Dragon Ball/Z/GT Fan Fiction ❯ Off to a Rough Start ❯ Encounter ( Chapter 1 )

~Chapter 1~ Encounter

Author's Note: Here the story begins! Not too much action yet, just a little fight scene as Piccolo is training. This basically introduces the characters and their traits. So so soooooo sorry, but I know Piccolo is a little out of character. *Sniffles* please don't hate me… If he's too horribly OOC then pllllleeeaaasssseeeee tell me how in a review or e-mail me. Anyhow, on wit da show! ~_^

Disclaimer: <insert various disclaimer blah which we all have memorized, here>

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Piccolo breathed slowly as he slept. He was leaning crookedly against an oak with crossed arms and a content look on his face. The sun was just beginning to show it's face over the horizon and the dew was collecting on the grass and trees. Piccolo woke when a droplet of water fell from a leaf above him onto his check. He was startled at fist and sprang up into fighting position. As he did this, he accidentally shook the tree and a barrage of water fell upon him as if it were raining. After the downpour was over, he looked up and chuckled to himself before walking off into the field to let the sun's rays dry him off. He lay down on a hilltop and sighed as the bright star warmed and lulled him into a brief slumber. The Namek awoke about half an hour later and rose to his feet feeling refreshed. The sun was a good deal over the horizon now and the sky was a bright orange-yellow with pink highlights on the feathery clouds. After Piccolo shook himself off, he found a dry spot on the ground and began to do some warm up stretches. He decided he would battle with himself at five-hour intervals and 30 minute breaks in between until dusk.

Piccolo got up off the ground and began to separate 3 of him self from his body.

"We battle for five hours, then take a thirty minute break," He stated. The other three nodded in unison. Then they all zoomed to the sky and began to fight the original. Piccolo punched and kicked with mind-boggling speed, sending two to the ground. He sent a Masinko blast at the third just as the other two came back up, and then they were all four at it again.

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By the time the first five hours was up, Piccolo was battered and had a few broken bones, his shirt was gone and his shoes and pants legs were torn.

"Maybe I went…*wince*…a little far for the first…day." He muttered silently with a heavy pant to conceal the pain as he dragged himself over towards the base of a cliff. There was a small brown pouch sitting there tied with a piece of rope, a gift from Korin. Piccolo fumbled with the rope knot then reached into the pouch and pulled out a senzu bean. He broke it in half and ate one of the portions, dropping the other back into the bag. The bean worked instantly and Piccolo felt the energy from the bean coarse through him like a tidal wave of life, setting his broken body back into place with near painless creaks and pops that he could feel within himself. Although his skin was still in bad shape, and he still had a headache, it was to be expected since he had only eaten half the bean.

Piccolo turned and sat down, his back to the cliff. As he sat, he put into play a few healing tricks he had picked up from Neil while he was on Namek. Soon enough he was back to almost perfect condition. The few injuries he had left were minor bruises, cuts and scratches, but he knew he could heal those with time, and they weren't worth wasting his energy on. He had to do something about his burns though, so he flew over to a lake and sank into it. The cold water was refreshing to him and he sat down and he sighed a little as the cool liquid ran all over him up to his bare chest and soothed his stinging skin. The water was ice cold but it felt so good that he just sat there and meditated while his burns were cleansed.

After about thirty minutes, Piccolo decided he wasn't going to train any more until later that night. He needed to spend some time meditating and gathering his energy for whatever the next day might bring. What had before been a constant stinging reminder of why he was sitting there in the first place, was now very numb and he could no longer feel anything. Piccolo opened his eyes and started to get out of the river. As he happened to glance up stream, he was slightly startled when he sighted a girl of about fifteen carrying a bucket up to the lake. She was very mildly tan and from what he could see, had dark, wavy, shoulder-length brown hair, and was of about medium height. `I didn't know any one lived around here.' He thought as he watched the girl plunge the large bucket into the lake and waiting a moment before bringing it out brim full of water. Piccolo suddenly realized he was sitting in her drinking water, and leapt out backwards. This movement was so sudden and unprecedented that it startled the girl as she was bringing the bucket of water up to land. She looked up so quickly for the cause of the sudden motion that she lost her footing and tumbled down the bank with a cry into the swift moving current of the main water, leaving the huge bucket back on the bank. At first Piccolo thought she was going to need some help getting out as he watched her disappear under the rapid current. Then a hand shot up out of the water, and grasping onto the exposed root of an old maple tree, she pulled herself onto the bank. The girl rolled onto land, coughing a bit, but other wise all right.

Piccolo did and said nothing to her, only stared trying to figure out who she was and why he had never noticed her before. The girl gained her footing after a moment and turned around to gaze in curiosity and even slight fear at him wondering who he was. Holding his stare only a moment longer, she broke away and staggering bewilderedly and dripping back to her cargo left overturned on the riverside. Piccolo watched her from the far side of the bank slowly with his inquisitive liquid black eyes before he swiftly flew over the water and landed loudly behind her. She jumped a little with a small gasp upon hearing the thump of feet behind her and whirled around to look at him.

"How did you do that?" She asked quietly in a labored whisper with a frightened look on her face. She quickly glanced over the person standing in front of her. He was extremely tall, about seven foot was her estimate. He was bare at the chest and very well muscled. His clothes looked very tattered, and he appeared to be very scratched up and burned. `…Wonder what he's been up to…' She thought as she looked at his face. Except for the odd protrusions from his forehead and abnormally large, pointed ears, he wasn't at all that bad a looker. Even the ears seemed to frame his face in an appealing sense. Aside from all that, the thing she was really stuck on was the fact that he appeared to be a thick and unwavering shade of green. It wasn't an unpleasant color, just odd-looking to one so used to shades of peach. The young girl whimpered a little as her gaze fell back to his muscular forearms and she wondered what he was going to do with her.

"Who are you?" Piccolo demanded gruffly wanting to get straight to the point so he could get his answers and leave. She got a confused look on her face and cautiously asked,

"W-what?"

"Don't play stupid." Piccolo growled turning to the side wondering why she sparked his curiosity so much. The girl was obviously at a loss of what to do in this position. She didn't know who this obviously powerful man was, or more importantly, what he was. The fact that he was directly questioning her in that dangerous sounding voice of his wasn't exactly helping either. She tried to respond, but it came out in a high-pitched squeak, so she embarrassedly cleared her throat and tried again.

" M-my name is Kasei." She stammered wide-eyed. With a slight finishing nod to end the conversation as soon as possible, she skirted around behind him and walked shakily to her bucket, glancing back at him warily. Piccolo looked directly at her.

"…How long have you lived?" He questioned, annoyed at being walked away from and yet angry at himself for not noticing human presence till now. It wasn't that he cared about this girl, he only wondered why he hadn't seen anyone around before, and made a mental note to leave the area if any more humans showed up. The girl seemed to wince as she stopped and turned around once again.

"W-why do you insist on knowing so much about me?" She asked bravely, gathering the bucket in her arms. Regaining his thoughts and wondering the same thing himself, Piccolo grunted and decided this was fruitless and, not knowing why he had bothered in the first place. He then sped off too fast for her eyes to follow, so he seemed to have disappeared. She let out a small gasp and almost dropped her load again and quickly scrambled to regain her hold. `I wonder who that was?' She thought in amazement and definite fear as she adjusted her grip on the large bucket. After filling up the large container once more, the girl scanned the area once more, and quickly strode off into the woods.

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Piccolo sat perched on a tree limb and watched the girl go about her business. `Why are there humans out here?' He wondered as he watched the girl dip the bucket into the water again and look about warily for danger `Like she could do anything about it anyway. Humph…such pathetic creatures…' Slowly, the girl turned with her cargo and trotted off into the woods, trying not to spill anything but having a hard time at the quickened pace she was moving. Piccolo stood up on the tree branch as it swayed gently under the movement and he stayed there for a moment watching the girl leave. `If I want answers, I suppose I'll have to investigate…' He thought grumpily as he leapt from the limb and casually flew after the girl, following her using his acute sense of hearing to track the sound of her footsteps. As he followed silently through the trees, he wondered what would happen if he read her mind, perhaps that would provide answers. `No.' He thought, `that could prove both futile and frightening. I don't believe I really want to know her thoughts anyway…I'll make do easily without.' After a pause, he began to wonder why this girl bothered him so much in the first place. `…Guess I'll have to wait and find out…' He followed her through the forest for about ten more minutes before he caught sight of a clearing up ahead. Piccolo drooped quickly yet silently to the ground upon sighting, still wondering why he was doing this but casually blamed it on wanting to stay away from any possible disturbances though his mind troubled him. Spotting the girl who was still treading through the forest, he quietly crept after her. Not long after, a house came into view. It was a light blue wooden structure with white fringes and a large white veranda that wrapped itself around the front side of the house. He watched as the girl hurriedly entered he home and winced as the door slammed shut, for he had been listening hard to every move she'd been making. Crouching and keeping low profile, he carefully made his way closer to the girl's home. In a matter of minutes Piccolo had gotten close enough that he could hear every word spoken in the entire house with ease as to figure out the home's occupants. `This is so juvenile…' He thought now becoming annoyed with himself as he leaned back against a tree to listen for any information on these new comers. He heard the voice of an older woman call out:

"Kasei! Did you remember to get the fresh water?''

"Yeah mom, it's right here.''

: Shuffling of feet across wooden floor. Hears bucket being lifted:

"Alright Kasei, you're free to go do as you please now.''

"Okay.''

: Hears feet begin to run up a flight of stairs, but then they stop:

"Hey mom. Does anyone else live around here?''

: Sounds as if from a different room. Piccolo assumes the kitchen:

"No. Not that I know of. Ask your dad when he comes home.''

: Footsteps resume going swiftly upstairs. Older woman's voice:

"Why?"

:steps stop:

"Oh, no reason. I'll be in my room."

:Footsteps reach the top of the stairs. Woman replies.:

"Alright."

:Door opens and shuts. Piccolo waits, hears nothing but soft music coming from the second floor and humming coming from the kitchen:

Piccolo frowned and let out a small sigh as he stood. "Well, that didn't help much." He sighed again, and crouching slightly, snuck away at a silent run. After about ten seconds, he was deep enough into the forest to fly off without being seen. `…pointless…' He thought, disgusted in the waste of time. `…utterly pointless…'

After he returned to the waterside, Piccolo settled down cross-legged beneath the shade of a tree, dipping in and out of his meditation. After a few more attempts to maintain concentration, he released a frustrated breath and leaned back heavily against the tree he was sitting under, his expression plastered in an aggravated frown.

`There's something about that girl…' He thought, `something…' Piccolo mumbled a curse to himself in frustration at his inability to concentrate, and then climbed to his feet after an unsteady pause to resume training.

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Okay, okay. So it probably wasn't the most interesting thing you've ever read. But at least tell me if I did all right! A review would be nice. And again, I know Piccolo was way OOC, but I had to get this thing started somehow, right? Not too many flames please. Just tell me what you think of my style or something since I know this chapter doesn't give you much to go on ^^. The next chapter is almost complete, and I'll post it up soon. Till then, I'm going to remind you that reviews keep me going!! ~_^6