When it feels like home. (Kami)

[Deleted]

Zach had left on a trip to the capital to speak with Geurin, it seemed to be a particularly long trip and it left Ritoru feeling rather lonely. He had been having dreams again. Awful dreams about torture and horrors no four year old should ever have to see. Of course he didn't understand most of it, but he could feel the pain, and the darkness. He couldn't make more than three hours of sleep without waking up from a night terror, each one more gruesome and off putting than the last. Unfortunately there was no Zach there to tell him it was okay. Sure he could bother one of the other students, but none of them were like Sensei. Ritoru had only ever met two people that he felt comfortable enough to share his entire life with, and as it turned out they hated each other.

Ritoru didn't know that though, all he knew was that these nightmares were more than he could handle, and he needed to find someone...something. He didn't want to find Zach, he knew that if Geurin was there it would only make things worse. The last two times he had been alone with the green man bad things had happened. He couldn't remember the last one other than the searing pain he felt during it, and the time before he had lost his tail. He needed a familiar face, and yet he knew not where to look... except the lookout.

Nearly a month had passed since his trade off from Nam to Zach, and the only thing connecting them was the lookout located high above the clouds. Ritoru had a rough idea of where the structure was, he ran through the forest quickly searching for the tower that held the platform up, and it was only a matter of time before the massive pillar stood out. Ritoru rose into the air slowly, still getting used to his new found ability to fly. He made it a few feet before he felt the Ki buckle from under him. Rather than falling back to the ground, the small child wrapped his arms around the white totem and stopped his downward descent.

Catching his grip he knew the only way up would be to climb, and so he did. He climbed up the tower slowing but surely, one hand over the other. The wind nipping at his tunic clad body, his hair flowing carelessly with the breeze. His eyes however were focused and contented with the idea that at the top of this tower he would find what he was looking for. Someone familiar, someone friendly and kind, someone like Mickey...or Sensei. His body tensed as the tasking mission of climbing the tower became laboring. He even slid back a few times finding the task nearly impossible. But it wasn't and after nearly an hour of climbing the boy finally made his way to a small canopy resting just below the extended pole that attached the lookout to Korin's watch.

Ritoru fell into the canopy, rolling on his back and taking several deep breaths. Not only was the air thinner up here, but he had been climbing for several hours. Pulling one arm out of the sleeve of his shirt, and following suit with the second he found the cool breeze to be helpful in returning his stamina. Now bare chested like his father, the child would continue, shakily rising to his feet and taking a look around the room...

Memories...

____________________________________________________

After a full day of climbing, and an entire night of training Goku had finally made it to the top, or so he thought. Korin's tower was famed to be the ultimate test of a martial artist, and so what he found next surprised him considerably. A cat, nearly 800 years old and said to be immortal. Korin was the god of martial arts as it were and after a brief and hilarious introduction the two begin their training.

Goku is burning with the passion of his loss at the hands of the assassin general Tao. He knew he had to become stronger, and this passion led him to face Korin in a test of agility. Holy water, a powerful substance capable of increasing a person's fortitude by several times their normal capacity. His body yearned for the water, and he would have it.

After several days of chasing the cat around his own domain, Goku finally catches the water, only to find that it was tap water all along. It was his agility and strength that increased by chasing after the water, and his mind in catching Korin.

________________________________________________

The now inspired Ritoru found his strength. He could feel himself return to full, seeing such a small event in history had really got him going. He wanted to be like the boy in his daydream. He wanted to meet this cat. Searching throughout the building he found that one did not exist, at least not anymore. His whereabouts unknown, but surely not here. Disappointed, Ritoru remembers his original goal.

He wasn't there yet.

The time it had taken him to climb up the tower had helped Ritoru into a new level of focus, he could feel the Buukujutsu that Zach had taught him swirling under his feet. Rocketing off the ground Ru followed the red poll, having just enough power to make it to the edge of the floating slab, his body being flung onto the hard marble floors like a ragdoll. Rolling several feet and finally stopping Ru groaned, he had pushed himself to hard...but he had made it.

[Deleted]

His home had been destroyed, and this was not the first time. Having finally finished putting it back together Kami~Tenshu was finally back at the pinnacle of the earths protection. Or for what that was worth anyway. Sitting at the top of the tallest tower just behind the lookout house Tenshu felt his spirit falling even more so than it already had. Seeing his lookout back to former glory was painful, he could see the figures of the fighters he had trained, and loved. He saw images of Kris standing up to Suki on his arrival. Poor Nehan hadn't stood a chance, even going as far as to attempt the Bikkuri to defeat the beast, and to no avail. His life had been taken as quickly as it had been given. The Demon Ba' trying to have his back, but failing in the same way, having his life taken by Touketsuki Yakedo. He watched as Toshio Katsuo fought his hardest against the damned icer, and was forced to retreat after a daring combat through instant transmission.

He watched his own fight with the Icer, watching as his frail body gave it his all and yet still fell to the second form Icer, who proceeded to do the same to all of his former WTO followers, Gurin, Nam, and Zach.


Zach

He peered over to the side of the lookout where he had brought the dying teen, and brought him back from the edge of death. Tenshu would have never forgiven himself if he had been unable to save him, and thank god he had. Zach meant much to Tenshu, as their relationship had grown into one of mutual respect and even a light paternal influence. Yet Zach had been turned, that much was clear. Geurin.


Geurin!

The very thought of the vile creature sent a shiver down Ten's spine. He didn't deserve life, he never did. Tenshu had lived without him for the first part of his life, only to have his body taken over. This time he had been unable to separate himself from the demon Namekian, laying in wait for the creature to remove him. He had been unable to defeat him, even back in the time before his reign on earth he had been incapable of ending his life. He had been content with watching his body float aimlessly through space, but that had been a painful mistake.

All of this had happened on his lookout. The grand captain Ryota and his trusty Carmine both frightened into escape from the planet after witnessing Hitoshin's rise.

There was so much history of this lookout, and it broke his heart to see that throughout it all he had still failed.

Nam

Nam

Nam had been wrong. But he could not blame the lad, he had been persuaded to merge beings with Gurin, and he never should have attempted it. Nam was so innocent, and filled with potential. He lacked however the necessary grit to kill. He had never finished a fight in that manner, the problem was Touketsuki had, and Geurin had, and Boliko had, and Rensou had. All of his opponents had taken life without so much of a cringe. Tenshu wished he had been able to train longer with Nam, and felt the harsh reality of failure wash over him.

If only he knew the thoughts that Nam shared with him. Wishing that they could have trained more, wishing that he could have aided his team. Wishing that he didn't have to make them fight.

Nam was a leader now, he had taken off in the Nam of Tenshu to defeat Geurin, and failed. Yet Tenshu couldnt help but be overwhelmingly proud of Nam. If Tenshu did anything right, it was choose Nam as his recipient for the holy water. He rarely had the opportunity to distribute the water, but he had finally chosen a person worthy of its grace. Nam had repelled Suki, had ruined Geurin's plans to be inconspicuous on Vegeta, and even now fought to aid the people of Vegeta.

Tenshu however had nothing to give, he had relatively the same power he had possessed prior to training Nehan, and he had no means of fighting Geurin. If he went to hunt his own Dragonballs he would surely be stopped, and if Geurin found a way to disconnect their being, Tenshu would surely die along with the dragon balls. He needed something, anything. He needed hope.

And there it was, as if directly on cue from the Kai's out fell Ritoru, his body like a rag doll slamming into the tiles of the Lookout. A young boy, not more than five years of age had fallen on his lookout.

Tenshu had only just returned to earth, and so his usual understanding of people on the planet was not as much as it should have been. This boy was foreign to him. So consumed with worry for the lad Tenshu jumped down from his meditation and hobbled over to the boy, kneeling down at him and placing both hands on the small of his back.

"Child, what in the world are you doing here?"

He said, a soothing green Ki releasing from his fingertips to help aid the child in recovery. How had a child found his way to the top of the lookout. Was there an adult with him looking to train, or exploring. It just wasn't common for people to find, and then climb Korin's tower, especially someone who had just recently finished breast feeding.

[Deleted]

The pain in Ritoru's nose had finally gotten the best of him, he was at first content with just laying on the ground to allow himself time to recover, but the over exersion of Ki had sent him face first into the marble slabs of tiling, and subsequently had broken the childs nose. Tearing up he was quickly encountered by an elder creature, his eyes too blurry to see any further, however as he kneeled down and paid help to the boy, his pain began to subside. Rolling off of his tummy and into a criss cross sitting position the boy replied.

"I was looking for an old....old....a...ah.....no...NO!"

Leaping backwards Ritoru landed ready to fight. It was worse than he could have ever imagined. He did not find a friend on this isolated tower, he found his worst enemy. The man who time and time again had hurt Ritoru. Geurin. The old green sage couldn't fool him, they shared the same face, although now much more aged. Whatever trickery this was, the toddler was not falling for it. Putting his fists up the way zach had taught him the boy yelled back.

"You won't hurt me again gweowin!"

Still not entirely sure of the demons name Ritoru tried his hardest to spit it out, his best attempt still close enough to the actual name to be recognized. He was ready to fight Tenshu to keep himself safe. He had climbed all the way up here, and obviously couldn't fly himself down, so he would have to fight him here, and hope that someone came to help him.

[Geurin]

The child was healed remarkably fast, and even more remarkably lept back in fear, ready to pounce on Tenshu. He yelled at him it what could only be described as an adorable lisp and then prepared himself in a manner that Tenshu recognized instantly. The only warrior he had ever met who was willing to give up his mid section to save his facial features. The only man he had ever met with stunning blond hair and a powerful core.

Zach

Come to think of it the child looked remarkably like Zach as well, his facial features, and everything short of his eyes. Must have been a mothers trait...mother.

No Zach was Gay

Or at least he had been when Tenshu was around. Gay as daisy dukes and rainbows. Yet there stood a boy who looked identical, and acted identical to Zach. Perhaps the Kami was overanalyzing the situation. He was after all rather upset with himself, and Zach was forefront on his mind. He edged the thoughts away, knowing that what was important here was getting the child comfortable, for Tenshu would not try to harm him.

Geurin, the name rang through his ears, even though the child had obviously mispronounced the name it was still blatantly obvious who he was so afraid of. Tenshu was ashamed of himself for letting things get this far. From his knelt down position he met the boys gaze and spoke.

"Dear child, I am not the man you fear. Though you are right to fear him. I am a friend. Perhaps not the one you are looking for, but a friend to all people who find my home."

[Deleted]

Ritoru was inclined to believe the man. His tone, body language, and friendly aura was familiar to him. Much like any true child of earth Tenshu was a familiar creature to all. Ritoru was a child, he wanted to trust, and he wanted to love. His arms shook, he had to make a decision, either to attack the old man, or to leave him alone, and then it dawned on him.

He was attacking an old man.

What would zach say to such a thing, he was embarrassed. Slowly he dropped his arms to look closer at the man. He still had Geurin's face, but he was different. His eyes were much deeper, and Ritoru felt lost in them. His psychic undertone picking up and leading him to the training that Nam and Tenshu had been a part of. He immediately knew that this man knew mickey, the same guy he was looking for.

"I'm sowee misto...do...do you know mick...uh...Nam"

He had forgotten for a moment what the man's real name was, he called mickey often by the playful nickname. He had just seen it, he had seen them together. Perhaps it was wishful thinking, but that is who he was here to see, so maybe this man would be able to help him.

[Geurin]

The idea was immediate, he knew exactly what he needed to do. This boy was looking for Nam, and so was Tenshu. He knew where the boy was. A good friend of his knew exactly where Nam was, and Tenshu had immediately asked this friend for informations. Hours prior the crystal ball that Geurin had appropriated found its way back to the true Guardian of earth. That was after all its rightful owner, and now Geurin could not simply hunt Nam like an animal. The ball would tell him the happenings of earth, but its first vision was much to Geurin's agenda, and to Tenshu's surprise, was Nam landing on the planet Nor.

He knew where, but he could not simply leave Earth, as its guardian he felt powerless outside its borders, he needed someone to go for him...he needed...

Ritoru.

Ritoru could deliver a message, he apparently already knew Nam, and if he truly was next of Kin to Zach, then it would be probable that his abilities were up to par. He hated having to trust his entire mission on a child but he had no chance of reaching Nam without help, and all of his warriors from the fight with Suki were either dead, or turned rogue. He needed a friendly face, Earth needed nam. Not only to combat Geurin, but to combat Boliko and Rensou as well. If they came seeking destruction, the betterment of Earth would have to come first, and for that they needed Nam.

That, and Tenshu genuinly missed him. Nam and Zach were like children to the old geezer, he had trained them both, and knew they would do great things, yet he had been unable to save them. Nam had been turned outcast for a long, bitter amount of time and Zach had divulged into his old bitter past, something Tenshu had always wanted to prevent.

"Ritoru...I know exactly where Nam is. Why don't we help each other. You see...Nam is scared of Geurin as well...So am I...He is a scary person."

Tenshu, unlike every other person he spoke with would not lie to him, or leave out dangerous information. He knew what was going on, and he wouldn't send the child blind. He needed a sure fire way to know that Nam would be returned. He continued, knowing that he had to be direct and specific with the four year old.

"I need you to go to Nam in a space ship, I have one for you here, but it will only work once. If you want to see him again...You need to go to him and tell him that his friends Hitoshin and Kami want to see him again...tell him that you want him back, and tell him how much Geurin scares you Ritoru...tell him everything"

It would be a lot to take in, but perhaps Ritoru would be receptive, he was after all friends with the two people that Tenshu knew capable of resolving issues. Zach and Nam

[Deleted]

Maybe with an adult, this proposition would have been absurd. Hardly having introduced each other, Tenshu had just entrusted a massive responsibility to the four year old. Any reasonable adult would immediately be suspicious of foul play. Any reasonable adult would step back and analyze what was being asked, and any reasonable adult would ask questions.

But Ritoru was a four year old child, and not a reasonable adult. His eyes grew wide at the idea of seeing nam again, and all he had to do was fly in a space ship, that was the easiest thing of all. He had already done that with Geurin and Zach, and now he got to do it again, and this time actually get to see the planet he landed on.

He had no questions at all, none except for

"Wheyo is the ship!?"

He said running behind the green man and looking around the marble. Ritoru had no idea what he was getting himself into, and frankly it was irresponsible of Tenshu to ask him to do something of this magnitude, but what was he supposed to say? Oh sorry sir, but that sounds dangerous. I should consult with my sensei before embarking on such a long endeavor.
No, that had too many R's and Ritoru couldn't roll those yet. That and as a child he was incapable of thinking more than ten minutes into the future. So he was more than willing to risk his life on a dangerous mission.

Tenshu must have been desperate to trust a child he hardly knew. Desperate, or stupid.

Probably stupid.

Well no one doubted how fucking stupid Tenshu was.

Tenshu was so stupid that he studied for a drug test.

Tenshu was so stupid that he tripped over a cordless phone

Tenshu was so stupid he took a ruler to bed to see how long he slept.

But Ritoru was just ignorant, and his ignorance would bode well for Tenshu as Ritoru searched for this space ship.

[Geurin]

"Here, right here"

He said, tapping his wooden staff on the ground only to find that nothing would happen. The two would sit in silence for nearly thirty seconds, giving Ritoru plenty of time to be confused and look around further, however after exactly forty two seconds from the sky fell a small rusty space pod that slammed into the marble tile, surprisingly causing little damage other than blowing a ton of air backwards.

It immediately opened, its door nearly falling off its hinges as it struck the tiles. Slowly walking over to the pod that he had summoned Tenshu spoke, giving Ritoru the final words that he had on the topic.

"Ritoru be very careful, don't speak to anyone other than Nam...and....when you get there...."

It was their only hope of finding him. Even with this edge he would have a slim chance of finding him, let alone surviving the trip to him. His right had shook as it reached deep within his cloak, and pulled out the sealed bottle.

Holy water

The water had been waiting for Tenshu's return, cumulating over the years, and was finally ready to be consumed. Tenshu did not often get the chance to grant the water, every year if even that. He knew now that he had the opportunity to make a difference. His first choice had been Nam, and that had been the wisest, if not only good, choice he had made. Perhaps Ritoru would prove to be equally worthy of it. He was after all a child, and there were no purer creatures on the planet Earth than its children. His eyes an innocent blue brought Tenshu hope, and that was something he had long since abandoned being trapped inside that monster.

"Ritoru as soon as you land drink this, it will help you find Nam"

He said placing the water inside the pod and pressing a few buttons on the side. Ritoru obviously couldnt pilot the thing, he was a mere child. But with the coordinates put in place, Tenshu's old pod would take off the moment Ritoru stepped inside.

Now the question was, would he really go through with it?

[Deleted]

...

Here? There was nothing there. Ritoru continued running around the lookout looking for the afformentioned ship, and yet there was still nothing. Was the old man pulling a joke? It wasn't a funny one, he really wanted to see Nam again.

"Misto...theyo is nothing h..."

His words were cut off instantly by the clanging of metal against marble, the impact occuring several feet from the lad, and yet still sending him tumbling backwards. Pulling himself to a sitting up position his face lit up. It may have been a rusty, dangerous and old space pod, but to Ritoru it was the single most amazing thing he had ever witnessed. Sure the space ship Geurin had was nice, but this pod was going to be Ritoru's, all his. Running over to it he listened as the old man put the bottle of water inside the pod, whatever, he could drink water any time. But hey if he got thirsty he would be happy to have it.

"Wow so how does it sta..."

Again cut off, as the young boy lept into the pod the doors immediately shut as per Tenshu's instructions. His eyes widened, slightly fearful of what had just happened, and then without another word the pod shot back into the air. It was the strangest, scariest, most adventurous thing he had ever done, and this time he wouldn't sleep through it. He was going to go find Nam and tell him to come home. He was going to find his old friend. Ritoru was getting to play the hero, and he loved it

[Geurin]

Ritoru: 1250
Kami: Ungraded

[Gray Callahan]

Tenshu: 1650