Welcome to the Jungle

You’re gonna go far, kid

Medium Quest

Requirement: Third-Class Saiyan, must have completed two Third-class quests.

Reward: 2,000 zeni and a a Second-Class Commendation.

You’ve come far, kid. And I’m not the only one to notice it. King Vegeta has plans for you. Go out into the wilderness and do nothing but survive. You can’t bring anything! Once you spend a week out there getting closer to your feral side, come back as a stronger warrior. You’ll be rewarded greatly.

Gohan awoke to a very sharp pain in his left side. It would have appeared as though the branch he had decided to sleep on was also the home of a family of squirrels which, by their incessant gnawing, mistook him for a rather large nut. Gohan stood up on the branch and apologized to the squirrels by offering them a few of the fire grilled nuts he had roasted just the other night. By the way the squirrels had pounced on those nuts, they graciously accepted his offering. Gohan looked to the ground and hopped of the tree branch. He fell several hundred feet until he hit the forest floor with a large thud.

Gohan walked to the base of the tree where a large branch was impaled inside of a large boar. He grabbed the end of the branch and pulled it from the pig's stomach. It was only a few hours ago he had killed the thing and the blood lay covering the already red grass.

Last night, while he slept, a husky boar had found its way to his campsite in search for a quick meal. Gohan, with his war torn past, never slept without some kind trick in place to warn him when he might be in danger. Not having to worry about androids and only wild beasts, Gohan had set up several trip wires fashioned out of vines in a small radius around his campsite where, when tripped, they would tug at his fingers to wake him. Each finger was also set to a particular area, so there was no question to the boar's whereabouts. After the quick kill, Gohan had decided to camp on one of the larger tree branches as he was too tired to reset the wires.

Gohan felt his stomach growl so he decided it was time to eat.He started up the fire pit he had last night with some dead wood and a touch of fiery ki. The half Saiyan picked up, off the ground, two large sticks with a 'Y' like shape and stuck them deep into the ground on either side of the fire. Once that was set up, he broke a limb off a nearby tree and made sure it was at least three meters long. Gohan then activated his Ki Blade ability and started chiseling off the edge, making the end of it sharp and pointed. He took up the spear with one hand and the swine with the other. With some force, he impaled the pig onto the spear from mouth to tail.

Gohan sat at the edge of the fire turning the spit as the pig was slowly roasted over the open flames. The aroma from the cooking pork filled his nostrils making him even the more hungry. It would take a while for the pig to cook fully so he had time to think. The words 'stupid Kraut' were the only ones to leave his lips all morning.

++++FLASHBACK++++

Gohan sat at the table, quiet and still. He looked straight into Kraut's eyes who looked back at him. The tension between the two of them was high. In fact, there was so much that every patron inside the bar could feel it and no one sat within ten yards of them.

“No.” Gohan said outright without taking his eyes off Kraut.

“You will be a Second Class afterwards,” Kraut said with the exact emotion as Gohan. The two of them were intense.

“I don’t care.”

“You will be one step closer to Elite status,”

“I don’t care. What about my way home?” Gohan repeated himself again. He wanted to go back to Earth. He had things that must be done.

“About that,” Kraut sighed and broke the tension by closing his eyes and leaning back in his chair. “it’s taking me longer to go through the proper channels than I had previously thought. May still be a while.”

“Figures.” Gohan was fed up with Kraut and had been for quite some time now.

“But,” Kraut leaned forward and lowered his voice a bit. “Every Saiyan Elite are given their own ship when they are promoted, so if you happen to reach elite status...”

“Fine whatever,” Gohan snapped. He finally gave in to Kraut’s request. “So what do I have to do again? Some sort of nature hike?”

“Not exactly. You must survive in the King’s forest and reconnect with your feral side. He wants fierceness in his soldiers.”

“Fine, I’ll go bond with nature.” Gohan stood up and reached for his sword which was propped up against the table, but Kraut had grabbed it first.

“Sorry,” Kraut said without much thought. “I forgot to mention, you can’t bring anything but the clothes on your back.”

++++END FLASHBACK++++

“Bastard.” Gohan cursed as he took the first bite of his roasted pork.

(WC: 808)

Gohan fought his way through the bramble using his ki blade as a machete to cut the thickets of thorny shrubs. He wasn’t sure exactly what he was supposed to be doing out there; Kraut never really did give the full details of his missions.

“Damned thorn bushes,” Gohan cursed in aggravation as he had been constantly wading through the shrubs while attempting to navigate his way through the King’s forest. “what kind of crazy ass mission is this anyway? Connect with my feral side he says. I can turn into a huge ass monkey, what’s more feral than that?”

After his conversations with himself, Gohan manage to escape the thicket of thorns and come to an opening in the forest. There was a stream in front of him with wildly flowing water, which unlike the surrounding was not red, but crystal clear. You could even see the bottom of it and watch the fish swim by.

“Looks clean,” Gohan muttered to himself as he kneeled down in front of the brook and dipped his hand into the water. A chill ran up his arm as the water had been ice cold in comparison to the heat on the surface of the planet. “and cold.”

Gohan lifted his hand up to his mouth and took a sip of water. The cold water dripped down the sides of his mouth and ran down his chin. He grabbed another handful and splashed his face. The coolness of the water on his dry skin felt very refreshing.

The warrior glanced back down at the water as a fish swam past. He was a little hungry since all he had been eating lately was berries and bird’s eggs. He had eaten the last of his roasted pig a couple days ago so he didn’t have any kind of real meal since then.

Gohan stared into the water, looking at his own reflection. He had once looked like his father, mimicking his orange gi, but now he simply looked like any other foot soldier of the Saiyan army. He didn’t really mind it however, as disguises often allowed him to survive and go unnoticed. He wasn’t one for flashy looks or moves; he did whatever was needed to get the job done, no matter how extravagant or mundane it may have been.

Gohan waved his hand through the water, breaking his reflection, and muttered. “Second Class, huh.”

(WC: 402)

Gohan stayed silent, squatting next to the river bed. He watched as a black bear just opposite the river neared. The bear watched Gohan closely, even when sliding on the muddy hill leading down to the water; he never took his eyes off of the warrior. Standing but only three meters away, the bear lowered his snout into the water to drink. His eyes shot upward, to check on the warrior who had not moved since the animal first appeared.

The bear felt it safe enough to plunge his entire head under water. He removed his head and shook it wildly, sending water flying across the stream. The bear waded into the water. He glanced up at the half Saiyan as he did so. There was shine to his eyes, a sparkle if you will. It was only a momentary glance, but one that made him feel an instant connection with the animal.

The bear raised his paw into the air, and with a quick swipe, flung a fish to his side of the river. He did this two more times and seemed rather satisfied. He looked back over to the boy who had been watching patiently from the other side. The bear raised his other paw and swung his paw, sending a fish flying in Gohan’s direction.

Gohan was surprised by the gesture and he reached up and grabbed the fish as it went flying toward him. Gohan looked back to the the bear to see him smiling. It was an awkward expression as smiles are hard to convey without the use of lips, but it was definitely there.

If the kind gesture wasn’t surprising enough, the bear did something that even through off the almighty, android and demon slaying, 3rd class O.S.F. warrior Gohan. He spoke. “Nice catch.”

(WC: 300)

“and then she said, ‘what kind of fish’!” The campsite roared with laughter once the punch line hit.

Gahan and his new found friends sat around a burning fire, telling jokes with one another. The bears were taking a retreat in some back part of the woods and the largest of the bears, Kuro, was in charge of the food, which is when he met Gohan. After a short conversation he invited the half-Saiyan for food and drinks. Gohan never knew why, but he always had a connection with animals back home, perhaps that even extended to this planet.

When he arrived at the campsite, Gohan met the other three. The brown bear was Jorgon, he was the whimsical one who just told the joke. He always seemed to have something funny to say and never had a story not to tell. The small brown young bear next to Jorgon was his son, Junior, at least that is how everyone referred to him as. Junior was just like his father, always with a witty comeback or on the fly joke. The grey bear was Scar. He was the grumpy one in the group and he was distrustful of Gohan when they had first met. He still glances over at Gohan with a threatening scowl, but he never acted upon it.

“So Kuro,” Gohan lifted a wooden bowl up to his lips “Kudos to whoever made this wine. It’s quite good.”

“Ah yes, that would be the ferrets. They have a way with the wine.”

Gohan couldn’t help but chuckle at the thought of ferrets making wine. “I would like to see what that looks like.”

“Trust me,” Scar spoke up. “You don’t.” Scar rarely talked, so when he did a silence fell upon the camp. It was an unnaturally long awkward silence where everyone’s attention was turned to Scar.

“Anyway,” Jorgon spoke up, in an attempt to break the silence. “You say the King of the Saiyans asked you to come out here to reconnect with your feral side?”

“Yeah,” Gohan replied with a sigh. “but never did he mention what it is he wanted me to do.”

The bears all looked at one another growling and snorting, talking about something they didn’t want Gohan to hear. There was a large roar from Scar that ended it and was followed by him storming off into the woods.

“It’s settled then,” Kuro spoke with a sloppy grin on his face. “We will train you.”

(WC: 413)

“You’re pretty strong.” Gohan complimented is adversary, pushing more of his weight forward.

“Not so bad yourself,” The bear responded, shifting his hind legs so that he had greater leverage.

The two of them were locked in a grapple; each vying for dominance as the attempt to crush their opponents hands and knocks them to the forest floor. It was a feat of raw strength, one in which the victor will reap the spoils. For if Gohan would defeat his opponent he will go forth, onto his last challenge and complete his training.

Gohan had spent several weeks at the bear’s village in the deepest parts of the forest. The bears were incredibly strong, their power level averaging about thirty thousand just in raw strength alone. They could not fly, they could not project their ki and they were slow as hell. The entirety of their power lied in pure physical might and Gohan respected them greatly for that.

The half Saiyan felt the muscles in his arms burn with a sensation that he only got with intense training. He loved that burn, it was the only way he knew that he was getting stronger; he didn’t want to lose his edge with no androids to fight. Gohan felt himself get pushed back as the intensity of his burning arms increased. He couldn’t let this bear warrior win, he must pull through for he felt as though he was ready for his final test.

Gohan dug his left foot deep into the ground and pushed forward, his arms fought against the mighty claws of his opponent. With a shove, Gohan manage to take a step forward, planting his right foot into the ground. With a twist of his arms, the Half breed was able to throw the bear’s balance off for just a moment and that was all he needed. In that moment, Gohan closed the gap and wrapped his arms around the bear, holding him tight. He then used the power of his legs to lift the bed over his head slowly, his legs shaking under the tremendous pressure. With one final fit of strength, Gohan tossed the bear outside the ring lined in twigs.

“Congratulations,” Kuro praised Gohan with a rather hard slap on the back. “I have to tell you, I am surprised to see you’ve made it this far in such short time. Normally I don’t see anyone completing our training for years. Last person I have ever seen was a woman several years back with golden locks of hair. She was unnaturally strong and unnaturally scary. It was said that if she didn’t have things just right, she would destroy the lives and homes of those responsible.” Kuro shivered just thinking about it. “But I digress, that was someone that has long been gone. You are our new trainee and the final test is upon you.” Kuro stood on his hind legs and placed his oversized paw on Gohan’s shoulder. “Are you ready for the final test?”

“I am.”

“Good. I will let Scar know you are ready.” Kuro hopped down and turned to walk away.

“Scar will be training me?” Gohan asked curiously. He hadn’t seen the grey bear since the camp the first night. He thought Scar may have held some kind of grudge toward him.

“Kind of,” Kuro paused as he looked back. “He was the one who wanted to fight you in your final test.”

(WC: 574)

There was a large crater at the Eastern end of the village that the bears called “The Arena”. It was a large bowl that dipped about fifty meters into the planet and had a three hundred meter. At the very center of the basin stood Scar in wait. Gohan walked slowly down the slope to the bottom of the crater, most of the hill was already occupied by the other bears that have come to watch. Some Gohan knew, most he did not, but they all watched carefully as he made his way to his final challenge. The moment Gohan took the last step down into the Arena, Scar attacked.

The bear rushed Gohan like a Mez out of Hell. He went straight for the throat with a swipe of his paw, a bold move as it left his attacking side open for a counter attack. Scar was much faster than Gohan had noted of the other bears and he was just barely able to dodge the attack.

Gohan shifted to the right of Scar and threw a few punches to the bear’s ribs. He howled in pain as each punch connected solidly and without hesitation. Gohan did not like to hold back, if you hold back you often died and he knew the bear’s believed the same thing. With a combination of punches and kicks, Gohan unleashed an assault upon Scar, knocking his ribs one by one.

Scar let out a huge roar, sending out a wave of fierce sound. Gohan, not expecting such a response, stumbled back allowing Scar to go on the offensive once again. For a good hour the two of the exchanged blows and swapped blood, until both stood standing in the center of the Arena, breathing heavily and ready to collapse.

“You have - the ferocity of a bear - within you - boy,” Scar huffed as he was having difficulty catching his breath.

“And you - the heart of a warrior,” Gohan replied in kind, also struggling to catch his breath.

The battle was tough as Gohan’s left arm was just finally able to catch up to his right in terms of strength. He had not had it long, only since he was transported back in time. It was also hard for Gohan to resist using ki during their skirmish, but those were the rules of the training. What kind of physical gauntlet would it be any other way?

“If you can survive this Saiyan, then I will accept your training as complete.” Scar stood up on his hind legs, his torso towering over Gohan. The grey bear stood at least ten feet tall and looked much more menacing than he did when he was down on all fours.

Suddenly, and without warning, Scar caught ablaze. His bestial figure was now no more than a flaming aura surrounding him. He dashed forward, catching all that he touched on fire. He took a swipe at Gohan, moving faster than he had previously. The half Saiyan did not expect such speed, especially so late into the battle, and all he was able to do was raise his arms up in defense.

Scar swiped away at Gohan’s arms, ripping at his flesh and burning his skin as the flames beat down upon him. Gohan knew he couldn’t survive such an assault for long, he mustered as much strength in his arms as possible and met every blow with his own. Soon, Gohan and Scar were striking each other’s fists, with cracks of fire spewing from every hit. Gohan shot his leg around to sweep the bear off his feet. When his foot caught the bear’s leg, he fell back and in doing so, he lost concentration causing the intense flames to die down. Gohan followed Scar’s series of attacks with his own; relying more on speed than strength. Soon his arms became pistons, moving so fast they looked to be eight, with each one delivering a bone smashing hit after hit.

Gohan stood over the bear, bloodied hands and burnt forearms. The bear was still alive, just with a few broken ribs.

“I accept your victory.” Were the last word from Scar’s voice before he blacked out.

(WC: 701)

After his victory over Scar, Kuro had told Gohan of more ways he could get closer with his feral nature. The bear had told him of various clans within the forest that would be able to help train him in other matters of combat.

For the first three weeks, Gohan traveled to the Northern part of the forest. His first stop was with a pack of wolves and was personally trained by Garou, the leader of the pack. Garou seemed to already know of Gohan’s exploits and easily agreed to help him re-connect with his animalistic instincts.

For the next ten days Gohan underwent vigorous training in his sense of smell and speed. He learned to move swiftly like a wolf and use scents to track his target, even if they were to hide their power level. After Garou was pleased with his training, he bid him farewell and pointed him in the direction of the deer tribe.

Gohan then visited a small clan of deer located only a few miles from the wolves. Their leader, Shika, was a noble and graceful elder. She welcomed the half breed with open hooves as she grateful accepted the task of training his agility.

For the next eighteen days, Shika showed Gohan how to use only the muscles on his legs to easily eave in and out of objects at break neck speeds. Coupled with his previous wolf training, he managed to quickly grasp the concept and easily pass Shika’s training. As she sent him on his way to the West, she told him of the aviary clan who would greatly help him in his future endeavors.

Gohan arrived in the West and met up with the leader of the hawk clan, Taka. Taka was one of the three elder hawks, who had nearly a hundred years experience in hunting and capturing pray. Taka welcomed Gohan as if welcoming an old friend and trained him to hone his eyes to find his target and to disregard all other things.

After a week, Gohan was able to master his sense of sight and increased both the speed and clarity of his vision. He departed for the South with a feather from Taka as a gift..

Arriving in the south, Gohan met back up with Kuro who, after all they had been through, bid him farewell as the half Saiyan completed the training he was set out to do.

Now Gohan has only one more night’s sleep before he returns to the city for his toughest challenge yet. A test from one of the most hated and irritating creatures he has ever known. Lieutenant General Kraut.

(WC: 441)
(TWC: 3639)