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Real World, Japan

Reimu looked on as the smoke from Sephiroth's attack faded away. He was in the center of that explosion, appearing more like an angel of death than anything else. He shook his katana Masamune and looked over at her with an amused smirk. "You dodged it. I wonder how long you'll be able to keep that up?" 

"I won't fail here." Reimu said.

At that moment, the Time Patrol wrist watch she wore began to ring. While still keeping one eye on Sephiroth, who was walking her way, she answered, "King of Time?"

[KoT: Reimu. It's time to go there. He should have the barrier done soon.]

"Understood, King. That other you really came through this time didn't he?" 

[KoT: Yes. I was right in giving him the blueprints for it. Anyway--hurry. We don't know when Fu will come back, and you've used a lot of energy on this fight.]

"I'm going." She said, and ended the call.

Sephiroth dipped down onto one knee and swung his blade; Reimu avoided the sword, jumping high into the cleared sky. A thick ring of flame came from his blade and burned the nearby building. "Going? Hardly. Your fight with me isn't finished, Reimu. How unlike you to run away." Sephiroth commented. He jumped to her skyward position and swung Masamune again, and Reimu had a harder time avoiding the blow.

'Damn!' Reimu ground her teeth together. She'd have to use one last summon to earn the time needed to regroup at the Time Headquarters.

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Shallot held up the shiny, Red Dragon Ball triumphantly. "Hah! Piece of cake." He said, giving Marisa a confident grin. Across the valley of corn stalks she swung up onto her broom and rolled her golden brown eyes at him. "Lucky." She replied.

"You say luck, I say I'm faster than you," Shallot retorted.

"That's where you're wrong. You couldn't possibly be faster than me, ya know?" 

"Chih! Try me! I, Marisa, will show you the true power of a witch!"

Shallot snorted at her. "Maybe next time. For now, we gotta focus on finding all the Dragon Balls." He looked down at the Radar, seeing a tiny red dot off in the top right hand corner. "Looks like there's one near where my Dad works. We should get there fast."

"Your Dad?" Marisa asked. 

"He's a brain surgeon. Dr. Yuusuke. Tch, just saying that name pisses me off." Shallot looked over the rows of corn and towards his fathers clinic in Tokyo, Japan. 

["Dad?" Shiroui tugged his fathers coat sleeve. He'd just got dropped off at his fathers clinic post school, and had already completed his homework. As such the boy was bored. "Can I use the TV in the waiting room?"

Dr. Yuusuke pushed his rectangular glasses up and sighed down at his pestering child. "Fine, fine. Don't bother any of my patients, you understand boy? This isn't playtime."

"Yeah, I get it." Shiroui pouted at the reprimanding tone of his father but took off down the hallway, and bypassed a cart of medicine. He didn't stop until the EXIT doors and pushed them open. Beyond the doors was the waiting area, and there wasn't a soul inside but one girl.

Her head was wrapped in linen bandages and she stared up at the TV. Shiroui walked over quietly and plopped down into one of the hard chairs. "Heya, I'm Shiroui. " He greeted.

The girl looked a little lifeless. She had long, dark hair, and wore a hospital gown. On her tiny feet were matching deep blue slippers. Her face was pale; ultra pale, like she'd never seen the sun or even heard about it. Inside her brown eyes Shiroui saw himself reflected. The girl turned to him. "Eh? Ano, are you talking to me? Ah...well, my name is...is..." she looked around at the waiting room as if she'd find her name there somewhere. "...I think they called me Chi--something. I-I know it had a Chi in it."

"Oi, you mean you don't know your own name? What a weird girl you are." He snickered and snatched the remote from the coffee table, and went through the offered channels until finding the news. Something about it had caught his attention.

[In today's report, a car accident claimed the life of television star Eri Shino. She is survived by her husband and daughter. Local authorities cannot find the location of her relatives. If you have any information on the whereabouts of Eri Shino's family, please contact the police station. In other news, a stray gorilla--]

Shiroui flicked the channel until Pokemon came on. He smiled. "Look, see that one, Charizard? He's the best."

The girl was silent.

Time passed while Shiroui watched the TV, hoping his father would be done for the day. The boy sighed and looked over at the girl 'Chi', and was surprised to see that she had fallen over a bit. Her pale face was blood red, and her body had tremors. "Oi-Oi!" He shot up and felt her forehead, seeing that she was feverish. "I-I'll be right back! Stay there!"

Shiroui came back with his father's assistant nurse. "Oh my, Dr. Yuusuke-san! Shino-san's fever has come back!" The woman said. She picked 'Shino' up and gave Shiroui a glare. "How long were you sitting there, Shiroui-san? With a fever this high, she could get brain damage!"

"I-I didn't know! I mean, she was just fine a few minutes ago!" He replied.

Dr. Yuusuke dashed into the room with a metal cot. Two other nurses were present, and Shiroui watched as they hauled the girl up and onto it. His father turned to Shiroui and said, "Boy, if you've any hope of becoming something, you'll be more attentive in the future! If this girl dies, it's your fault!"

Shiroui froze in his chair. 

'M-My fault? But! I'm just a kid!']

Shallot grit his teeth. He hadn't visited his fathers clinic in a long time, not since that incident in fact. That's the day he knew he'd never live up to his fathers expectations. But, knowing that another Red Dragon Ball was there, Shallot had no choice but to relive his past.

"Let's get going, Marisa."

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Xenoverse, Time Academy

Night had came to Conton City. Outside the Time Academy dormitory, fellow patrollers were tucking in, safe in their beds. Not a peep was heard, all until...

"Kya!"

Chisato's scream pierced the silence. Hot water had splashed across her bare thighs; the second attempt to make tea for Lord Zamasu a failure. The pink, cherry blossom lined cup rolled across the floor.

"Troublesome girl," Zamasu said. He strode from doing complicated reading at his desk to where she was in the floor. The hot water had clearly scalded her skin as it was red and steaming. "Here, quickly." He pulled off his outer vest and handed it to her.

After she had cleaned away the burning liquid, Zamasu laid his hand on the burnt skin. 

'Ah--! He's touching my thigh so suddenly!'

"Don't give me that look. I'm not like those other idiots." He grunted.

With a shining light her burn was healed. Chisato blinked, marveling at the power of a Kai. "It's all gone. Oh!"

Zamasu swayed on his bent leg a little with sudden fatigue, but had been caught by Chisato. Except the position wasn't an innocent one. He'd mounted her, propped up on one elbow, her hand on his chest. Their legs were entangled.

"Are you alright, Lord Zamasu?" She asked.

He mutely nodded. A tiny bead of sweat ran down his cheek. Chisato was relieved he was fine, but had no where to look other than into his face, which was inches away and beautiful. Her heart hammered. Zamasu was a Kai. A divine being, and even among his kind his features were rare. She couldn't help but notice all of those rare details.

Smooth skin. Not just smooth with health, but smooth with radiance. An inner aura of eternal youth. His thin gray brows were puckered in thought, while the tightness around those crystal stormy eyes of his had her in them. When he blinked, she saw that Zamasu even had silver eyelashes to match the flowing thick locks coming forward and brushing her cheek.

A cheek that was quite red.

"I'm--I'm sorry--" she sputtered.

"Pay it no mind, Chisato." He glanced to her lips. "It was my own fault. I've healed you twice today."

She took that to mean there was a limit to his ability and he'd almost exceeded it. "I see! Ah, l-let me help you up."

"You're quite clumsy." He said. "Those teacups are thousands of years old. A gift."

'A gift?' Chisato thought. She looked at the fallen cup and hurriedly scooped it up, and gave the rim a wipe with her T-shirt end. "I had no idea. They're all so lovely." 

"You shouldn't try to make tea if you don't know how." He informed her. 

"I--I know how! Ano, that is...you p-pour boiling water and put the tea in, right?" She asked. 

Zamasu scrunched his face up as if he'd smelled something foul. "...If you think that's how proper tea is made, then please refrain from trying in the future."

"But! I wanted to make you tea, Lord Zamasu. A-As a thank you for everything. It isn't much--I know that--but I don't know what else to do. Oh, and now you've gone and healed me again!"

He pet her head, and ran the backside of his fingers down her red face. With a smile he replied, "If you want to please me, then allow me to accompany you."

"Eh? You mean, in the morning?"

Quietly she thought, 'He's doing it again. All he did was touch my cheek, and my whole body is tingling! Is that something a Kai can do?'

Zamasu dipped his head. "It would honor me."

"Of course! We can get Kimchi together, then." 

"Very well." He looked outside, where the yellow glow of the moon had spilled its rays onto the flowers below the sill. The petals glowed with a beautiful hue. "You should sleep now."

"Then...g-goodnight, Lord Zamasu." 

He put his right arm behind him and bowed. "Goodnight."

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She didn't remember falling asleep, but when Chisato woke in the morning her eyes were filled with tears that hadn't fallen. "Uuu..." Another nightmare, with the blue haired version of her husband had the starring role.

With a dejected sigh, she rolled onto her side and came face to face with an asleep Zamasu. He looked elven, and quite frankly angelic in nature. He could have been a doll or some painting from ancient times. A myth.

Chisato took her hand and touched his pale green cheek in wonder. Her fingers drifted to his eyebrow that was usually pinched, and found they were relaxed for once. It was the first time for her to see Zamasu so peaceful. She touched the edge of his sharp ear, and the potara earring he wore jangled. He stirred.

"Mhm."

He didn't have any expression she could decipher. There they lay, each focused on the other, until Chisato pulled the cover over her red face. "Lord Zamasu---ano---did you sleep? I didn't know you, you slept--d-didn't you once tell me that, that you don't need to? Oh--sorry, that sounded mean--"

Zamasu chuckled and rose himself up, and gave a cat stretch to his back. "It seems you only worry about necessary things. No, I can sleep when I choose. Seeing that I would be without you until the morning I chose to rest as well. Speaking of that...you were quite bold to touch me while I slept, Chisato Shino."

"Hya....please, don't be upset! I--I was just thinking about how pretty you are when you sleep--"

He took her hand and pecked the back of it. "I'm not upset. Merely...amused." The hand holding hers moved it to his face, placing it just along the sharpness. "If you wish to feel any part of me I won't stop you. I'm all yours, for eternity."

"..."

Chisato couldn't hear anything over her pulse roaring. All the words and air left her mouth, and she couldn't fathom why he was affecting her so much. It was a different sensation than if he were a saiyan. 'Is it because he's a Kai...?'

"Zama...su...ano...I'm flattered...but..."

He sighed and plopped her hand down with an annoyed frown. "Those barbarians are your first choice, despite a divine being such as myself offering my very soul. How it vexes me."

She didn't get to respond due to him storming into the bathroom.

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"There you are!" Goten said. He dashed across the grass outside his parents home, and Chisato could see right away he had been frantic to find her. Kimchi was squealing, tan cheeks quivering, tail flapping back and forth angrily. The picture of cute. Chisato took her infant and shed happy tears at being reunited after a long, hard month apart.

Zamasu studied Kimchi. "She's a lot like her father."

"Mhm." Chisato beamed down at her baby in agreement. Even though her marriage to Shiroui had been a lie, it had led into a love in which she found not only a best friend but a wonderful father. 

'Shallot....no, Shiroui. Please be safe.'

"So, sis, just how many kids are you going to have?" Goten blurted.

"Hya! Ano, Goten! T-That's rather rude to ask!" 

Zamasu put his arm around her shoulder and tugged her close. "Several more. One who will be extraordinary; and I daresay she will be the death of me."

'His arm is--around me--' Chisato flushed cutely while Kimchi dove into her mothers cleavage, and rooted for a liquid filled breast. 

"Sis, you'll stay for dinner won't ya?" Goten asked. He eyed Zamasu, "Oh, and you too, whoever you are."

Zamasu dipped his head. "If that's fine with Son Goku."

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Dinner was a layout of yakiniku--grilled meat in sauce--and the amount was more than the table could hold. Alongside the massive carnivorous display of meat was another, slightly smaller stack of sushi rice. The smells in Chichi's kitchen could have made even the most arrogant of vegetarians' mouth water. 

"Oh man," Goku said. He happily sniffed the aroma. "Can you just smell that, Chisato?"

She giggled at her Dad. "Yes. I can't wait to dig in!" Chisato couldn't tell them the reason she was extra happy, but her smile was even more wide and beautiful. The fear of being stuck in the past with a twisted version of Trunks had fled upon seeing her loving family once more.

Goten, Kolard, Chisato, Goku, Chichi and Zamasu sat down at the round table. Chisato offered to help serve food but Chichi assured her that the men were grown and could 'fend for themselves'. As such, Chisato ate her plate of meat and went back for seconds.

Then, without warning her fork hit the plate with a clatter.

A head of blue hair had just came into the home swinging a messenger bag. On his school uniform was 'SAL'--the acronym for his school. The newcomer wasn't exactly the same Trunks that Chisato had nightmares about, but it was so close that she shook with fright and grabbed Zamasu's thigh in alarm.

Zamasu could only grunt in shock.

"Gohan, Trunks! Just in time for food!" Goku said happily.

Gohan paused at the door. From the looks of things he'd just got done with work, and his hair was sticking out in a strange mop as usual. He took a long look at his sister, and chose the seat opposite her. "Heya, feels like it's been forever. Well, that's how it goes when you work long hours!"

Chichi shot her son a smile. "Oh, Gohan! What a lovely surprise! You too, Trunks. What brings you here to our little home?"

Trunks plopped down into a chair beside Goten. "Not much. Just need Goten's help with some math." He said, which made Goten sigh with dread. Everyone chuckled except for Chisato, Zamasu and Gohan. 

'He's...not him. He isn't.' Chisato reminded herself over and over. 

"Hm? Somethin' wrong there, Chisato?" Goku asked. He poked her cheek. "You keep staring at Trunks. Oh, I bet I know what it is. You're falling in love with him huh? 'Cause he's just like your husband! Eh he he!"

"HUH?!" Trunks shouted. His arms couldn't wave harder, "I HAVE NO IDEA WHAT YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT!" To makes matters worse, Trunks added, "I-I don't even have a girlfriend!"

Goten snickered, "Only because Mai keeps turning you down."

"S-Shuddup!" Trunks said. He shoved Goten, and Goten shoved Trunks. A cat fight broke out with Chichi yelling at them both. Over the table, Gohan quietly chewed his food and gave a side long glance to his sister. 

Chisato shook her head 'no' vehemently. Her stomach wanted to barf up all of its accounts onto the table, and she had to give Kimchi to Zamasu. "Don't be silly, Dad. H-He's way too young, a-and besides, h-he looks nothing like Trunks! I'll be right back!"

She left the kitchen in a mad dash to get to the bathroom and didn't make it in time. Sushi and meat came up and out of her mouth and nose, some of it splattering in the hallway just outside the tiny bathroom. "Yurk!"

A hand touched her back. "Chisa, is everything...okay?"

From the pile of fresh vomit she stared up at Gohan. He stood there in his usual casual clothing, and Chisato nodded her head in a fearful daze.

"Doesn't look like it to me." He stooped and hauled her up, procured a napkin from his slacks and wiped her saliva off. "What gives? You acted like you saw a ghost or something."

"Gohan."

They were alone in the hallway, so Chisato let out her heart onto his shirt. He rubbed her back slowly until she was done. "Now...what happened?" He asked, serious.

"I shouldn't tell you. I'm...I'm sorry, but...it's for the best," she replied. 

'I don't want him to know!'

Upon hearing her thoughts from their [Soul - Mate] link, Gohan gripped his mate hard. "If it's that bad, that's all the more reason I should know, Chisa!"

Out of respect for her mate, Chisato nodded. "Alright then. But please, don't be upset. I-I did the best that I could."

Gohan cupped the back of her head and brushed away the loose hair covering the flesh. He kissed it, lovingly, before she felt the sharp tips of his incisors bite down.

"Ngn~!"

He drank her blood, and in doing so awoke the feeling of mating within Chisato. She groaned and fondled his backside, running her hands under his shirt. Her nails scratched lightly.

Because of their connection, Gohan didn't lose his consciousness. Instead, he licked the blood and leaned his head onto the wall they were beside. "So that's it. Dammit. I thought you'd be safer with Zamasu! I was wrong!"

"Gohan...please, I'm sorry that I--"

He put a finger to her lips. Their shared silence said more than words, as the look of two lovers passed between them. Gohan ran his thumb on her bottom lip and said, "It's okay. Everything is okay now, Chisa. If I'd known...I could have protected you. He treated you nothing like the Trunks we know. I can't even believe they're the same person."

Chisato listened to his words. Her heart calmed down, and she rose up and rubbed her nose on his cheek. "I love you Gohan."

He kissed her forehead, leaning his own against it. "I love you too, Chisa. Let's head back--"

A noise down the hallway broke them apart. Chisato turned in a heated daze, and saw that Goten stood there with his eyes wide.

"Goten!" Gohan shouted. 

Her little brother seemed to be at a loss for words. Like a frozen popsicle he turned around. In a haunted voice they heard, "I'm just seeing things. Yeah. Just in case I'm not, I think I'll go find some holy water to unsee this."

 

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