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Peace returning to the Earth never meant that Son Goku would stop training.
There were always going to be limits to push, and new heights to reach. Fighting was one of the things in the world that brought the Saiyan the most happiness, be it against someone who was trying to destroy his home planet or against someone who merely wanted a friendly spar, and he couldn’t picture a realistic scenario where he would give it up.
For now until he felt he made substantial progress, Goku focused on working more with his Super Saiyan 3 transformation. The series of events that transpired because of the now-fallen Babidi and what eventually became Evil Buu allowed him to fully grasp that he hasn’t mastered it yet, so dedicating time and effort was a must. It took him several years to achieve the form in Other World, and if it took him several more years to get its rate of energy consumption slowed down, then so be it.
Today, he would try to maintain Super Saiyan 3 for as long as he could, even if the fatigue made him pass out later. Standing outside of his home on the expanse Mount Paozu, Goku stood meters away in a clearing, gritting his teeth and clenching his fists as a golden aura surged around him. Long hair of a similar color whipped about as the martial artist sparred with an imaginary opponent, repeatedly throwing punches and kicks in a rhythmic fashion that carried enough strength to level a mountain many times over. This carried on well until some hours later as the sun set, and Goku was left being extremely drained.
Sweat dribbled down his forehead in a miniature stream as he took a moment to breathe, feeling all of the nerves in his body burn with a searing pain. That wasn’t anything he’s never dealt with before, but weariness was beginning to set in and set in harshly. Figuring that was enough for now, the Saiyan stood up from his seated position on the grass, and walked back to his home with the intention of getting a nice bath set up over a fire to cleanse his body. A brush of his hand through the transformation’s long golden locks to clear his face only caused an awful lot of moisture to set on his skin, and Goku looked down at the sweat coating his hand with a grimace. Alongside bathing, he should definitely try to wash his mane of hair as well. He had forgotten that it tended to act like a giant sponge.
He went to work setting up one of their large bathing tubs, easily picking it up and filling it with the clean water from their home’s nearby river. Next, Goku started a fire and placed the barrel on top. He had a lot of time to kill before the water would be warm enough, but first, he did need to get the things he needed to bathe and dry himself afterwards.
Past his own stench, his nose picked up a delectable smell wafting from his mountain home, and it acted like a magnet. Goku opened the backdoor to the kitchen and stepped inside. He was greeted by the sight of his wife standing before their oven, that was covered in an assortment of occupied cookware.
“Goku?” Chi Chi looked over her shoulder from flipping a slab of meat in a frying pan, eyes widening at the sight of him. Particularly, how his face appeared in Super Saiyan 3. He knew she was still getting used to it.
“Did you finish training for today?”
“Mostly.” A soft smile unconsciously appeared on his face, which tended to happen whenever he saw her. He closed the door behind him, remembering that she hated it being left open.
“Why do you still…look like that then? Are you going to change back?”
“Not right now. Part of the training is staying in this form as long as I can, so my body will get more used to it. Remember how I did the same thing as a normal Super Saiyan?”
“…Yes, a little…” Properly turning towards him, she crossed her arms and had a frown pulling the corners of her lips down.
“What? You don’t like it?”
“I much prefer how you normally look, Goku. The “no eyebrows” thing keeps throwing me off.”
His initial response was to chuckle in amusement, and step closer to her. Whatever guard she had quickly melted, he noticed, as her features softened – especially when he wrapped an arm around her waist.
“I’ll change back before bed. Don’t want my freaky face to spook you.”
“It’s not freaky.” Chi Chi scoffed, laying a hand on his chest. “Just…very different. Not THAT big of a deal.”
“Well…thanks for understanding.”
Goku leaned down to lay a kiss on the bridge of her nose, immediately causing a blush to darken her fair skin. Her soured expression was completely gone now, replaced by a giddy smile. She looked so cute that he couldn’t resist giving her another kiss, this one further down her nose, though there was gratitude present in it as well.
Ever since his identity as a Saiyan came to light years ago, both for him and her, it changed a lot of things. For one, even though she was still adamant on Gohan keeping to his studies, she was far more understanding of why exactly he loved to fight so much. To push his limits and continue growing stronger. That first night he spent in the hospital after his battle with Vegeta was the first time they were together again in over a year, and they had a serious conversation over what’s occurred in their lives during the period; including Gohan’s.
It was all so long ago that he couldn’t remember every single thing they discussed, but one thing he vividly did is that Chi Chi made it clear he was still her husband. She still loved him, even with he belonging to a race of aliens that brought nothing but suffering to their planet back then. Loving combat was in his blood, and she would be a terrible wife to refuse accepting him for who he was.
That night lead such a deeper, intimate understanding to form between them that he felt even closer to her than he did previously. That remained true years later, to today.
“Of course.” She responded with a gentler tone, playing with a strand of his golden hair.
“Dinner will be ready soon. Gohan and Goten should be back from the arcade before then.”
That’s right; Goten did want to go to one. He knew Gohan wasn’t the type to play video games or the like, but he couldn’t turn down chaperoning his little brother.
“Sounds good. I’ll take a bath in the meantime.”
“You should.” She poked him halfheartedly. “The stink of your sweat is almost overwhelming.”
“Yeah…but I bet part of you likes it, huh?”
He grinned at her shocked look, and the deepening of her blush. It wasn’t as if their bodies have never been pressed together like this, with he being sweaty…
Goku walked away before she could retaliate for his tease, grabbing the items he needed then going back outside. He laid his towel and washcloth over the rim of the tub and did a few stretches while the water continued to warm. When it was at a suitable temperature, he stripped off his clothing and quickly hopped in.
Immediately, the Saiyan breathed a sigh of relief as he felt the soreness in his muscles being soothed. He sat there for some minutes, enjoying the warmth before he started to bathe. Foamy soap was spread over his skin and filled the water as he scrubbed himself, but he was soon presented with what would be the most daunting task in the moment. Goku grabbed a handful of his hair, grunting in slight vexation as he used his free hand to reach for the shampoo bottle. If he had to deal with this regularly, then maybe he could afford to spend a little less time maintaining Super Saiyan 3…
He paused when he heard a door open and close, detecting a familiar ki source approaching him.
“Chi?” Goku looked over towards his wife, seeing she lay her hands on the rim of the tub.
“Need some help, dear?” There was a giggling undertone to her voice, and he felt her grab a portion of his locks.
“I’d hate for you to deal with this lion’s mane all on your own.”
“I was just wondering how I’d manage it.” Goku admitted, shrugging. “Can you wash it for me?”
“I’d be happy to.”
He gladly sat back and relaxed, dampening his hair while Chi Chi took the bottle and squeezed a handful of shampoo into her palm. Pleasure shot from his head down his spine in tingles when she started working it in, rubbing his scalp and spreading the foam around until his head was almost entirely enveloped in it.
“Oh my, it’s like there’s even more than I thought. Why does this form of yours give you such long hair anyway?”
“I don’t know. It just…does.” He never thought about that, actually. Then again, he wasn’t sure why he also lost his eyebrows in 3, or why Super Saiyan in general made his hair turn gold either.
“Just another Saiyan mystery, hm? At least it’s soft and fluffy.”
He couldn’t see her face, but he could picture the amused look she had. With her presence, how good the warm water felt, and his still-existing fatigue, Goku felt so at ease that his eyelids suddenly were like weights. They involuntarily began drooping, and he didn’t put up much effort into keeping them open.
He missed this. Their family had already started going back to a new normal after Buu, but there was still no ignoring how there was a strong sense of yearning that persisted in his heart. Being deprived of this for 7 years, a decision he did choose to make though now questioned if his earlier belief in it keeping his family safe ended up making a difference in the end, was something he never wanted to go through again.
To put his sons through again. To put her through, again.
“I’m so happy you’re back, Goku…”
Like she sensed his thoughts, Chi Chi verbally acknowledged the atmosphere. Her voice cracked some, and he raised an arm from the water to hold one of her hands that currently rested on his chest.
“Me too. And, I’m not leaving. Never again.”
She returned the action, lacing her fingers with his. Another break of silence passed, but neither of them needed to say anything else. Chi Chi resumed lathering his golden mane, while her husband quietly relished in the feel of her ki. When she was done, he rinsed it by briefly dunking his head underwater, and stood up to get out of the tub.
Standing before Chi Chi, the blushing woman took his towel and dried his hair to the best of her ability, getting onto the tips of her toes some to lovingly press her forehead against his and brush their noses together.
“You know…this Super Saiyan 3 isn’t so bad. You’re still as handsome as ever.”
As always, she reminding him how attractive she found him caused Goku to beam.
“In that case, do you want me to come to bed like this?”
“Sure. I wouldn’t mind.”
The undertones of her singsong claim sparked a special kind of heat deep within him, but in a manner awfully similar to how he teased her earlier, she promptly left the towel hanging awkwardly over his head and walked back towards the house. He intently watched how she lightly – and purposefully – swung her hips back and forth.
“Go ahead and finish drying off, then get dressed. I’ll start setting the table.”
Though they were far, he sensed Gohan and Goten’s ki signatures coming closer at a speed that suggested they were probably riding on Nimbus. The little cloud wasn’t nearly as fast as them flying themselves, but it was fast enough that they would get here before he could try to get back at his other half and keep up this game. Darn.
Oh well. There was always tonight, and he wasn’t so tired that he would crash right away. With that in mind, Goku patted himself dry, smirking at the bedroom antics possible to be had after dinner and when their sons went to sleep.
There was a lot of lost time to make up for...