A rickety car rockets through a rocky wasteland, bouncing wildly over jagged terrain. Inside, a young woman's voice rings out, brimming with confidence and a princess-like attitude.
"Where is that darn ball?!" she snaps, gripping the wheel.
The car hits a rock, tilting sharply, her head smacking the roof.
"Damn this place!" she curses, flooring the gas.
Meanwhile, Goku, now 12, trudges through the wilderness, dragging a massive rabbit behind him. His face is shadowed, heavy with grief over Gohan's death.
"Wasn't expecting it to hit me this hard..." he mutters, lost in thought.
A distant rumble snaps him out of it. He squints, spotting a car barreling toward him at breakneck speed.
"He'll brake eventually," Goku thinks, shrugging it off.
The car doesn't slow. The engine's roar mixes with a woman's scream.
"Hey, slow down! I said slo-" Goku starts.
The car slams into him, halting dead on impact. Goku's sent flying, crashing through a tree that splinters under his weight, landing 200 meters away, sprawled on his stomach.
The young woman, dressed in a flowing pink dress with turquoise hair tied in a braid, stumbles out of the wrecked car.
"Ohhh my god, I killed a him!" she wails, sprinting toward Goku.
As she reaches him, he lifts his head, arms behind it.
"Brakes, bitch! Ever heard of 'em?!" Goku snaps.
Her eyes widen in terror. This kid-alive, unscathed, and mouthing off? She shrieks, bolting back to her car. Grabbing an Uzi, she opens fire.
"You won't eat me, monster!" she screams.
Bullets pepper Goku, bouncing off his Saiyan-tough skin, but each hit stings.
"Stop! Ouch! Stop, you fucking psycho! Ouch!" Goku yells, scrambling to his feet as the chaos unfolds.
The machine gun's roar fades, leaving only the woman's screams and the click of an empty magazine. Half the bullets hit Goku, half shred the tree behind him.
"Aaaaaah, this monster attacked my caaaaar!!!" she shrieks.
"This bitch! YOU hit me with your sorry driving skills!" Goku snaps.
Her screaming stops abruptly, her face twisting into a pissed-off scowl.
"Mediocre skills? I'm an ace driver! I got my license on my first try, you want to know why?" she retorts.
"No," Goku deadpans.
"Because I'm a GENIUS! And also beautiful, thehehe," she boasts, tossing her turquoise braid.
"Barf," Goku mutters.
"It's your fault if your head hit my car," she accuses.
Goku clenches his fist. "This bitch!" he growls under his breath.
Without a word, Goku stands, hoists the giant rabbit over his shoulder, and starts walking away. She notices and shouts after him.
"Hey, where are you going?" she demands.
"Why do you want to know?" Goku shoots back.
"That's why I hate hillbillies, no manners! Leaving a beautiful thing like me in this precarious situation!" she huffs.
"Hillbil-!" Goku starts, incredulous.
"But I can't be mad at you. My beauty can be overwhelming for the average person," she says, smirking. "Where are my manners? My name is Bulma. What's yours, kid?"
"Bunsh... Goku, Son Goku," he grumbles.
Without another word, Goku turns and heads home. Bulma follows, chattering nonstop.
"Is it far? Do you have a hot tub? I need to bathe. Go buy me some new clothes. My feet hurt. Why do you have a tail...?" she rambles.
Goku, a manipulative, cocky bastard in his past life, always had the upper hand over people's minds. But now, he thinks to himself, *Why is this teenage girl pissing me off?*
After a few minutes, they reach his home-a shack with no electricity or running water. Nearby, Gohan's grave looms. Bulma eyes the place skeptically.
"Huuuum, that's your house..." she says, unimpressed.
Goku tosses the rabbit on the ground and enters to grab equipment for a rabbit stew, as Gohan taught him. He kicks off his shoes at the door, a habit. Bulma, still wearing her dirty shoes, follows him inside.
"Can't you have respect and remove your dirty shoes!?" Goku snaps.
Bulma freezes, eyes wide, mouth agape. Goku hesitates, *Was I too harsh?*
"Hey, listen, I'm sorry, I didn't mean to-" he starts.
Before he can finish, Bulma bolts past him, leaving him speechless. She stops at an open box, snatches something inside, and spins around with a massive grin.
"Found it! The 4-star Dragon Ball!!!" she exclaims, holding it triumphantly.