39.0

Real World - Tokyo

She'd just been kissed by a complete stranger. Fed some strange pill that tasted like a peanut, and been rescued from being 'had' by a group of business men, held within a warehouse.

Am I going to wake from this strange dream?

The shadow man lightly touched her dark brown hair, stroking down the side of its shiny, shoulder length to the tip and said, "You should feel better. That was a sensu bean, and will heal you of any psychical wounds."

"..."

He was gentle. It was strange, considering she'd just watched him literally slaughter grown men with only one slice of his sword.

As the girl thought on many things, confused and terrified, a rush of heat ran from her toes to her chest. The pain from being punched faded away completely, replaced with a full stomach and a feeling of well rested sleep.

I--I'm all better? Just what...is going on?

Again the man replied like she'd talked to him. "...I can't explain it all right now. Fu is heading here..."

As he spoke he was snapping her bound hands with only one finger, as though they were made of mere threads instead of metal. After freeing her feet as well he stood and looked up, to the moonlight coming from the hole he'd made.

What was he thinking?

"I was trying to sense Fu."

He did it again, reading my mind. And just who was Fu?

"Fu is the demon son of Towa and her artificial creation, Mira. They're uh...from the game."

The game, then.

"...He's closer. Come on."

She was held to him and with a 'whoosh' they were up and out of the hole. The haze of dust remained somewhat from his dramatic entry, and the crunch of snow under her sock feet was chilling. Chisato gave a shudder and clamped her arms around her, when he removed his sword and jacket and placed it carefully around her tiny shoulders. "Chisato..." His voice said softly, as if amused.

At that moment the girl finally lifted her head to see just who had saved her. The air from her lungs left with a hiss. He was taller than her by a full head and a half, with broad shoulders beneath a brown sleeveless vest. It was obvious he was some type of fighter, for the muscle structure could only come from intense training. He lifted his sword onto his back and slid it into the holster with a 'tink', and knelt, placing one fist onto the snow covered roof, the other across his chest. "Once I said that I would love you, from here and there, the past and future. Please...rely on me again. I won't fail you."

It was quite the proclamation.

The girl tugged the jacket around her and rose one tiny cold hand to her mouth as she was moved to tears on the spot. "Ano...who are you? I-I'm sorry! I don't remember, you see."

His face looked up to her. Mesmerizing aqua eyes framed with light, almost silver lashes. They were long and straight, like his hair with thick matching brows. A noble nose sharpened by darkness, pronounced cupids bow, and intense red shadows resided under his piercing gaze as though his pale skin were thinnest there. It didn't take away from the overall enchanting appearance. In fact, the shadows added a depth of deepness to his person, as though he'd lived a hard life. Chisatos eyes were drawn into that gaze, only catching a snatch of them through the light colored hair that flit across his face, lifting and flowing like petals of a lilac flower caught in the wind.

Her thoughts drifted off into nothing, merely staring in a daze.

Who was he? Or, the better question, 'what' was he?

Chisato had seen images of idols across her town and in shops, but never had those celebrities had matching lashes, and such a distinctive, foreign appearance. It brought to mind some elven creature from a popular western trilogy. Certainly she would never forget the face in front of her.

The mans lips curled up on one side as he let out a light chuckle, straight white teeth glowing like pearls. "I'm sorry. I uh, forgot to introduce myself. Trunks. Trunks Briefs."

It was such an attractive face which chuckled that Chisato no longer noticed the cold of winter.

"....You're the one from the game." She said.

"Yeah. That's right. I suppose Shallot told you a bit about me?"

She thought of Shallots' talk they'd had in the hotel of Mr. Ren, sitting in the floor together. The memory played through her mind and Trunks abruptly stood up and shook his head. "That Shallot. Give an inch and he takes a mile. I suppose he didn't tell you that you and I are going to get married?"

"E-Eh?"

Trunks rubbed his his awkwardly and faced the moon, as if too embarrassed to look at the girl beside him. "...Yeah. We're uh, dating. Just before I had Shallot go back in time, well....you and I, we uh.....m-maybe now isn't the time to chat."

"O-Okay. Ano, Turunksu?" She asked.

"Hm? Ha. You just said my name, but it sounded so differently in this language. Oh, sorry, what was it you wanted to ask?"

"N-Nothing! I just wanted to thank you very much. For rescuing me." She bowed deeply.

"...The same as always. No need to thank me. I'm happy to come here. In fact, I--" Trunks cut his words off just like that, and pulled his sword. "Get behind me!"

She obeyed immediately.

Both watched in shock as a large explosion rang out across the winter sky of Tokyo.

They had no idea at the time, but the world had been forever changed.

***

***

Shallot fell down after getting blasted by Fu. His body had been brutalized, blood coming from a stab wound on his right side, but the saiyan still found it within himself to rise up out of the building debris and fly towards Fu, whom had just told him Trunks had came to play.

"Oh no you don't!"

With an, "HAAAA....AH!" Shallot transformed into a Super Saiyan and chased Fu through the cold sky, blasting his form with ki, only for Fu to knock away the energy like it was nothing and carry on ahead. Shallot made chase, and both parties landed onto a warehouse, looking around for Trunks whom they'd just sensed, along with tiny Chisato.

"Hm. Clever," Fu said.

It would seem that Trunks had dropped his Ki level and taken Chisato among other humans, thus disguising her energy with the others of night time Tokyo.

Shallot began an offensive attack, volleying first Ki Blasts, a Kamehameha, and finally Masenko, however Fu saw his movements and avoided taking damage. All of Shallots attacks instead crumbled the entire vicinity around them.

"You're no match for me." Fu said, smiling.

"Tch. Trunks made me Leader of the Time Patrol, and I won't allow you to fuck up my reality!"

"You're still drugged from earlier but talk such big words." Fu sighed, shaking his silver head, "I don't know whether to be impressed or feel sorry for you. Either way, I'm only here tonight to kill you and that 'girl'. I'll deal with you after I've taken care of Trunks."

"Her NAME is Chisato, and you aren't going to do jack shit!" Shallot 'sssfws' over to Fu, punching his black shirted chest as hard as he could. Fu grabbed his wrist and wrenched it away, punching him with his other fist. Shallot flew back, face throbbing, and growled.

That's when an idea came to him.

Shallot glanced up at the moon, seeing it Full, and smirked. "Not the best idea but it might by Trunks some time."

Ba-dump

Ba-dump

Ba-dump, Ba-dump, Ba-dump

Shallot snarled his teeth, which had turned sharp, and leaned forward onto all fours as his clothes ripped away. He rose his now red eyes to the sky, letting out a tremendous roar, before his entire body began growing and growing. Soon he had morphed into an Ape Form, and was the size of Tokyo Tower, with its impressive height of one thousand and ninety two feet.

"RUUUUAAHHH!" Shallot beat his chest, looking at the moon.

Then the large Ape found Fu, who had been startled by Shallots extreme actions. Shallot chuckled --a threatening growl-- and ran, crushing anything underfoot in his way to get to the Demon Realm scientist.

Fu wasn't expecting Shallot to do such a thing. Considering the Time Patrol avoided casualties, an Ape that large could do heavy damage, not just to their foe but to all of Tokyo. He was also taking noticing that Shallot had control of his mind, unlike a 'true' saiyan ape. He made a mental note about that discovery, deducing it was because Shallot had been born a human, and thus his soul didn't respond to the change as a normal saiyan would, given that it was Shallots first time changing.

"Impressive." Fu said. "You're really willing to harm these people just to get to me? How touching. However...you're forgetting one important thing, Shallot..."

Fu eyed the Ape tail, swinging back and forth as Shallot ran to him. Fu pulled out one of his two swords, holding it eye level with Shallots tail and made to disappear and slice it off, but a 'clank' noise had stopped him.

Trunks.

Fu jumped back and pushed his glasses up. While Fu had just killed Trunks, it seemed he was alive, and the reason was unknown, something a scientist such as he was dying to know. "You're not dead, but how? I cut off all communication to the Nest, so Chronoa wouldn't be able to see or hear what was going on."

Trunks was flaring red with the glow of a SSG, and he drew his sword in front of him. "...I had a little help."

"Oh? Do tell." Fu smiled kindly, "I confess that while it was nice killing you like that, it left me sad, due to the fact a great mind had perished."

"Tch!"

Shallots Ape Form drew nearer, and his large hand swiped out to try and grab Fu inside it, however Fu vanished. Neither Trunks or Shallot could sense his energy at that point, and Trunks had little choice but to guard Shallots tail, knowing Fu could strike it at any time.

Fu appeared much higher than them in the sky, and tossed from his black gloved hand several energy blasts. Trunks recognized it to be his Energy Minefield attack, and said to the Ape beside him, "Don't get hit with those!"

"Ruaah!" Shallot said.

However, as Fus' target had been Shallot all along, it was now much harder for the Ape to move, lest he got hit with the minefield.

Trunks turned at just the right time and avoided Fu, who had appeared and was ready to drive his sword into Trunks'. Fu jumped away and sighed, "It's so darn cold out here! Aren't you freezing, Trunks?"

"Quit messing around!" Trunks flared his Ki higher and his red aura burst towards the sky for a moment before settling. "I'm stronger now, thanks to you killing me."

Fu tutted. "Now, I can't take all the credit. That goes to Matsuri. It was her idea to kill you, really. I was just---experimenting!" He swung down with his one sword, and Trunks rose his to counter. The metal scraped against one another before Trunks took his other hand and flattened it, blasting Fu at close range.

His enemy coughed and dropped his guard for one fraction of a second, and Trunks took that opening and punched Fu in the face. His fist smashed Fus' nose into itself and broke his rectangular glasses.

"....I just got those adjusted." Fu said.

Trunks smirked and kicked him high into the sky, intent to swing down and cleave him into two with his sword, when from Fu came a burst of red energy. It swelled along with his Ki signature, and Trunks knew he would be facing Fu the Super Saiyan.

Just as he had been expecting, Fu now how the look of a demon Super Saiyan. His lifted hair and red eyes gleamed with anger, fist clenching. "You know, you're really starting to get on my nerves. I thought we were friends, Trunks."

"Don't kid yourself, Fu. I'd never befriend a sick excuse for a life like you! Anyone who threatens reality and harms an innocent girl like Chisato has to pay! Shallot, do it now!"

Shallot had been bending and charging a very large and powerful Kamehameha wave. He released it, and the blue blast could have taken out the entire world if not controlled. Thankfully Shallot did have control over his Ape power, and used it at that moment to attack Fu with a direct hit.

*Booom!*

The Kamehameha wave was powerful enough that a blinding light enveloped everything, turning the Tokyo sky into daytime. All around them Trunks could see building and cities crumble. He was concerned about the innocent lives being hurt, but knew that with his time 'realm' machine, he'd come back and fix things with the Dragon Balls.

As the blast began to wane and finally fade, bringing back a starry sky, snow began to fall. The wave had pierced through the clouds and changed the weather.

Fu was nowhere to be seen.

Trunks sheathed his sword and saw a form down below in the dirt. It was Fu, except instead of dead as he'd hoped, the scientist lay there blinking at the sky. They watched in horror as Fu blasted a large, red energy not towards them, but the moon itself.

Trunks moved to block it from destroying the moon but was too slow, and thus the blast left the atmosphere. Several moments passed before the moon disintegrated and darkness fell over the earth.

Only the stars above gave light below, but it was hardly enough, not when the city lights of Tokyo out weighed them. Trunks and Shallot could see, but not well, and Trunks knew that Fu'd done it to transform Shallot back into his regular form.

The large Ape let out a roar of anger before his size began to shrink. Finally Shallot was normal size once more and naked, and he hovered beside Trunks out of breath. "...Dammit." Shallot said, panting.

"You did good. Well, for the most part." Trunks shot him a smile.

"Tch. Man, this isn't fair. I don't even have control over my power yet. It's not like the game. There aren't any damn instructions, and everything I do is either too much or two little. And my brain is still fucked up by that drug."

Trunks nodded. "I see. Then, I'll tell you to go all out in this case. Ahh, that's not an order."

"Glad to have you back, Mr. Perfect."

"...Same to you, Shiroui."