Days had passed since Goten's outburst.
The words "If Dad was here… he'd be ashamed of you" still echoed in Gohan's head like a scar that wouldn't heal. He had thrown himself into even harsher training with Vegeta, but even the heat of battle couldn't silence the weight pressing on his chest.
Yet, life on Earth demanded balance. Peace, as fragile as it was, needed someone to uphold it in the shadows.
And so, the Great Saiyanman was born.
The Streets of the City
A motorcycle gang roared down the street, engines growling as they terrorized civilians and smashed through storefronts. Police sirens wailed in the distance, but the gang laughed, until a golden blur cut through the sky.
"Stop right there!"
The gang leader skidded his bike sideways just as a figure landed in front of them, dressed in green armor, white boots and gloves, and a flowing cape. A black helmet with a red visor concealed his face.
"Who the hell are you?" one biker sneered.
"Me?" Gohan said, voice distorted slightly by the helmet's comm. "I'm the Great Saiyanman and your fun ends here."
With a single flicker of motion, Gohan disarmed the bikers, flipped two into trash bins, and tied the leader to a lamppost with a bent steel pipe, all before the police cars even arrived.
He flew away as the officers gawked at the scene.
But one pair of eyes followed him.
Videl...
From the rooftop of a nearby building, Videl, the daughter of Hercule Satan, had watched everything.
"That speed…" she muttered. "That strength… he's not normal."
She had heard rumors of a caped fighter protecting the City but now she had seen him firsthand. And she wasn't letting this mystery slide.
She leapt onto her jet copter, tracking his energy trail as best she could.
Capsule Corp...
Gohan landed silently in the courtyard of Capsule Corp, pulling off the helmet with a sigh. He had stopped several robberies that morning but his mind was elsewhere, thinking of Goten, of his mother, of everything that still felt broken.
"Still playing hero, huh?" Vegeta's voice came from a bench nearby, arms crossed. "That ridiculous outfit makes you look like a clown."
"It's… practical," Gohan said, trying to shrug off the comment.
Before Vegeta could say more, a sharp voice cut through the air.
"You!"
Both Gohan and Vegeta turned as a young woman marched across the yard. She had black hair tied in twin pigtails, blue eyes burning with determination and a school uniform dusty from her pursuit.
Videl.
She stopped a few feet from Gohan, pointing at him.
"You're the Great Saiyanman, aren't you? I followed you here!"
Gohan froze. "Wait... what?!"
"Don't play dumb," she said. "You think you can just dress up like that and hide who you are? I want answers. Who are you?"
Bulma came out of the workshop at that moment, holding a wrench. "Uh… Gohan? Who's this girl yelling at you?"
Videl folded her arms. "So that is your name. Gohan, huh?"
Gohan's stomach sank. "Wait… I didn't say..."
"Too late," Videl smirked. "Now tell me, what's your deal? Why hide behind a helmet? And where did you learn to fight like that?"
Gohan looked to Vegeta for help but the prince smirked wickedly. "You're on your own, kid."
Gohan's jaw clenched.
She had outmaneuvered him.
In his efforts to protect the peace, to avoid unnecessary attention, he had slipped and now this girl, this daughter of Earth's self-proclaimed "savior," stood with the truth in her hands like a loaded gun.
"You're not just some weirdo in tights," Videl pressed, stepping forward. "You're strong. You're trained. I've seen martial artists my whole life and none of them move like you."
Gohan averted his gaze. "I'm not looking for attention."
"Well, too bad," she snapped. "Because now I have questions. And you're going to answer them."
Bulma raised an eyebrow, watching with mild amusement from the workshop doorway. Vegeta, still lounging on the bench, smirked even deeper.
"This is embarrassing," he muttered, standing up and brushing imaginary dust from his pants. "You, being blackmailed by a child."
"I'm not..." Gohan started.
"I'm going inside," Bulma interrupted cheerfully. "Have fun with your girlfriend, Gohan." She winked, then walked away with a casual hum.
Vegeta followed, chuckling under his breath. "Maybe the girl will knock some sense into you."
The moment they were gone, Videl narrowed her eyes.
"You're hiding something. I can tell. No one just flies and shoots energy like that without serious training."
Gohan's lips thinned. "I don't owe you an explanation."
"Maybe not. But I know where you live now and you look the same age as me," she said coolly. "And I could tell everyone. I'm pretty sure my school would love to know who their neighborhood superhero really is."
"You'd really do that?" Gohan said, his voice quiet but sharp, a warning beneath the words.
Videl faltered but only for a moment.
"I don't want to expose you," she admitted. "But I do want you to train me."
Gohan blinked. "Excuse me?"
"You heard me," she said. "Train me. You fight on a whole different level. If I'm going to keep peace in this city, if I'm going to be anything other than my father's shadow, then I need to be stronger. And you're going to help me."
Gohan stared at her, the silence between them stretching thin.
He didn't have time for this. He had goals. He had regrets to atone for. His training was intense, precise and unforgiving. He couldn't waste it on someone like her.
But then he saw her eyes, steady, determined, burning.
Just like his had once burned.
"Fine," he said finally. "But I don't train half-heartedly. If you fall behind, I won't wait for you."
Videl smiled, victorious. "I don't expect you to."
"One more thing," Gohan said, as he turned away. "There's a martial arts tournament coming up, the Tenkaichi Budokai. I was already thinking of entering."
"Then I'll enter too," Videl said. "And I'll show you what I'm made of."
Gohan gave a nod, silent approval.
As she walked off to prepare, Gohan turned his gaze upward to the sky.
There were still so many things undone, so many failures he had to correct.
Maybe, just maybe, teaching someone else to fight… could be a step toward healing the wounds left behind.
But the path he walked now was still shadowed.
And he wasn't sure if he would ever see the light again.