Gohan and Videl waded through the seemingly endless crowd of spectators until they found their friends, the Z fighters, anxiously waiting for Goten and Trunks to appear on stage. Krillin, standing next to his wife, sighed with a hand resting on his chin, bored of waiting for the only match worth watching. Still, his tiny eyes lit up upon seeing Gohan and Videl approach, hand in hand, and a sly smirk materialized on his face.
"Well, well, well..." Krillen teased, raising his brows as he looked at the two teens' interlocked hands. "So, she IS your girlfriend. Makes me wonder what made you too love birds late."
As if Gohan's hand had mastered the technique of instant transmission, his hand detached from Videl's faster than the speed of light. "Ah! I just wanted to make sure she wasn't lost in the crowd, you know!" Gohan stumbled through a sentence, laughed, and rubbed the back of his spikey head.
It was then that the competitors of the junior division were called onto the stage; it was the perfect chance to change the subject. "Check it out! There's Goten and Trunks!" Gohan said, pointing to the two boys on stage. Trunk's expression conveyed unbearable boredom; whereas Goten's face gleamed in excitement with subtle hints of stage fright.
However, the boys and the Z-Fighters would have to wait a while longer as Trunks and Goten's matches would have to wait. Gohan and friends watched as inexperienced children ran about the stage, crying and throwing untrained punches until an accidental winner was crowned. It was quite unbearable for the city-busting, some planet-busting, fighters to watch, but it was all worth it when Trunks was finally called onto the stage.
"Alright, everyone!" said the announcer. "Our next bout will be between Trunks and seven years old and the fifteen-year-old Idasa!"
Trunks wandered on stage; alongside him was the fifteen-year-old hillbilly bully who was still trash-talking the Saiyan, even as they walked.
"Stop talking," Trunks said, but this only added fuel to the boy's overconfident flames.
"Awe, gonna cry? Are you gonna beg?" Idasa mocked, cracking his knuckles and slamming his fist into his palms as if to intimidate Trunks.
"Are you gonna live?" Trunks mumbled; however, this threat was empty. He wouldn't kill the child… probably.
From the crowd, Trunks could hear his mother cheering him on. Trunk sighed, 'Mom… that's embarrassing…'
It wasn't long before Idasa and Trunks were face to face at center stage. The announcer, who was certain Trunks would be obliterated, counted down from three before finally shouting, "Start!"
The fifteen-year-old stepped toward Trunks, cocky as can be with his hands balled in tight fists. Trunks stood with his hands in his pockets, not a care in the world. "C'mon shortstack, show me what you got!" said the bully.
Trunks sighed. "I will," he said before moving so fast, an afterimage stood where he once was. Before he knew it, Trunks was low to the ground and swept him off of his feet. Before Idasa could even touch the ground, Trunks booted the boy a couple of dozen feet in the air. The crowd watched with unhinged jaws as the child soared through the sky, only to come crashing down onto the stage.
"Sheesh... way to hold back Trunks..." Gohan mumbled. He glanced over at Videl; her mouth was so wide, it could house an entire Dragon Ball.
"Y- you know that kid?" Videl asked, pointing at the young Saiyan.
"Yeah, he's like a family friend. Sort of like a little cousin to me. He and Goten are super close."
"That was boring," Trunks mumbled, walking off stage with his hands in his pockets. "But at least that shut him up."
Meanwhile, Bulma could be seen taunting the boy's mother, who happened to be sitting just a few seats down from her. Like her son, she too was a shit talker and was receiving her just desserts.
A handful of unremarkable matches between unskilled children came and went, leading to Goten's first match. As fate would have it, he was up against the brother of Trunks's first opponent, Ikose.
Ikose looked exactly like his older brother, except his mullet was dark brown. Of course, he too was a shit talker, making fun of Goten's shy demeanor as they walked toward center stage.
"What's wrong kid, gonna cry? You look like you're gonna throw up your lunch," Ikose mocked; though, Goten ignored him. What the child was worried about was finding his mother in the crowd and this didn't take long as Chi-Chi was found screaming his name among the crowd. Goten waved to his mother, she waved back, and Ikose's mother scoffed.
"Your boy doesn't stand a chance against my Ikose," she told her.
Chi-Chi's forehead nearly popped a vein; the only thing standing between her fist and the woman's face was Bulma, who wouldn't let the woman's slimy tongue go unchecked. "My son beat your other precious son in just one kick, remember? I'd shut my mouth if I were you!"
"He just got lucky! Lightning doesn't strike the same place twice, dear!" said the mother, further infuriating both Bulman and Chi-Chi. Still, the ladies knew that Goten would win in just a few seconds and stayed their tongues.
Goten found himself face-to-face with his opponent at center stage, glaring down at him with a cocky smirk. The announcer commenced the match and Ikose immediately threw a punch at Goten, only for the boy to block it with his finger.
"What the!?" Ikose mumbled, throwing another fist at the child. This too was stopped by a measly finger.
"Oh... you're not all that strong," Goten said plainly. Ikose was visibly shaken, literally trembling in anger and embarrassment. However, his body would turn cold as stone once Goten's fist lightly tapped his jaw, knocking the boy out, his body hitting the stage like a sack of potatoes.
"Like I said," Bulma mocked, a grin adorning her face. "Some people should just shut their mouths."
Ikose and Idasa's mother lept out of her seat, lunging at Bulma. "You should take your own advice lady!" But before she could lay a finger on her, Chi-Chi's fist clocked the chubby woman, sending her consciousness to the same place as her son's.
"Who do you think taught my son how to fight, lady?" Chi-Chi quipped, brushing her hands together.
From the top of the bleachers, Gohan watched with a smile and Videl watched with a gaping mouth. "That… Your brother just knocked that kid out in a single punch!"
Gohan laughed it off. "I guess my Mom's a pretty good teacher, huh?"
For the next agonizing hour, the Z-Fighters watched as Goten and Trunks flew through the bracket until the moment they'd all been waiting for had finally arrived. Erupting shouts resounded as Trunks and Goten took center stage; sharing friendly glares and grins before they entered their fighting stances. They could both hear their mothers screaming through the sea of voices, though the moment the two boys' smiles faded, the voices washed away. Focused solely on their opponent, Trunks and Goten stared each other down before flashing forward like two bolts of lightning, clashing at center stage.
The entire arena trembled; those who stood were nearly toppled to the ground, holding on to the guard rails for dear life. Despite Trunks being one year older than Goten, their strength was practically equal, their arms at a stalemate. Still, the training partners smiled, their bodies trembling with excitement and adrenaline.
As if they shared the same consciousness, punches and kicks faster than the speed of sound were exchanged, each whiffing their mark as the boys bobbed and weaved. As they exchanged blows, the crowd was so silent, that you could hear them adjusting in their seats, leaning forward to get a better look at the action.
It wasn't until Trunks's fist connected with Goten's cheek that the onslaught ended and the two did backward somersaults to opposing ends of the stage. Trunks had a cocky smirk drawn across his face, matching the look his father had watching the bout. Meanwhile, Goten had a determined look, wiping the mark on his face.
Exchanging no words, Goten lunged at his best friend, his fist clenched tightly beside his head as he let out a monstrous roar, as monstrous as a seven-year-old could conjure. Trunks did the same, throwing himself at Goten with a tight, balled-up fist.
It sounded like an immovable object and an unstoppable force connected and the stage trembled as their fists connected with each other's faces. Despite the powerful blows being exchanged, neither of the two moved from where they stood, glaring at each other as their necks struggled to straighten out.
Once more, the spectators erupted, cheering on the two boys as they performed yet another test of strength, proving themselves to be perfectly equal! Again, they threw a barrage of unseeable kicks and punches, only Gohan and the others could comprehend what was happening, for the uninitiated, the two children were nothing but tiny blurs dancing across the stage.
Trunks vanished for a split second; Goten, despite his training, lost all sight of him in that instant. Before Goten could even react, he found himself in a stranglehold, his arms being pinned upward by Trunks from behind.
"H-hey! How did you-" Goten mumbled, though his mumbles turned to screams the second Trunks began to tighten his grip on the boy.
Gohan, watching from the stands, leaned forward. "C'mon, Goten! Don't let him grab you!"
Videl, still in disbelief at the speed and power of these two children, glanced at Gohan for a second before her eyes were pulled back into the action.
Goten, struggling to break free, instinctively began powering up, such that his hair began to stand up. Trunks, seeing Goten's rising hair, raised a single brow. "What the…"
Goten's body flashed, his hair turned golden, and the energy from his transformation alone broke him free from Trunk's hold. Goten's feet landed on the stage and he immediately powered down, his serious gaze staring down his best friend as his hair returned to its natural state, reminding those watching of his late father.
"Hey!" Trunks yelled. "We said no turning into a Super Saiyans!"
"Oh…" Goten laughed, rubbing the back of his head. "I forgot!"
"Well... if that's the case..." Trunks began creating a ball of Ki between his hands, a smile adorning his tiny face. "Then I guess energy blasts are on the table!"
Goten's eyes lit up, watching a golden aura shroud Trunk's trembling, outstretched hands. "Final..." he mumbled, saying half the name of his father's signature move. Before Trunks would fire away, Goten placed one foot in front of the other, shoulder length apart, and hovered one hand over the other.
"I have an energy blast too!" Goten said as a blue ball was conjured between both palms.
"Kame-" he muttered, the blue ball growing to the size of a baseball.
"Hame-" again, as the child muttered, the ball of energy grew in size, this time becoming as large as the child's head. As his tiny fingers struggled to contain such incredible energy, the child showed a toothy grin. Once his energy reached its peak, Goten's smile faded, his brows lowered, and he clenched his teeth.
"Ha!" Goten bellowed as the ball turned into a high-velocity beam of light.
"Flash!" Trunks screamed, he too releasing an incredible beam of energy toward center stage. Their blasts cut through the air until they collided, sounding as if an atomic bomb was let off inside the arena. Yet, It wasn't long until Goten's Kamehameha blast began to engulf Trunk's energy, such that Trunks almost instantly admitted defeat and stepped to the side, narrowly avoiding Goten's devastating attack.
"Uh oh!" Trunks muttered, realizing that dodging the attack inadvertently put spectators in danger. Trunks reared his neck, watching as the beam drilled through the bottom of the stands, just a few feet away from where people were sitting.
From where Goten stood, he could see through the hole his blast created, and almost instantly, a look of guilt was etched onto his face. "Oops..." he said; an awkward laugh accompanying his words.
"You idiot!" Trunks lectured. "You almost killed someone!"
"You're the one who said we can use energy blasts!" Goten shouted.
"Well, I didn't mean THAT energy blast! That one's way too strong! You didn't see me doing it, did you!?"
"You said you can't do it!" Goten said.
"That's not the point!"
As the two of them argued, the crowd was speechless. These two children, barely old enough to attend school, were powerful enough to cut through concrete and steel. Yet, like juveniles, they were bickering childishly at one another.
"Alright, Goten. No more energy blasts. Got it?" Trunks lectured, arms crossed.
"Fiiine," Goten groaned, getting back into his fighting stance, daring Trunks to continue the fight. Trunks accepted his challenge, lunging toward the boy with a flying kick. Goten stepped to his left, and before his feet would touch the ground, he threw a punch at Trunks. However, the purple-haired Saiyan would deflect the attack with his forearm.
Goten's pressure wouldn't end there; instead of going on the defensive, he unleashed a barrage of punches and kicks, such that Trunks could barely keep up. 'Is he getting faster?' Trunks thought. 'Then I just have to get faster too!'
Goten's pressure seemed as if it was letting up, but in reality, Trunks was steadily improving alongside him. Just like during their training sessions, the two boys were growing stronger with each passing second; still, Trunks knew that fighting like this could go on forever. He needed to make a move.
'I know I said I wouldn't, but it's a tournament. You can't always trust your opponent. Sorry Goten, this tournament is mine!' a slimy grin stretched across Trunk's face as he instantly turned into a Super Saiyan and teleported behind Goten.
"What!?" Goten exclaimed, his eyes following Trunks's energy behind him. However, Goku's son wouldn't react fast enough as his back was hit with one of Trunk's energy blasts, sending him flying toward the stands.
Goten yelled as he attempted to slow down his momentum; his entire body was clenched as he did so. Seeing the child flying at them like a speeding bullet, the crowd in the stands dispersed, giving Goten a landing zone that he didn't plan on using.
Like a bird, he began flapping his arms like wings, hoping this gesture would somehow counteract his velocity; however, to his dismay, Goten's body wouldn't stop. Though it was a close call, his foot narrowly grazed the bleachers, and he was officially out of bounds.
"Noooo!" he pouted, looking at his toe touch metal.
The announcer couldn't see from where he stood, but based on Goten's reaction, he figured that his foot must have been out of bounds. Still, he hid behind the stage to stay safe before announcing the winner.
"It looks like the winner is Trunks!" said the announcer, immediately compelling Trunks to jump in joy, pumping his fists as he was crowned the victor of the Junior Division championship!