Two days after Vegeta and the others arrived at Namek, back on Earth, Korin showed up at Wukong Hospital with good news. He appeared in front if the window with Mr. Popo on his magic carpet, a bag of senzu beans in hand.
ChiChi took the pouch in both of her hands with a forced smile and a nod.
Korin touched her shoulder, whispering, "It'll be okay. I promise." He glanced over at Goku on the hospital bed. "That kid is tough as nails and so is Vegeta."
Less than an hour later, Goku stood at Capsule Corp wearing a new set of orange gi. Before him, the large, round Capsule space waited for him nearby, its pristine white surface glistening in the sunlight.
ChiChi, Raditz, Nappa, Tien, Chiaotzu and Yamcha gathered around him, all wishing him good luck and safety. Dr. Briefs and Panchy did the same. Goku thanked everyone with his usual big smile, one that matched the brightness and intensity of the sun itself. A smile that reassured everyone in attendance that things would be okay.
The only ones that weren't affected by that smile: ChiChi, Raditz and Nappa. They accompanied him to the ship, each individually wishing him goodbye. Nappa pushed a fist to his chest, reciting the Saiyan motto—amandla, imbeko, ikratshi—and Goku responded with the same gesture, fist slamming over his heart.
Raditz offered the same goodbye as Nappa, reciting the same Saiyan motto. But unlike Nappa, he yanked his brother to him, shoving one hand into his hair, the other around his back, his large frame engulfing Goku.
Against the side of his head, Raditz hissed, "You come back with our prince and my nephew. Got it?"
Goku returned the gesture, winding his arms around Raditz's back. With his mouth pressed to Raditz's clothed shoulder, he nodded once, saying, "I'll be there in two weeks. That's how fast we'll come home."
"Good. I'm holding you to it."
As he pulled away, Goku touched the top of Raditz's wrist with his tail—the Saiyan gesture of affection for family members. "Take care of them for me."
Raditz responded the same way, his tail tip flicking against Goku's wrist. "Count on it."
Before boarding the ship, ChiChi kissed him on the lips and hugged him tight, burying her face into the side of his neck. Goku held her tight in his arms, pushing his cheek on top of her head.
Her voice sounded watery and wobbly as she whispered, "Be safe. All of you."
Goku didn't get a chance to respond. ChiChi pulled herself out of his embrace, taking a good step back from him while wiping her eyes with the back of her hand. The moment she lifted her head again, she transformed into the woman he first met all those years ago: a spitfire princess who took no shit and got what she wanted, no matter what.
He gasped at ChiChi's growled command—in Sadalan. "Vu'kuwa, Kakarotto." Fight, Kakarot. "Vu'kuwa ni'mele'la." Fight and win.
Behind her, Raditz and Nappa stood side by side, cross-armed and chins up, reflecting her serious, no-nonsense look.
Emotion swelled Goku's chest, so many emotions that nearly overwhelmed him. He blinked away the sudden moisture that hit his vision and grinned at the three of them—his pashika.
With a nod, Goku responded with conviction in his voice: "Va'ku'yo qi'bela fu'lo." To my last breath.
After a quick check in with Dr. Briefs on how to run the Capsule ship by himself, and how to work the gravity machine, Goku ascended the steps without looking behind him. Even now, those emotions threatened to overwhelm him yet again, and he wasn't going to let that happen now.
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Dragonball: Rewritten
ActionA routine planet purging became a near-death experience for Vegeta, one that should've ended him up in a healing tank. But a stray beam from the planet below knocked him off course, heading towards a wayward planet with a weird name: Earth. A "what...
