(A year later)
It has been close to seven years after the world gripping event known as the Cell Games and in that time, the people of earth had experienced a long, well-deserved period of peace and prosperity. All across the globe humans and animals alike were reveling in the happiness and joy brought on by the days of tranquility, and while there were minor community issues here and there, along with the occasional natural disaster taking place, it was altogether the most agreeable times anyone could ever remember experiencing.
The Z-fighters were also making the most of the opportunity to stretch their legs. The Briefs continued their work at the company, Krillin and Android 18 were living happily together at Kame House with their daughter, Tien and Launch had settled down on a farm, Yamcha was making it big as a celebrity on his baseball team, and Dende was still carrying on his work as guardian of the earth.
The Saiyans were also doing their best to occupy themselves and make the most of the time given to them. Vegeta was still pushing himself to the limits of his body in the gravity room along with his son, who he'd decided to drag along for the ride, and Goten was still as outgoing as ever. Surprisingly enough, sometime over the past couple of years, the rest of the gang discovered that the Saiyan Prince and Bulma had decided to stop playing games with each other and make their relationship official. In a small, quiet ceremony outside of the eyes of the public, the two of them got married at a small temple, with only a handful of their closest family and friends attending the event. While not as big as the one hosted by Krillin and Android 18, it was definitely one of the most groundbreaking celebrations the Son family had ever born witness to.
To top off this shift in tone, not only were Gohan, Videl, Piccolo, and Zangya training harder than ever, but the former two had also joined Satan City's police department as a supplementary wing of their forces. The pair of teenagers had taken on part-time positions as crime fighters of the enormous metropolis and while there had only been a handful of problems that needed to be taken care of in the year since they joined up, the pair became an immediate hit.
Thanks to his extra-curricular activity, Gohan's life became that much busier. But even with his construction work and security job taking up a lot of his weeks, the young half-Saiyan still found the time to hang out with his family and friends, and train in the mornings and afternoons to keep up his skills. He was making such a terrific headway in the combat department that he even began aiming for a completely new objective that none of the Z-fighters ever expected him to try and reach before.
The teen wanted to ascend to the next level.
With his power growing every day, Gohan knew without a shadow of a doubt that there were even greater heights he could reach as a Saiyan. There was strength and potential inside of him that he knew he had and, no matter what it took, he was determined to draw them out. However, what was stopping him from pushing past the second level was a speed bump he'd encountered a few times before.
It was the same obstruction that'd prevented him from transforming to his Super Saiyan 2 form following the Cell Games.
He needed a kick: something to push him that last, extra step and achieve a third ascension.
But… this particular objective in his life could wait. Right now, with nothing but clear blue skies ahead and a big world to explore, Gohan knew he had plenty of time to figure this puzzle out.
On this particular, bright and sunny day, soaring through the skies above the pristine landscape of Mount Paozu, the small form of Goten could be seen flying with his arms at his sides and a wide smile on his face as he cut through the planet's lower atmosphere with ease. Descending from his height and going for a spin through the clouds, leaving a pair of vapor trails behind him, the spiky haired hybrid hit the accelerator and took off at an even greater speed. A joyous laugh escaped his lips shortly thereafter as he watched more clouds fly past him and saw the land roll by mile after mile.
"This is so awesome!" Goten exclaimed, giggling brightly as he continued on with his fists pointed forward and his hair whipping around him wildly.
It'd been a long time since he'd gone on a trip like this. Ever since his older brother taught him how to fly and showed him how to tap into his inner energy, the child had been using every opportunity he had to make the most of his abilities. Whether it was just floating from place to place or using his speed to evade his mother's watchful gaze, Goten was really coming to realize the full potential of his strengths.
Fortunately he had his family and friends to remind him not to overdo it and abuse his gifts. A bundle of energy like him needed boundaries, and the Z-fighters had been just the right group of people to teach him those.
While he was soaring along, feeling the air whip at his face and the sun shine brightly overhead, the child then became aware of a shadow falling over him and glanced over his shoulder. When he did, he saw the familiar forms of Piccolo and Zangya float into view, the orange haired girl pulling up alongside the demi-Saiyan with her arms crossed and a smile on her face.
"Going somewhere, little man?" the Hera asked mischievously.
Blinking a few times, Goten smiled, "No. Just flying around the world. No biggy."
"Well then…you wouldn't mind if we joined you, would you?" the orange haired fighter asked.
The half-Saiyan boy nodded his head vigorously, "Yeah. Of course." He then had his gaze pulled over to his other side, where he saw Piccolo pull up nearby with his arms at his sides and a smirk on his face.
"She was worried about you," the Namekian informed in a low enough voice so that the woman didn't hear him. "She just won't admit it."
Goten giggled in return, "I know."
Just as the three were beginning to establish a comfortable pace, about a few hundred meters up ahead, they suddenly saw the cloud cover break and another familiar figure burst into view. Trailing vapor behind her, dressed in an oversized white shirt, a pink t-shirt underneath, a pair of figure hugging black shorts, green Capsule Corp boots and black fighting gloves, with her hair cut short, Videl made her appearance on the scene with an excited cheer and an aerial loop. Immediately after performing the stylish maneuver, the girl turned around so that she was flying backwards, waved to the three tailing behind her, and grinned.
"Hey there, slow pokes!" She then powered up, enveloping herself in her white aura and taking off at an even greater speed.
"Oh? Is that a challenge, Videl?!" Zangya called out, before smirking and powering up as well. "Well if it's a race you want, then it's a race you'll get!" Green aura burning brightly, she too revved her engine and sped up, closely followed by Piccolo and Goten doing the exact same thing.
The three caught up to the human girl in no time, who smiled across at them as they streaked across the sky like jets. In fact, they were moving so fast that they broke the sound barrier effortlessly. They ruled the sky for miles around and with absolutely no traffic to worry about, the group was well on their way to lapping the entire planet.
But then, just when it seemed like the four of them had become the fastest moving objects on the planet, an orange blur rocketing past them suddenly nudged them to the side and caught their attentions. Looking ahead in surprise, the group saw the laughing form of a seventeen-year-old Gohan dressed in his orange and blue gi perform several spins as he ascended at breakneck speeds. Covering more ground than Superman himself, the half-Saiyan executed a couple of stylish loops before then dropping back to fly alongside his friends and family.
Being sure to nod to Piccolo and share a fist-bump with Zangya on his way into their formation, Gohan then pulled up between his kid brother and best friend of six years, and fixed his attention upon the latter, "Hey, Videl. Going my way?"
The teen crime fighter, blushing a little at the warrior's charming smile and dashing exterior, grinned back at him with equal intensity, "Wherever the wind takes me, I guess."
Gohan's eyes flickered with delight, "Sounds good to me."
With that exchange, the group then fixed their gazes ahead of them once more and shot off towards the horizon. Though the path they'd selected had been random and they had no idea what cities and countries they were now passing, one thing was for certain…
They were definitely looking forward to what tomorrow would bring.
==============================
End of 7 years gap arc
=============================
If you want to support me and also access 30 advance chapters, join my patreon with the link patreon.com/EddyHazArd
Or just search "EddyHazArd" in the patreon searcher.