you took off in the Model Tiamat. Everything wrong with the current situation is the result of you creating drama for no reason."Showing that they really were sisters, near-identical glowers developed across the faces of Bulma and Tights. To the latter's surprise, however, Bulma didn't attempt to refute Sarina's words. Instead, she slammed the table and shouted, "You think I don't know that!?"Plopping back to her seat, Bulma grabbed the sides of her head as if she were about to have a mental breakdown, violently mussing her hair as she issued a frustrated groan. This left Tights at a complete and utter loss for words, the hateful glower on her expression turning into one of abject confusion as she looked to the only person present who could provide answers.Noticing the questioning look on Tights's face, Sarina rolled her eyes before crossing her arms in a huff and saying, "Bulma is the one that asked Vahn to marry her. He has also been honest with her from the start. Like, she knows he has multiple wives and an ever-growing number of lovers. None of that prevented her from asking him to marry her yet she still expects him to chase her down and ignore all his other responsibilities just to pander to her ego. It's ridiculous."Hearing Sarina's explanation, a clearer picture of the current situation began to form within Tights's mind. She knew her sister better than anyone, so, while she wanted to take her sister's side, it was becoming increasingly obvious that Sarina wasn't the 'interloper' in this particular situation. Rather, if Bulma knew about Vahn's wives and lovers before proposing to him, she didn't really have a lot of wiggle room to expect anything from him. She clearly proposed to him for a reason, so, if anything, she should be the one making an effort so that she could obtain whatever it was that compelled her to propose in the first place...Remembering the Model Tiamat and Vahn's inordinately handsome appearance, it wasn't difficult for Tights to imagine why her sister might want to propose to him. She honestly couldn't blame her. Rather, if she had met Vahn before Bulma, there was a good chance she might have accosted him in a similar manner. She had been single going on thirteen years at this point, and, while she wasn't exactly desperate for companionship, encountering someone like Vahn couldn't even be called a once in a lifetime opportunity. It was the type of event that only occurred when fate was involved...Looking towards her little sister, a trace of the envy Tights had always felt towards Bulma briefly appeared in her obsidian-blue eyes. She loved her sister dearly, but, as Sarina pointed out, Bulma behaved as if the entire world revolved around her. And why shouldn't she? She was born with an incomparably brilliant mind and an appearance that could contend with famous actresses and pop idols.Though she had graduated from one of the most prestigious Universities on the planet at the age of 16, Tights had never felt proud of the achievement. Everyone was constantly comparing her to her much younger sister, and, despite pursuing the things she was interested in, her teachers had always told her she was wasting her potential by pursuing an MFA in Creating Writing rather than mathematics or science.While others might have felt a sense of accomplishment upon obtaining their dream degree at the remarkably young age of 16, Tights's insecurities had driven her to run away from home when her father failed to show up for her graduation due to attending the closing ceremony of Bulma's Pre-school. After that, she abandoned her status as the heiress of Capsule Corp and temporarily cut ties with her family in order to prove she was capable of setting out and succeeding on her own.In the end, Tights nearly lost her life less than a year later after accepting a contract to become the body-double for a famous idol. It was her chance encounter with Jaco and Dr. Omori that allowed her to make it out alive, so, shortly after the incident had been settled, she restored contact with her family and spent a several years sorting through her insecurities before finally becoming one of the most successful science-fiction writers on the planet...Recalling the incident where a five-year-old Bulma had snuck into Jaco's ship and learned how to pilot it in minutes, the envy in Tights's eyes faded from existence as a faint smile developed across her face. For a moment, she had nearly set aside years of therapy and soul-searching. This wouldn't have helped anyone, so, after a moment of deliberation, she placed her hand on Bulma's shoulder, asking, "What, exactly, is the issue here? As far as I can tell, that Vahn fellow doesn't seem to be too upset by your behavior. Just go to him, kiss, and make up. Brooding and throwing a tantrum aren't going to fix anything."Groaning in response to her elder sister's words, Bulma muttered, "You wouldn't understand..." in a pouty, almost defiant tone. This caused Tights's brow to twitch, as, even without Bulma explaining further, she got the impression the latter was referring to the fact she hadn't had a boyfriend since college. Even then, a lot of people had told her she was being taken advantage of because the boy was twenty-seven and she had just turned sixteen. In the end, they ended up being right, as, shortly after she abandoned her status as the heiress of Capsule Corp, he abandoned her."Listen here you little shit...you've made your bed, now lie in it. If you're unwilling, don't blame me for making myself comfortable."Without raising her head, Bulma sent a menacing glare towards her elder sister, threatening, "You wouldn't dare..."Raising her hands in a 'what can you do?' kind of manner, a teasing smile developed across Tights's face as she said, "Hey, he's already got a boatload of wives, right? If you're not gonna get your shit together, he may as well be free real estate from my points of view."Though she didn't believe her sister would try to steal her man, Bulma couldn't be absolutely sure. After all, Vahn wasn't exactly a one woman kind of guy. He had confessed to having multiple wives and more than a hundred lovers. She wasn't sure if there were any sisters among that number but her intuition told her there must be. After all, if their situations were reversed, Bulma doubted she would be willing to let Tights monopolize the veritable bounty that was Vahn...Making matters exponentially worse, Sarina surprised both sisters by saying, "That's not a bad idea. I've been having a pretty difficult time dealing with Vahn on my own. With the two of you lending a hand, things would certainly be a lot easier. I don't really have experience with other men but I can declare with absolute certainty that Vahn is a beast in the bedroom..."Without having to go into further detail, Sarina supported her claim by holding up her index fingers and spreading them nearly shoulder width apart. This left the sisters more than a little confused, as, despite their intelligence, both were socially awkward young women. The more obvious something was, the less likely they were to realize it. Sarina had also spread her fingers a little too far apart, so, even though they immediately suspected she was referring to a particular part of Vahn's body, they couldn't help thinking she was referencing something else...Recovering a bit faster than her blonde counterpart, Bulma's voice was tainted with disbelief as she asked, "Are you serious...?"Though she nodded her head, Sarina left Bulma and Tights feeling even more at a loss for words as she explained, "The size actually changes depending on the woman. Bulma has already seen it, but Vahn has the ability to change form at will. He can even transform into different people if he really wants to, but, more often than not, he just changes his size in accordance with his partner..."Recalling that Vahn had, in fact, demonstrated his ability to become a young boy and an old man, a pensive expression developed across Bulma's face. As for Tights, she focused on something entirely different, asking, "Wait, does that mean you can...you know...take something that big...?"Blushing fiercely in response to Tights's question, Sarina averted her eyes as a peculiar mixture of pride and shame washed over her. She was the one that had insisted Vahn not hold back on her account, so, while it had been a little difficult in the beginning, she could easily take his 'standard' size without difficulty. It had been one of her secret objectives ever since she got a good look at it in the bath..."Yes..."Opening her mouth, Tights looked like she wanted to say something but simply couldn't find the words. She couldn't be certain but Sarina had easily spread her fingers 25, maybe even 30cm apart. She knew there were people with even larger members involved in the making of porn, especially since the introduction of Animorphaline, but it was still difficult to imagine a girl who appeared to be the same age as her sister taking a meat stick the length of someone's forearm. As a result, she couldn't help thinking, ("Is it too late to take back my previous statement...?")......(A/N: Alternate Titles: 'Just imagine Vahn walking around with a marble bag filled with stars he has collected...','Being the 'lesser' prodigy in a prestigious family isn't easy...','I kind of feel bad for Sarina if she's this desperate for relief. I think her pride had blinded her to the fact that Vahn would readily give her a break xD...')

With the conversation between Sarina, Bulma, and Tights lasting for several hours, Vahn wasn't surprised when he learned that the sisters would be staying the night.Bulma initially wanted to stay in the room next to the master bedroom, but, upon learning that Chi-Chi was already staying there, she grumbled for a bit before ultimately choosing to stay in the same room as her sister.Having anticipated this scenario from the start, Vahn outfitted Tights's room with a large bed that could be split down the center. As for their furnishings, he included a large television, a set of chairs that hovered off the ground, an ultra-high-definition hologram projector, several bookshelves filled with engineering manuals, and a rack of his favorite mecha and battle anime.Though Tights had become one of the most famous science-fiction novels on Earth, the popularity of books, in general, had waned with the rapid progression of technology. It didn't help that most of the people outside the cities were uneducated farmers, so, even if they did get their hands on a science-fiction novel, they simply couldn't understand the contents.If she asked him for advice, Vahn was going to push Tights towards storyboarding, graphic novels, and developing anime. People had a much easier time getting into movies, cartoons, and TV shows compared to books as they didn't have to imagine what people looked like and how things worked. This made it significantly easier for people to imagine what it would be like to live within the worlds you had created, so, as much as he could appreciate novels, Vahn enjoyed manga and anime a lot more.Of course, the penultimate form of entertainment was Virtual Reality, but, after seeing its influence on the Aldrnari Empire of Gaia, Vahn wasn't too enthusiastic about introducing it elsewhere. There had been a significant amount of support for having the restrictions he placed on it removed, and, as a result, the Mother System eventually updated the Common Law so that people above a certain age were basically able to upload their consciousness to the Virtual World.Though he didn't really mind people wanting to spend all their time in fictional worlds, witnessing the mass exodus that followed had caused Vahn to have mixed feelings. Both he and Da Vinci had severely underestimated just how willing people were to abandon everything that made them who they were just to experience an easier life in an entirely simulated world. Many had even set up their profiles so that their memories were inhibited whenever they entered one of the thematic worlds. In other words, just for the sake of greater immersion, they became NPCs without any knowledge of the world beyond the simulation.As someone who had experienced the exact opposite scenario in the Tri-Ace Anthology, Vahn was a little taken aback when he heard about the peculiar development from Da Vinci. He didn't take any action to prevent it but it was still eye-opening to know there were literally hundreds of millions of people who would rather risk being reborn as simple farmers and filler characters despite having all of their needs provided for in reality...Fortunately, most of the people that had participated in the digitalization exodus were those born before The Fall. Those born during and after it had openly embraced the lifestyle provided by the Empire. There were even a number of people that had become explorers, adventurers, and other fantasy-esque professions in order to set out and explore the various Textures that comprised Gaia. Others became Heroes, Knights, and Mages, staunch protectors of the Surface and the people who called the Aldrnari Empire home.At the end of the day, Vahn was happy so long as the people were happy. He might not be able to truly understand the reason that drove each individual person's actions, but, in the grand scheme of things, he didn't have to. Rather, if a time came where he did know absolutely everything, he would probably become extremely bored.Like many of the Gods he had encountered during his journey, Vahn had learned that omniscience wasn't everything it was cracked up to be. In fact, without a Mind Innate and the proper mentality, there was a good chance it would simply break you.........With the evening passing uneventfully, Vahn woke up early the next morning to prepare breakfast for the growing number of people living within the manor.As per usual, Chi-Chi was the first to appear. Watching him prepare meals had become a habit of hers, but, more than that, she wanted to be the first person he saw each day. This was impossible due to the fact he shared a bed with Sarina, but, as the latter often slept in, Chi-Chi had convinced herself it was better to be the first person he saw awake...Without turning to face the sleepy-looking Princess, a casual smile developed across Vahn's face as he mused, "Good morning, Chi-Chi. Sleep well...?"Suppressing a yawn to the best of her ability, Chi-Chi nodded her head before remarking, "I would have slept better if we shared the same bed..."As he had already gotten used to Chi-Chi's remarkably brazen assertations, Vahn simply chuckled in response to the willful Princess's remark. This caused an adorable pout to develop across Chi-Chi's face, but, instead of pressing further, she ultimately trotted over to her usual spot before taking a seat and observing him with a listless, dreamy look on her face...With the others beginning to arrive nearly twenty minutes later, Vahn acquiesced to Chi-Chi's offer to clean the stove and kitchen utensils before heading out to the dining room with all the food he had prepared in his Inventory."Good morning, Tights, Cheelai, Broly. Did you sleep well...?"Answering before even Cheelai, Tights replied, "Almost too well. That bed is basically a trap. I don't think I've ever slept on something so comfortable in my entire life."Though she didn't mean them as such, Vahn accepted Tights's words as a compliment, smiling as he smoothly asserted, "I don't cut corners when it comes to accommodating family and friends. So long as you reside here, expect nothing but the best."Punctuating his words, Vahn waved his hand over the table to produce a plethora of food items. He had stockpiled quite a few over the years, and, thanks to his Inventory keeping things fresh forever, he could provide for an entire city if required.Seeing the ridiculous spread, memories of the previous night resurfaced in Tights's mind. Vahn had brought food for her, Bulma, and Sarina partway through their conversation. Immediately after that, the awkward tensions between them gradually eased as even Bulma's mood qualitatively improved the moment she sampled Vahn's food. The strangest thing about this was that she couldn't actually recall what most of the food tasted like. If someone were to ask, she would only be able to tell them how it made her feel...it was almost like the food had been prepared with joy and happiness rather than conventional ingredients...With this in mind, Tights decided she might as well ask, stacking her plate as she inquired, "Where do you acquire your ingredients from? I heard from Bulma that she actually lost half a kilo despite stuffing herself at every meal."Raising her brows in response to Tights's words, Cheelai swallowed the thick piece of bacon she was engorging herself on before asking, "Really? I actually put on a lot of weight. Not enough to get fat but more than enough to recover from the skin and bones state I was in previously."Surprised by Cheelai's words, Tights was about to ask about the peculiar, green-skinned girl's background when Vahn preempted her, answering, "The food I prepare has some pretty unique qualities. Not only does it strengthen your immune system, it helps you cultivate the figure you want while also unlocking your hidden potential. In other words, if you want to gain weight, you'll gain weight. If you want to lose weight, you'll lose it. Either way, you're guaranteed to be healthy."Blinking in surprise, Tights was tempted to ask how Vahn could prepare such mystical food, but, remembering he was supposed to be a God, she decided against it. Instead, she looked down at her lean and petite figure. When she was in her teens, a lot of people said she resembled a junior idol. This changed quite a bit once she got older. Now, unless she kept her hair long and donned slightly revealing clothing, there were people who genuinely mistook her for a young boy...Noticing Tights's gaze, an amused smile developed across Cheelai's face as she asked, "What's the matter? You're literally sitting at a table with a God. If you're that dissatisfied with your figure, why not ask Vahn to lend you a hand? He helped me grow 5cm just to prove he could. I'm sure he can give you some breasts if you really want."Hearing Cheelai's words, the person who was most surprised was Vahn. He nearly did a spit take, as, thanks to the green-skinned woman's carelessness, stars had appeared in the recently arrived Chi-Chi's eyes. As for Tights, she appeared somewhat skeptical, asking, "Is that how Sarina's tits got so big...?"Pinching the bridge of his nose, Vahn answered, "Sarina's development had very little to do with me. She ended up that way as a result of her own wants and desires. From my point of view, every woman has their charms. It doesn't matter if they're petite, tall, mature, or flat as a board. All that matters, at least to me, is that they're content. People who attempt to change themselves to match the expectations of others have a hard time being happy. I prefer confident women who embrace what makes them unique..."Though she was a little surprised by Vahn's words, that didn't mean Tights accepted them at face value. She hadn't dated ever since she was exploited by her previous boyfriend, so, while she was certain Vahn was different, she couldn't help being skeptical of men who readily told her what she wanted to hear. Thus, after picking at her food for a short while, she said, "Prove it. You should be able to show us what each of your wives and lovers looks like, right? Show me one of the girls you ended up with that doesn't meet the conventional standards of beauty..."Raising his brows, Vahn met Tights's gaze, asking, "If you can't believe my previous statement, how does revealing the appearances of my wives and lovers help? It wouldn't exactly be difficult for me to create a projection that coincides with your expectations..."Snorting through her nose, Tights's stated, "Bulma said you're unable to lie but that doesn't prevent you from spewing platitudes and telling people what they want to hear. Now that I've asked you to show me what they look like, you'll either reveal their actual appearances or expose the fact you can tell a lie. Either way, I'm can see that everyone here is interested in seeing what they look like. If you can show them standing next to or surrounding a projection of yourself, that would be even better."Seeing the expectant looks on Chi-Chi's, Cheelai's, and even the young Broly's faces, an exasperated sigh escaped from Vahn's throat. Instead of refusing Tights's request, however, he insisted they wait for Bulma and Sarina to arrive. After all, if he was going to talk about his wives and lovers, he might as well recount for them his story up until this point. With that in mind, he waited until the drowsy duo dragged their feet into the dining room before creating an extremely realistic projection of the form he had taken near the start of his adventures in Danmachi.........(A/N: Alternate Titles: 'Singularity vibes...','Chi-Chi is super impressionable...','And thus the story of EPIC was spread to another world (U w U)...')

With Sarina's mood improving quite a bit after a pep talk and a massage, both she and Vahn were enjoying an action movie unique to the Actualized World when his senses picked up a fast-moving object on approach to the manor.Recognizing the object as the Model Tiamat, Vahn's brows perked up as he said, "It appears Bulma has finally decided to pay us a visit..." before immediately following it with a marginally surprised, "And it would appear she brought her sister...?"Even more surprised than Vahn, Sarina ceased snuggling against him, asking, "Bulma's sister? You mean Tights...?"Though the Bulma she was familiar with only had a single sister, Sarina knew the version of Dragon Ball she and Vahn had descended into was similar yet decidedly different from the version they had binge-watched together. For all she knew, Bulma had four identical sisters and enough brothers to fill the entirety of West City. Thus, even though she was pretty sure Vahn was referencing Tights, she figured she may as well ask to be certain.Nodding his head in affirmation, Vahn paused the movie before rising to his feet and saying, "If I had to guess, I would wager that Tights found out about us before threatening to come herself if Bulma refused to bring her over. She did always have a penchant for mischief and anything related to science-fiction...""Hmm..."While she didn't disagree with Vahn's assessment of the situation, Sarina's 'intuition' made her think there was more to Tights's visit than mere curiosity. She was the type of woman that would force an alien she barely knew to fly her around to various planets to gather inspiration for her novels, and, though she used her earnings to help restore his home, she had basically strong-armed Dr. Omori, a Scientist researching Time Travel, to let her live on his island.Simply put, Tights was an exceptionally headstrong woman, and, though she was depicted as being the kinder of the two sisters, she was even more stubborn than Bulma when it concerned gathering material for her novels. Vahn was a veritable treasure trove of knowledge and information, so, even though she had never met the trendy blonde, Sarina got the impression that Tights wasn't going to leave without collecting plenty of material for her novels.........With the Model Tiamat capable of moving at faster-than-light speeds through a vacuum, it only took a few minutes for Bulma and Tights to travel from West City to the manor Vahn had created a few hundred kilometers to the Northwest. This excited Tights quite a bit, as, despite touring around space in a ship capable of moving at even faster speeds, it couldn't compare to riding in the cockpit of a massive, badass-looking dragon.Unfortunately, the relatively short journey didn't leave a lot of time for small talk, so, even though she had been pestering Bulma for more information about Vahn, she knew very little about him by the time her sister was landing the Model Tiamat in a large clearing reserved for that exact purpose. Immediately thereafter, Tights's brows perked up when a surprisingly handsome man, presumably Vahn, appeared out of thin air alongside a remarkably beautiful woman with massive tits and raven-black hair."Holy crap, you never mentioned your little boy toy was 'this' handsome. And check out that chick standing next to him. There's no way those are real..."Realizing the problem with the words that had just come out of her mouth, Tights looked towards Bulma with a concerned frown as she asked, "Who is she...?"Exhaling a sigh, Bulma left her sister absolutely speechless by popping open the hatch of the Model Tiamat and answering, "Her name is Sarina. She's one of Vahn's lovers..." in a flat, no-nonsense tone of voice. Then, without waiting for her sister's reply, she slid out of the cockpit and onto the Model Tiamat's hand before having it lower her to the ground.Coming back to her senses in response to her little sister's departure, Tight's hurried to the edge of the cockpit, shouting, "Bulma! What the hell are you talking about!?" before looking towards Vahn and Sarina with an incredulous, slightly hostile expression on her face.Noticing Tight's gaze, a wry smile developed across Vahn's face as he waved his hand towards her. This caused a visible tickmark to appear on her head, but, before she should even think to shout, an exasperated-looking Bulma called out, "Just hurry up and get down! I'll explain everything once we get inside!"Without waiting for Tight's response, Bulma shifted her attention to Vahn and Sarina next, a hint of moisture spreading across the surface of her sapphirine eyes as she glared at the former and asked, "Why didn't you come to visit?" before immediately following it with a, "No. Forget it. We'll discuss it later. For now, let's go inside. You can cook something up for us while I explain things to my sister and have a chat with Sarina..."Placing his hand on Sarina's shoulder before she could lambast Bulma for her rude behavior, a faint smile developed across Vahn's face as he answered, "Sure thing. Just promise me you won't take off before we have a chance to talk. Two and a half weeks may not be a particularly long period of time but it's more than enough for feelings of longing to develop. I really have missed you, Bulma..."Furrowing her brows, Bulma wanted to refute Vahn's words, but, as per usual, she found it difficult to speak harshly when he was staring directly at her. A part of her was even tempted to forgive him outright, but, feeling he should suffer at least a little, she avoided his gaze by averting her own and muttering, "It's not like I was just going to just leave without saying anything..."Chuckling in response to Bulma's words, Vahn discreetly gave Sarina a supportive push by pressing his palm against the small of her back and saying, "I'll teleport over to the kitchen and get started. Sarina will show you around and help you find the dining room..."Without waiting for either girl's response, Vahn promptly disappeared from view. He knew Sarina still wanted to try and smooth things over with Bulma, so, unless she gave up completely, he was going to continue supporting her. As for Bulma, he wanted to make her happy, but, unless she was willing to compromise, there was only so much he could do. He couldn't just ignore everyone and everything else just to pander to her sense of self-worth. A healthy relationship was a compromise between two people held together by mutual love and affection. If she wasn't even going to try to meet him halfway, there was no reason for them to be engaged. After all, there was a pretty drastic difference between two people loving each other and one person expecting the other to give them everything they wanted...What the current Bulma was looking for wasn't a fiance or even a boyfriend. What she really wanted was a handsome manservant who would listen to her orders, give her everything she asked for, and regard her as if she was the only light in their otherwise bleak existence. That was what Bulma really had in mind when she was thinking about wishing for the perfect boyfriend.Though he could, in fact, give Bulma everything she ever wanted, the one thing he couldn't do was treat her as if nothing else mattered. She would never be the most important thing to him, as, even if she did surpass Da Vinci, Vahn had never held his lovers to such standards. It didn't matter to him if they were normal village girls or Goddesses that transcended reason. He was just happy being at their side and supporting them. If any of them were to truly butt heads with one another, it would break his heart, as, without a very good reason, he could never choose between them.........Though it took three days for them to recover from their food poisoning, Goku and Krillin were well on their way to adapting to Master Roshi's strange yet effective training.Starting long before the dawn, specifically at 4:30 AM, Goku and Krillin would wake up and warm up by jogging to a nearby milk depository. There, they would be given trays of cold and fresh milk that would need to be delivered all across the large yet sparsely populated island before breakfast. This was normally accomplished with a helicopter, but, as it wouldn't make much sense for them to train martial arts by flying around, Goku and Krillin were required to run and navigate various obstacles before wrapping things up by ascending thousands of stairs to the top of a mountain temple.Once they were finished with this 'warm up', Goku and Krillin would move to the next phase of their training: plowing several acres of land using nothing but their bare hands.As could be imagined, tilling even fertile soil using your bare hands was a nightmare. Not only did it take several hours, but, unless you paid close attention, there was a high probability of cutting open your hand on a stray rock. Even then, Goku and Krillin were forced to endure countless blisters until their hands had developed smooth yet remarkably durable calluses thanks to a mysterious healing ointment provided by Master Roshi.Once they finished plowing the land, Goku and Krillin would be allowed to eat a hearty breakfast while attending lessons provided by Master Roshi. He had actually received a teaching license more than a hundred years prior, so, while his knowledge was a bit outdated, he was familiar with a wide range of topics suitable for complete beginners and even advanced, college-level students.Though Goku struggled immensely during the lessons, he did his best so that he would have plenty of time to nap before lunch. The afternoon training was even harder than the morning training, so, while he was actually having a lot of fun, he prioritized resting whenever possible. One of the core teachings of Turtle Hermit Style Martial Arts was balancing hard work with plenty of rest, so, while Krillin and Master Roshi would lounge about in hammocks, he would hurry back to Kame House in order to take a nap with Launch.Ever since he had taken care of her during her food poisoning, both versions of Launch had been a lot nicer to Goku than either Master Roshi or Krillin. She had even forced him to share the same bed as her during the evenings. When Goku asked why, Launch informed him that he was her safeguard against the two perverts that ogled her body like a pair of hungry wolves that had just stumbled upon a piece of choice meat. This didn't really make a lot of sense to Goku, but, understanding that Launch was basically asking him to protect her, he didn't mind. She was soft, smelled nice, and, prior to his death, Grandpa Gohan had stressed, numerous times, that Goku should always protect females.Goku hadn't really understood what his Grandpa meant when he tried explaining the differences between men and women, but, after meeting girls like Sarina, Bulma, and Launch, Goku felt like he was starting to understand. Girls were surprisingly scary, but, at the same time, they were soft and comfortable to be around. When Launch hugged him, Goku felt even more at peace than when his Uncle Vahn pat his head. He sometimes felt an indescribable feeling of sadness whenever she ran her fingers through his hair, but, after a while, even this had become something that Goku enjoyed more than he could ever put into words.........(A/N: Alternate Titles: 'I kind of feel bad for Dr. Brief...','Could Bulma be the first girl Vahn actually breaks up with!? I would imagine it depends on whether or not they sleep together xD...','Goku is learning many things during his training with Roshi (O v O)...')

Chapter 35: Girl Talk