A Light in the Darkness - Part 76: Rampaging Ryouga
by Mia Skywalker & Wataruo

PAIRING: None
RATING: PG
WARNINGS: A bit of violence, but not too graphic
C&C: Please! ^_^
DISCLAIMER: Neither of us owns any of the DBZ characters or anything about DBZ, but we both wish we owned the Saiyans. All of them. At least all of the ones with hair. And yes, we're including Yamcha and Ryouga in that, now you know. Dragonball Z and the associated characters are owned by Toei, Viz, Akira Toriyama, and FUNimation, even though the last one is a crying shame. Ranma 1/2 and the character of Ryouga Hibiki are owned by Viz, Rumiko Takahashi, and some Japanese studio I don't know the name of. We do own what we've written here, and our specific storyline, just not Dragonball or Ranma 1/2 themselves. We make no money off of any of these guys, nor off this fic. We just have fun writing it. Oh, I guess we do own Hakusai and Serori. But I doubt anyone cares. ^_~
SUMMARY: Ryouga rampages out of control, and Gohan is injured.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENT: Thank you to Lady Lark and Selenity Jade for beta-ing this. 

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Last time on Dragonball Z: A Light in the Darkness....

Vegeta raised his foot, prepared to squash the Namek flat, but Goku's voice in his mind would not leave him alone. ::What about him?:: he asked knowing that Goku was on his way, even as they spoke.

::He doesn't know how to control it. Hakusai can control that form but Yamcha can't. Neither can his half-brother!::

As if on cue, a loud feral roar interrupted Vegeta's motion, and he stared in disbelief. 

::Kuso!:: Vegeta thought as he looked over to where Ryouga had once stood. It hadn't occurred to the Saiyan Prince that Ryouga would also be tempted to look up into the sphere and become Oozaru. From the way the were-ape was acting, Vegeta knew he had no control whatsoever. 

::Kuso!:: he thought again, eyeing narrowing as Ryouga spotted him and trampled trees and hills as he approached. ::Well I guess I have to take care of you first,:: he decided, facing the other were-ape as it came thundering toward him.

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Piccolo's eyes widened in surprise when he saw the second Oozaru. He had been surprised enough when he had seen Vegeta begin to change. ::Kuso! When did he grow his tail back?:: But he had scarcely noticed the boy standing on the ground near where Gohan had been hit. He hadn't known if the boy was with Vegeta or with Gohan, but as he hadn't moved to interfere between himself and Vegeta, he had dismissed him. His ki certainly wasn't at Vegeta's level, so Piccolo had assumed he was no threat. He hadn't realized the boy was a Saiyan, or he wouldn't have ignored him like that.

He moved back, alarmed at the idea of being attacked by two Oozaru, but then after several seconds realized that he hadn't needed to worry. The second Oozaru had no intention of attacking him; he had turned and looked straight at Vegeta, and then sent out a roar of absolute fury and challenge as he charged the other. To Piccolo's surprise, the second Oozaru was even larger than Vegeta. He wondered where the other Saiyan came from, but then was too concerned with dodging flying debris to be able to think about that more.

Goku's jaw dropped in shock as he arrived to see the two apes wresting around the countryside, demolishing anything that had the misfortune to be in the way.

"Kami!" he breathed as he looked down on the two Saiyans that seemed intent on destroying one another. The giant were-apes were paying no heed to the damage they were wreaking on the environment, which worried him considerably. It was when he had to dodge a large piece of debris that his eyes settled on Ryouga's backside. "His tail! That's it!"

Goku gathered in his power, focusing his ki as he pulled back his cupped hands to his side.

"KAME...."

His voice was rough with concentration as he moved his arms back out in front of him.

"HAME...."

When Goku was satisfied with the amount of energy he had gathered, he released the blast towards Ryouga's tail.

"HAAA!"

The blast struck, severing Ryouga's tail from his body. Taken by surprise, Ryouga roared in agony as he shrunk back down to his normal size. The teenager collapsed to the ground, unconscious but otherwise unharmed from Goku's ki blast.

Vegeta looked down when Goku landed lightly next to Ryouga. Goku gave Piccolo an odd look and headed over to where Gohan was. He knelt next to the boy, brushed his bags out of his eyes and spoke to him softly, trying to revive him.

"Feh." Vegeta grumbled, annoyed that the most fun he had in weeks had been ruined by Kakarotto. The Saiyan Prince looked up towards the ki ball, opened his muzzle and shot a blast from his mouth, destroying it completely. As the light from the sphere faded, Vegeta shrank back to his normal size. He stalked over to where the others were, spared a glance at the fallen Ryouga, and glared at Goku who had picked his son up in his arms.

"What happened?" Goku asked Vegeta as the older man approached.

"He tried to kill Gohan," Piccolo said as he inclined his turbaned head towards Vegeta. Vegeta simply glared at him, almost as if he were silently challenging the other warrior. "He was probably waiting for the right moment. Gaining the boy's trust and using it against him." Piccolo folded his arms across his chest, hoping that Vegeta would give him another excuse to attack.

"Iie." Goku shook his head. "I don't think....." For some reason Goku wasn't inclined to believe that Vegeta would hurt Gohan. He couldn't put his finger on what made him think it. But Goku knew that if Vegeta had wanted Gohan dead, he just would have done it instead of waiting for the right moment.

"That's your problem, Goku. You aren't thinking. You know what kind of person he is," Piccolo muttered under his breath, momentarily forgetting about Saiyan hearing.

Goku looked up from his son, giving his son's mentor a half smile. "I was thinking," Goku said quietly, his gaze drifting over to Vegeta. "I don't think he wants Gohan dead." He watched the surprised widening of Vegeta's eyes as Goku defended him, and smiled lopsidedly at the other Saiyan.

::Sentimental moron,:: Vegeta thought to himself with a scowl. As he met Goku's eyes, he admitted to himself that even though Goku lacked his intelligence, the younger man seemed to know things about people. It unnerved Vegeta that Goku knew him so well. And to an extent, it annoyed him that he was getting so soft that an idiot like Goku could see the change.

Gohan's eyes slowly fluttered open. "Daddy?" he said softly, seeing his father's face above him. He smiled weakly at Goku, who smiled back at him fondly.

Ryouga stirred and stood up groggily, shaking the dust from his head. He was a little nervous about making his presence known again, especially after he saw the way the green-skinned man seemed to be protective of Gohan. But Gohan's whisper brought back his concern for his young friend. "Gohan? Are you all right?" he asked softly, walking towards Goku. He winced as a sharp pain shot through his leg at each step, but he ignored it.

Gohan tried to laugh, and coughed instead. "Yeah, I'm all right."

Ryouga looked down in embarrassment. "I'm sorry, Gohan. I got out of control. Vegeta startled me, and I let loose the ki blast when I wasn't expecting to. I wasn't aiming it, and I hit you instead of one of the mountains." The blush on his cheeks attested to his feelings of shame at hurting his friend. "I'm really sorry, Gohan. I didn't mean to hurt you!"

Gohan coughed again. "That's all right, Ryouga. It wasn't your fault. I should have had my ki shields up and I didn't. Then it wouldn't have hurt me." It was then that he sensed his other mentor's presence. He smiled at him, then noticed that most of Piccolo's clothes were torn and smoking. "Piccolo-sensei? What...?"

"Gohan," Piccolo said gruffly. The exchange between the strange young man and his young friend had surprised him, but he didn't let that show. "Next time you want to get yourself hurt like that, warn me so I won't get worried."

Gohan managed a weak laugh. "You were worried, Piccolo-sensei? I knew you really cared!"

Ryouga's brow furrowed as he looked at the Namek. He didn't have any idea what sort of being Piccolo was, but he could sense his power. He had no idea why Piccolo was so concerned about Gohan, but obviously the two were good friends. Without thinking, he blurted out, "What are you?"

Piccolo simply growled, but Goku smiled at the bandana-clad young man. "He's a Namek. He's from the planet Namek, which is very far away. It blew up about a year ago."

Piccolo growled again. "Yeah, after you fought Frieza on it and made it explode!" His words sounded like he was blaming Goku for that, but Goku knew better.

"Good thing, too. Nameks aren't good for anything, really. Except maybe target practice." Vegeta smirked at Piccolo. "At least Frieza did something right."

Piccolo growled at Vegeta, his eyes beginning to glow red again. Goku immediately intervened, sounding very much like a mediator in a fight. "Hey, now, Vegeta. That's not true. If it wasn't for them, there wouldn't be the dragonballs, would there?"

"So there are two things that they are good for." Vegeta grinned at Piccolo's apparent anger. "Target practice and dragonballs."

Gohan laughed weakly from his position in his father's arms. "You don't really mean that, Vegeta-sensei," he contradicted the other man. "Piccolo trained me and you're training me now. You wouldn't be able to spar with me if he hadn't."

Piccolo's eyes narrowed as he took in Gohan's broken form. Vegeta was training the boy? He had sensed them out there alone a few times, and it had looked like Vegeta had been training Gohan. He had watched them from a distance, disguising his ki, but he hadn't interfered because he had wanted to know what the Saiyan was up to. He wondered if it was a ruse, if Vegeta had another agenda. But he decided he could find out later.

"Yeah, kid. That's right. If it weren't for you beating Vegeta, we'd all be dead now. So it's a good thing I trained you, isn't it?" He smirked defiantly at Vegeta, once again reminding the older man that it had been a child who had defeated him when he had first arrived on Chikyuu.

Vegeta's fists clenching were the only outward sign that his remark had stung. "I don't know. He has all of your weak points, green man," Vegeta drawled, feigning unconcern. It was when he glanced over at Ryouga that he noticed for the first time that the boy was completely nude. "Maybe we should head back to get him some clothing."

Ryouga blushed in embarrassment. He was used to occasionally being nude like this; having his particular curse meant it happened more frequently than he liked. Often enough he would find his clothing nearby, but this time his clothing had been torn to shreds. He wasn't entirely sure why his clothes were in tatters on his body that way. Maybe he had been hit and didn't remember it because it had been too powerful? With the power that these people exerted on a regular basis, it didn't really surprise him. He was a bit in awe of the sheer power they exuded.

Gohan coughed in agreement, and Goku smiled down at him. "And I think we need to get Gohan to Bulma's isolation chamber. I don't have any senzu beans right now." He sensed that Vegeta was hurt as well, but suspected that Gohan might be in slightly more danger at the moment. "Vegeta, you can use the tank after Gohan is done, I think you need it as well."

Piccolo cast a piercing glance at Vegeta. He hadn't noticed the small Saiyan's injuries; Vegeta hid it better than most. It seemed that the Saiyan Prince considered showing any weakness, including acknowledging battle wounds, would be something beneath him. He smirked in satisfaction. ::Well, well. I hurt you more than you'll admit. Maybe some day I'll take you down. If you ever hurt Gohan or even plan to, I will take you down!::

"Well then," Vegeta said taking to the air. "Shall we head back?" He didn't look to see if the others were following him. But something that had happened had triggered something that Bulma had recently said. What if she was right? What if it was the Saiyan tail that prevented them from attaining Super Saiyan level? If that were the case, Vegeta found he wanted his tail removed.

Bulma sensed Vegeta's approach before they had landed in the yard. To her surprise, Piccolo was with them as well. She looked in horror when she saw how badly they all seemed hurt, especially Gohan. She vaguely noticed Ryouga's nudity, but he moved behind Goku swiftly enough to keep his modesty.

"Oh, what happened?" she cried out in alarm.

"Well, Ryouga accidentally hurt Gohan, and then Piccolo joined them and attacked Vegeta," Goku explained. Then his face creased in confusion. "At least, that's what I think happened...."

Vegeta snorted. "You having a thought, Kakarotto? PAH! What a novel idea!"

Piccolo smirked slightly at that comment. Bulma simply glared at Vegeta, then turned back towards Goku. "Is that what happened, Ryouga?"

The young man remained behind Goku, trying to hide his nudity. "Yeah... I think so. Pretty much. It was an accident, but the green man - Piccolo - blamed Vegeta for some reason. Said he didn't trust him...."

"I don't," Piccolo interrupted with a growl. "And neither should any of you."

Bulma shrugged, apparently dismissing the Namek's comments out of hand. "It doesn't matter. Let's get Gohan into the lab. A few hours in the tank, and he should be as good as new." She looked over at Vegeta and Ryouga. "And I think that both of you should get in there as well. The Budokai is tomorrow, and you need to be in shape!" She tossed the boy a pair of pants, which he hastily donned.

"The Budokai?" Piccolo's brows knotted together in a scowl. "You're going to be fighting in it?"

"You need to ask?" Vegeta quipped, folding his arms across his chest.

Goku smiled. "We are all going tomorrow, Piccolo. I just assumed you were going to be there. We are going to be looking for Yamcha's other brother."

"Other brother?" Piccolo's scowl deepened. "Yamcha doesn't have a brother!" Piccolo didn't actually know whether or not Yamcha had a brother, but he had never seen the human male with any family, nor had he ever heard of anything like that. Yamcha had always been either with Pu'ar or Bulma - or training at Roshi's - so Piccolo had simply made that assumption. A logical one to make, but he wondered if Yamcha was simply estranged from his family.

Bulma and Goku smiled at the same time, but this time Bulma managed to speak up first. "Yes he does! He didn't know it, since his mother had abandoned him before they were born and then abandoned them, but he has two brothers! Twins!" She pointed to the half-hidden Ryouga. "We've been able to figure out that Ryouga is one of them, and we just need to find the other one. That's why we're going to the Budokai. Since he's a Saiyan, it's almost inevitable that he'll be there, and we should be able to find him by his DNA."

Piccolo stared at her. "You mean that Yamcha's mother married a Saiyan after she abandoned Yamcha?" he asked in disbelief. "I thought the Saiyans had all died out!"

Bulma gave him a secretive smile. "No, Piccolo. Yamcha's mother IS a Saiyan. Yamcha and both of his half-brothers are half-Saiyan. And his mother recorded all three of their DNA patterns in her Saiyan computer memory banks before she left Chikyuu."

Piccolo shook his head. He was convinced; Bulma had finally lost it. Hanging around with Goku and Vegeta, she had finally snapped. "Yamcha isn't a Saiyan, woman!" he growled at her. "He's a human, have you forgotten?"

Bulma's grin widened. "I think maybe we should have Yamcha come out here and you can see for yourself!"

"Did I hear someone say my name?" Yamcha stepped around the corner, his arm possessively around Hakusai. "Hey, Piccolo! What's shaking?"

"Shaking?" The Namek looked at the human warrior in disgust. Then he studied him more carefully. His eyes widened in alarm as he made out the two tails wrapped around both Yamcha's and Hakusai's waists. "Are those real?!?" he snarled at them.

Yamcha blinked, surprised at the hatred in Piccolo's voice. "Are what real?" he asked in confusion.

"Those!" Piccolo demanded, pointing at his waist. "Were you lying to us all this time?" The anger and hatred in his voice were apparent.

Yamcha's gaze followed the direction of Piccolo's finger, and his eyes widened at the sight of his tail. He suddenly remembered that Piccolo didn't know about their discovery, and Piccolo had no more reason to love Saiyans than Yamcha himself had. Less, in fact. Not only had Vegeta killed him and almost killed Gohan when he had first arrived, but it was his arrival that had ultimately led to the destruction of his home planet.

"Hey, I know how this must look," he said nervously. "But it's not what it seems. I didn't know I was a Saiyan any more than Goku did. My mother did something to me before I was born, so my tail never grew at all. And she abandoned me when I was really little. So I never knew I was anything other than human!"

"What about her?!?" Piccolo pointed to Hakusai, disgust dripping from his voice.

"Her? She's...." ::Oh Kami, this isn't going to go over well,:: he realized. He couldn't figure out what to tell Piccolo, so simply decided on the truth. "She's Vegeta's sister, and....."

"WHAT?!?" roared Piccolo, and his eyes burned. They could feel his power increasing as his ki began to build. "Why haven't you killed her?!? She and Vegeta are going to kill you all!"

"No, they're not!" snapped Bulma in disgust. "And we have absolutely no intention to hurt Hakusai!"

Yamcha's face hardened at the idea that someone might threaten his mate. He moved in front of her instinctively, determined to protect her. "No, we aren't," he said softly, his voice sounding more dangerous than Piccolo or Vegeta had ever heard it. "And if you even try it, you're dead."

Vegeta smirked at Piccolo. "I would listen to him, chrome dome. Trying to hurt her will get you killed." Vegeta glanced over to Hakusai, who to his surprise slipped her arm around Yamcha's waist, pressing her head against his back. Vegeta frowned at the action; it seemed completely out of character for her. ::What's wrong with you?:: he wondered to himself. ::No matter, Piccolo will have to get through the both of us in any case.::

"Piccolo-sensei," Gohan whispered weakly from where he lay in his father's arms. "Don't hurt Hakusai. She's my friend, like you are. She would never hurt any of us." His eyes were closed, and Piccolo stared at him in sudden alarm. He could feel the boy's ki weakening....

"Bulma," Goku pleaded, looking down at the boy in his arms. "Gohan is hurt, he needs to be put in the tank." Goku looked up, fixing his worried brown eyes on Bulma's blue ones. "Onegai."

Bulma nodded, her face also showing her anxiety. "Yes. Right now." 

She practically ran towards the lab, and the small infirmary that was partially connected to it. She was punching buttons on the computer as Goku and the others trooped in behind her, and then as Goku stripped off Gohan's clothing, she attached the monitoring devices. "There. Get him in."

They strapped the tiny Saiyan in. The tank wasn't really equipped for someone as small as he was, and Bulma had to rig a few things. She realized she was going to have to make the straps more flexible. Who knew when they might need to put a child in there? Not only was there Serori, but her own unborn child might even need to use it, if he or she got hurt. Bulma's stomach clenched at that thought, but she quickly dismissed it.

They watched the fluid fill the tank, and each of them breathed a sigh of relief. The little demi-Saiyan was important to each of them, all for different reasons. All of them cared about him, even those who refused to admit it.

Bulma realized that they were all staring anxiously at the tank, including Vegeta - even he was worried about the little demi-Saiyan. She hid a smile as she turned around and shooed all of them out of the infirmary. "He's not going to get better any faster, just because we're all staring at him!" she snapped waspishly. "Get out of here and do something productive! My monitors will tell me when he's ready to come out again!"

Goku placed a hand behind his head. "Can I stay here?" he asked plaintively.

"No!" Bulma shook her head emphatically. "I have work I need to get done, and YOU will be in my way!" Her face softened slightly, and she said more gently, "Goku, I'll let you know when he gets out. Actually, he's more likely to let you know himself. You know he'll be all right. He's a Saiyan like you, he'll survive. And my tank has never failed us yet, has it?"

"Well, no, but..." Goku gave Bulma a sheepish smile. "I worry about him."

"Kakarotto, he is a Saiyan. Give the kid some credit." Vegeta snorted. "He will be out in no time."

Hakusai grinned up at Yamcha. "I do believe Vegeta is getting soft in his old age."

"I am not getting soft," Vegeta complained. "Woman, tell them I am NOT getting soft."

Bulma shrugged. "I'll tell them if you like. But they won't believe it, and neither will I." She glared at Goku. "Worry all you want, but worry outside, Goku. And you too, Vegeta. The Budokai is tomorrow, and there are things that I *have* to get done before then. I need you all to leave me in peace, so I can get them done! Please!"

"Demo...." When Goku looked like he was about to argue, Hakusai linked her arm through his. "Come on, Goku. Let's leave Bulma alone. Otherwise she'll sic Vegeta on us."

Goku looked down at her, his concern for his son clearly written in his expression. But he gave in; in Goku's opinion it was nearly impossible to win an argument with a woman. "Okay."

"Don't look so depressed, Goku. Let's go and spar." Hakusai practically dragged Goku along behind her as she headed for the door. "I may even show you a technique or two."

"I thought you didn't feel well earlier?" Goku asked. He had noticed that the Saiyan woman had seemed a little out of sorts when they had first arrived. Now she seemed to be back to normal.

"Oh that?" Hakusai shrugged. "It happens when you are pregnant, Goku. Saiyan women are apt to get mood swings. I feel fine now."

"It happens to human women, too," Bulma commented. "Although it hasn't happened to me." She looked at Vegeta defiantly, daring him to say something.

Hakusai grinned. "Give it time. I imagine it will catch up with you eventually."

Vegeta raised his eyebrows and remained silent. He had seen some moodiness in his mate, but he wasn't going to mention it her. He wasn't about to give her that satisfaction. "What are we waiting for?" he muttered as he headed to the door. "The woman wants to work."

"So let her work." Hakusai looked back over at Yamcha. "Coming?"

Yamcha shrugged and followed them. He was glad that Hakusai wasn't as depressed over seeing his mother as she had been earlier. He knew it had stirred up some painful memories in her, and he wanted to help her let them go. Although he knew she would never forget her first mate, he was hoping that in some measure, maybe she could learn to love him almost as much. 

He flashed Bulma a brief smile as they left, closing the door behind him. He put his arm comradely around his younger brother, then looked over to where Hakusai was holding on to Goku, and Vegeta was standing slightly apart, scowling at all of them indiscriminately. "He'll be all right," he said, trying to reassure himself as much as them. "Bulma will take care of it. She always does. Well, usual place, guys?"

Goku looked back longingly at the closed door of the lab, then nodded in defeat. He knew that his son would be ok, but it didn't keep the Saiyan warrior from worrying. "Why not?"

Hakusai arched a brow, her arm still linked through Goku's. "Usual spot?"

"They don't like to fight near civilization," Vegeta remarked, earning looks from the others. "They pick a nice deserted spot."

"With the amount of damage you and Piccolo did this morning, don't you think that is reasonable?" Goku asked.

"Speaking of which." Vegeta looked around, scowling. "I don't sense him anywhere."

"Oh, I imagine that he will be around somewhere." Goku sounded unconcerned.

"I bet," Vegeta replied.

Yamcha knew that he was, even if they couldn't sense the Namek anywhere. If Gohan was hurt, then Piccolo was there, no question about it. Everyone at Kaioh-sama's had quickly figured out that there was some sort of friendship between the tiny demi-Saiyan and the Namek. It was a strange one, but it was there nonetheless. He was a little worried that Piccolo was now lumping him in with the others. They had been allies before, after all, and had even trained together when they were dead. But they had never really been 'friends', so he guessed that maybe Piccolo had no real reason to trust him.

"He's not going to try to kill me now, is he?" Ryouga looked honestly worried at the idea. "I didn't mean to hurt Gohan!"

Yamcha shook his head. "Don't worry about it. Let's just get back to training." He looked down into his brother's eyes. "You want to find our brother, right?"

Ryouga nodded, and the two of them took off towards their training grounds, expecting the others to follow.

To be continued.....

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And in the next exciting episode of DragonBall Z: A Light in the Darkness... Krillin and Marron enter the scene