Before the group could continue voicing their opinions over the celebrity, they were suddenly caught completely off guard when the intrepid billionaire himself approached them. Ambling down the aisle accompanied by his secretary and bodyguards, the man in the goatee grinned when he set his sights on the teenagers in front of him and lifted his arms in amazement.
"Now this is a real honor," Kaiser exclaimed in an enthusiastic tone of voice, "I never expected to run into the daughter of the World Marital Arts Champion and Savior, Hercule Satan." Stopping directly in front of the girl in question, the man placed a hand over his chest and bowed to her in respect. "Ms Videl… it is a real pleasure to finally be able to meet you in person." The man then humbly extended a hand to her. "I've heard a great many things about you."
At first surprised by the company boss's friendly greeting, the baffled Videl quickly realized what was happening and, removing her arm from around Gohan, brushed her hand against her shirt before seizing the billionaire's palm. "The pleasure is all mine… sir?" She then balked a little when she felt her hand gently pulled towards the magnate and felt him kiss the back of her knuckles in a gentleman's greeting.
Upon doing so, Kaiser then looked up at her from his bent over position and smiled. "Everything they say about you is true. You truly are as fierce and as beautiful as they made you out to be in the news; the embodiment of femininity and virtue… a person who is doing everything in her power to make this world a better place."
Blinking a couple of times, the raven haired teen grinned nervously. "Oh… y-yeah. That… sort of sounds a bit like me."
Kaiser chuckled, continuing to hold her hand in his like a piece of valuable treasure. "There's no need to be so modest. A hero is allowed to acknowledge the praise given to them from the people they protect. It's all part and parceled, after all." The billionaire then beamed at her in a very charming manner. "I can imagine a radiant soul such as yourself would receive an enormous amount of gratitude, commendation and respect from the public, especially one that you so passionately defend."
Another anxious chuckle came from the girl standing in front of him. "Well, I do my best. But honestly, I don't do it for any kind of reward. I fight to protect the safety and wellbeing of Satan City and its citizens… because it's the right thing to do."
Unbeknownst to the raven haired crime fighter, Gohan, who was standing behind her and watching the man's interactions with his girlfriend, frowned a little at how close the guy was getting to her. Erasa too also shared a similar expression of distaste, but remained quiet and courteous as her friend continued to trade pleasantries with the pioneer and entrepreneur.
"And so it is," Kaiser nodded in agreement, placing his other hand on top of hers and shaking it eagerly. "You and the Gold Fighter have been doing a marvelous job at keeping the peace. My heart is moved to hear that we have such courageous and powerful individuals like the two of you putting their lives on the line for our world." He then turned his attention to the people standing behind her, inadvertently missing the scowls he was receiving from Gohan and Erasa, both of whom switched back to their respective neutral stares. Upon sizing them up, the man released his grip on Videl's hand and slipped his right into his pants pocket, allowing him to better scope out the girl's compatriots. "Oh? Are these young men and women friends of yours… or fans?"
Jolting back into reality, Videl nodded and, reversing to her boyfriend's side, gestured to each of her classmates in kind. "They're my friends, sir. Well… more like my best friends." She pointed to the demi-Saiyan next to her and then made her way down the row, "This here is Gohan, Erasa, Lime, Touya and Yuki. I've known all of them for a very long time now." When all of them waved or nodded to the man after their names were called out, the crime fighter went back to the first in line and beamed proudly. "But Gohan over here I've known the longest. He's my training partner and my boyfriend." She then turned around and gave the other girls a smug grin.
This earned envious glares from both Erasa and Lime, the latter of whom raised a fist and shook it discreetly at the teenager.
Hearing this announcement drew a lighthearted laugh from Kaiser, "Is that so? How very interesting. I never expected the powerful Videl Satan to have her heart stolen away by a classmate of hers so readily." He then stepped towards the demi-Saiyan on the girl's left and looked him squarely in the eye. "But I suppose when you're young and in the prime of your life, stuff like this is to be expected. This boy does look to be quite the gentleman and a scholar." He then pulled his right hand out of his pocket and held it towards the spiky haired teen. "I'm sorry, it was… Gohan, right?"
"Oh? Yes. That's right," the demi-Saiyan replied, rubbing the back of his head with his left while cordially shaking hands with the celebrity with his right. "Son Gohan. Nice to meet you." The grip he formed around the man's limb was firm and tight.
"It's always a pleasure to shake hands with a person that has a good work ethic and a strong heart." When he saw the inquisitive look being given to him by the boy, Kaiser nodded to the link they'd formed with their arms and continued. "I can tell by the calluses on your hands. You are clearly a man who has seen his fair share of manual labor and strife over the course of his youth… toiling away at the fields, hitting the iron bag and working the metal at construction sites."
Gohan, as well as a couple other people there, were genuinely surprised by the man's spot-on analysis. "You could tell all that just by looking at my hands?"
"Why of course. Human physiology and psychology are two of my favorite hobbies," Kaiser replied with a firm nod of his head. "This world has been constructed and built up on the backs of hardworking men and women like yourself for centuries. I'm glad to be able to make the acquaintance of someone who still follows that old code of conduct, especially when they're a friend of the daughter of our planet's savior," Kaiser replied, disengaging from the handshake and slipping his right into his jacket pocket. "And I say that with the utmost sincerity." He then smiled across at the other faces standing around him. "This! This is exactly the kind of thing that I love to see; students of different backgrounds and classes coming together in the bonds of friendship, to learn and grow with one another side-by-side. Even without knowing any of you, I can see in the faces of every person present the will, the determination, and the desire to achieve something… to work and strive for a better future. Whether it's for the benefit of their friends, the benefit of themselves, or for the benefit of the world, it doesn't matter. Whatever the case may be, it always brings a warm smile to my face to know that everywhere I go, there are people willing to make an effort to accomplish their dreams."
Gohan, feeling his spirit lift at the gentleman's tone, nodded to him in agreement, "A lot of people share the same vision of a world where they can work and live in peace, without the stress of conflict or misfortune." He then gave the man a shrug. "As long as we're willing to work together and keep pushing forward, I'm sure that with enough time and energy… anything is possible."
"Hard work has gotten us this far in life," Lime announced, drawing the group's gaze to her as she beamed up at the billionaire magnate and stood by her crush. "If you can get to where you are with good, old-fashioned perseverance and axel grease, then I think we can do it to."
A chuckle left the boss's lips as he looked at the group's smiling faces. "My, my. I see we have a couple of very optimistic dreamers in this bunch." After taking in their individual expressions, Kaiser then placed his hands on his hips and nodded. "Well, whatever your goals or aspirations may be, don't let somebody like me or anyone else, stand in your way. Just remember…" He then raised a finger and wagged it towards them, "there is a very fine line between need and desire. It is in a human's nature to want more out of life… and whether or not this nature is based off of good or bad intentions, it doesn't matter. If a person should find themselves on the path to seeking prosperity, chances are that their dreams and ambitions will become corrupted by the vices of the world. The more a person gets, the more they will crave… which in turn will lead to greed and dishonor." Upon saying this to the group, he then spared one last glance in Gohan's direction and threw him a warm grin. "Be very careful. The world is full of danger and peril. As bright and as good as it may seem, there is always going to be darkness lurking around every corner."
Blinking at the man's remark, the demi-Saiyan quickly processed his words before giving a nod of understanding.
Once he was certain the teen had heard him, the boss of Talos Industries straightened his jacket, smiled, and looked back at his secretary. When he saw the purple haired woman adjust her glasses, the company owner spoke, "Well then, I suppose I'd better be off. Once again, it was a real pleasure meeting you all… and I hope to see each and every one of you at the banquet." Starting from Videl, the man once more shook hands with her, and proceeded to do so with the other teenagers behind Gohan. He made extra certain to kiss Erasa on the knuckles just as he did the girls before her, but when he did, he completely missed the hesitant and tentative expression that appeared on the blonde's face.
The moment he was through expressing his fondest farewells to the troop of youngsters, the boss directed his guards and his secretary to follow him. In a matter of seconds, the man vanished into the crowd on his way towards the exit. Almost as soon as he started to move, a whole collection of students from the assembly began following him out, with quite a few of them snapping pictures of the visiting entrepreneur on their phones.
As Kaiser's presence faded into the distance, Videl and the others watched on carefully for several moments as the population of the chamber thinned out. When the smiling raven haired girl felt his presence disappear entirely, she then turned to see how Gohan and the others had taken the situation. It came as somewhat of a surprise to her when she saw Gohan and Erasa were glaring in the man's direction, indicating something was wrong.
"Hey… guys?" the crime fighter spoke, informing Touya, Lime and Yuki of the issue with their companions. Holding up a hand, the martial artist stepped towards her boyfriend worriedly, "What's up? Why do you look so gloomy? Did something happen? "
"No. Nothing happened, Videl. It's just that… well," Gohan whispered, his troubled expression breaking out a single bead of sweat as he shook his head. "I want to tell you… but… I just… can't quite explain it."
"I can," Erasa spoke up, drawing the team's gazes towards her as the blonde made her remarks. "It's Kaiser. He may look like a really cool guy in the papers, magazine articles and the net, but there was something off about the way he was acting towards us that really didn't sit well with me. The way he smiled, the way he laughed and the way he talked to us… it just… all sounded so fake." It was the only word she could think of to describe what she picked up.
Lime blinked at the solemn expression on her friend's face, "Fake? You mean… nothing that he said to us was real?" She then saw the blonde nod.
Finding her words hard to swallow, Touya and Yuki shared looks with one another before turning back to their normally chipper and welcoming friend.
"Really? I didn't sense anything wrong with him," the boy with the glasses replied.
"Yeah. Me neither," his girlfriend also said.
However, while both of these youngsters had something to say in doubt towards the girl's observations, Lime didn't. Being Erasa's roommate and also her closest comrade next to Videl, the brown haired girl from the mountains frowned as she began mulling over the events prior to Kaiser's departure from their presence. As the seconds passed, her mind began to open up some more, and slowly but surely, she too started to see something was off about the man's character as well.
She just couldn't put a finger on what exactly that was…
"Are you sure, Erasa?" Videl asked, tilting her head at her friend inquisitively. "Maybe you were just looking at him from a weird angle. How could you tell?"
Shooting a serious look towards the sportsman and his doe-hybrid girlfriend, the blonde set her hands on her hips and looked towards her best friend with a frown. "I've studied cinema and film for years, Videl… and I've hung out with many different cliques over the course of three different schools. I've gotten so used to reading people's moods and expressions that it's gotten to the point that I can tell when someone is genuinely happy and when someone is playing bullshit with me… and this guy was playing us big time." When Videl and the others gave her a look, Erasa threw her arms at them. "Come on! You're one of the sharpest people in our school and you honestly couldn't see any of it? Just think about what he said to us for a second."
Processing the girl's question as well as her words, the raven haired fighter then did as she was instructed and thought about it for a moment, seconds before looking down with an intense scowl. When her mind played back the scenario for her again and again, an uncomfortable murmur left her lips. "Actually… now that you mention it, there was something creepy about the way he spoke to me and held my hand."
Despite how well meaning and sincere it came across, the thought of his gentlemanly gesture and the way he smiled at her afterwards caused a cold chill to run up her spine.
"You can say that again," Gohan spoke up, looking down at his girlfriend with a deep frown. "I didn't like how he was getting so chummy with you."
When she heard her crush's serious tone in regards to the matter, the poster girl of Satan City glanced up at the teen before a small grin formed across her face. "Oh… did I hear that right? Is my goody-two-shoes, innocent boyfriend from out of town feeling a little jealous at having another guy kiss my hand as a friendly 'hello'?"
The demi-Saiyan, balking a little, looked away with red in his cheeks and a nervous look on his face, "W-Well… a little bit… yeah."
This then led to Videl playfully poking him in the face, "You're sweet. Don't worry. There's no other guy on this planet that I'm interested in except you." She then looked over her shoulder and narrowed her eyes once again. "Anyway, it's not that a lot of other guys haven't done something like that before… public officials, businessmen from wealthy families, and politicians that my dad knows… but the way Kaiser came across to me was off par. He just… played it really well."
"Like a pro," Erasa remarked with a nod, before then looking across at her childhood friend with a serious look. "Believe me… I almost bought it for a second there. But then he started talking to you guys and, even though I could hear and see a person, all I could think was snake."
Her remarks brought on a few new thoughts and emotions to the demi-Saiyan and his compatriots. After dawning on this information for a little while longer and sharing somber looks with one another, they were then interrupted from their moment when the other member of their group finally returned. Long blonde hair trailing behind him and across his broad, singlet-wearing shoulders, Sharpener ambled up to the group standing in the middle of the aisle all casual-like, accompanied by a girl with short, red hair that had a purple highlight on the forward bang, wearing a silver jersey over a tank top, a blue miniskirt, and shin-high black boots.
When he saw the troubled expressions worn on all of his friends, Gohan included, the confused sportsman blinked before glancing at the city's poster girl. "Did I miss something important?" He then thumbed over his shoulder, "Sorry, I got a little bit caught up back there. What happened?"
"Oh. Nothing much. We just had a little chat with billionaire Kaiser Talos," Touya answered, keeping his arm wrapped around his girlfriend as they greeted their classmate in the usual manner.
"He was a pretty cool guy, but Erasa, Gohan, and Videl seem to think otherwise," Yuki finished, while also sparing a nod towards the trio in question. "That basically sums up everything that happened in the last ten or so minutes."
Lime, hands in her pockets, then gestured towards the jock and his plus one. "What about you? What's been going on over on your end of the soccer pitch? And who's this?"
"Oh. Well…" Clearing his throat, the long haired jock then held out both his hands and framed the young woman with the highlight standing alongside him. "Let me introduce you guys to Sena. Sena… these guys are my friends, Videl, Gohan, Erasa, Yuki, Lime, and… such-and-such." He did this while waving a dismissive hand in Touya's general direction.
"Hey! Don't try to write me off as some side-character in your cheesy romance story! I'm standing right here!" the boy with the brown hair and glasses practically shouted, drawing the startled gazes of several other students in the area.
Completely disregarding his friend's exclamations, Sharpener blew him off with another hand wave, "Yeah, yeah. Whatever." He then spared a smile towards the redhead standing directly beside him. "They're the group I was telling you about earlier."
"Yeah. I kind of figured that. I've seen you hanging around with these guys in the school's quad during recess and lunch," the newcomer, Sena, exclaimed, grinning from ear to ear as she moved forward and held her hand out to Erasa. "Great to finally bump into you fellas." She then took hold of and vigorously shook hands with the blonde girl, baffling her at the enthusiasm in her gesture.
The bubbly teen grinned nervously back at the tomboy, who soon relinquished her hand after nearly shaking the bones out of her body. "It's… great to run into you as well." After getting a good look at the newcomer beaming at her, Erasa then craned her head around and peered in her fellow blonde classmate's direction. "So? This is the girl that has managed to lure in and capture the great Sharpener's attention?"
"Indeed it is," the sportsman nodded.
"Hm. Not bad," Erasa chirped, stepping back, placing her chin between her thumb and finger, and giving Sena an approving once over. "Not bad at all." This in turn caused the tomboy to look back at her in confusion, before then blush when she felt the stares of several of the other teenagers begin boring into her from the sides.
Noticing the girl's plight, Videl stepped forward and waved her hands in front of them, "Come on you guys. Let's not scare the poor thing off in the first five minutes. We haven't even had the chance to get to know her yet." She then turned to the tomboy and nodded to her in greeting. "Don't mind, Erasa. She can be a little bit overbearing at times, but she's a great friend once you get around her super-high moments and her general, all-around, bubbly personality."
"Ah. I don't mind," Sena replied quickly with a cheerful expression, at the same time sensing Sharpener step in from behind to stand protectively on her right flank. "Believe me. I get around a lot. Three years at Red Star Senior has allowed me to get used to her type."
"Good. Then I guess we can skip all of the hard stuff and move on to the easy stuff," Gohan spoke up, moving in as well to make his introductions, with Lime and the others at his side. He then raised his left hand in greeting, "Hey there. We're Sharpener's friends… otherwise known as Class 3-B's local misfits."
Sena giggled at that reference, particularly when she saw Videl and Erasa wave and pose in response to the self-proclaimed title. "So the legends have been told." She then spared a glance back at Sharpener, who grinned anxiously and scratched his cheek in an uneasy manner. After seeing the boy's look, the girl shrugged and stared back at the others. "But that doesn't matter. As long as you guys aren't against sneaking out at night and partying every once in a while then I've got nothing to complain about. I mean… what fun's a social life without a little bit of drama in it?"
This in turn drew a chuckle from Videl, who placed her hands on her hips. "Oh yeah. I think you're going to fit into our group just fine."
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