Chapter 32: Preparing to Train Gohan
Although Gohan was excited, there were still people here who needed protecting, so he only released a faint trace of his ki for a few seconds, just enough for Aeris to sense it.
He could not afford to gamble with their lives.
Aeris caught that weak signal almost instantly. It had only lasted a few seconds, but she knew without a doubt that it was Gohan.
So she flew straight toward it.
As for those two enemies getting in her way, well, they could try.
They probably would not survive even a casual slap from her anyway.
And the truth was exactly that.
Neither of them dared to get close to Aeris.
"It's that woman..."
"Should we try to absorb some of her energy?"
"She's too strong. She looks like Aeris, the Saiyan who disappeared years ago. If she can also transform into that blond-haired state, it would be a disaster. Forget absorbing her energy, we'd probably both die here."
The two speaking were Android 19 and Android 20, Dr. Gero.
Neither of them had been especially powerful at first, but after absorbing other people's energy, they had surpassed everyone else and nearly wiped out Gohan's side completely.
Android 19 said, "Should we wake those two?"
Dr. Gero shook his head. "Not yet. They still aren't fully repaired. If we release them now, we might be the first ones they kill."
"Then..."
"We find a way to get that woman's genetic data first. She's the one sample we never managed to collect."
Aeris was usually extremely careful about that sort of thing. Whenever she bled, she cleaned it up immediately. She never left traces behind, because she knew very well how troublesome she could be if someone targeted her.
Dr. Gero frowned and shook his head. This would not be easy.
This was someone even stronger than Son Goku had once been.
If Goku had not been suffering from heart disease, Dr. Gero knew he probably would have been killed in a single punch, without ever getting the chance to absorb anyone's energy.
And energy absorption only meant storing an enemy's power for temporary use.
Once that reserve ran out, they were finished.
So for now, they could only take the long view.
When Aeris arrived at Gohan's location, she was slightly surprised.
This was actually her villa.
Looks like Bulma came up with this, she thought. After all, in this future, I'm gone.
Then she looked at Bulma again.
She had aged. Not by a lot, but enough for it to show.
Aeris felt her nose sting.
"Bulma..."
The moment Bulma saw her, she rushed forward and threw herself into Aeris's arms.
"Aeris... wuwuwu..."
Aeris gently wiped away her tears.
"Bulma... you've worked hard. I'm here now. You can finally rest easy."
Aeris was about to head outside when she looked at Gohan.
"Gohan, come out for a minute. There's something I want to talk to you about."
After saying that, she walked out on her own, and Gohan hurried after her.
Once they spoke for a while, Aeris got a rough understanding of the situation.
"What a boring little desire," she muttered. "Still, I hope the two of you can at least bring me some entertainment."
The moment she finished speaking, she exploded with energy and shot into the sky, carefully searching for the two androids' presence.
"Tch. Pretty cautious, aren't they? Still... a cat-and-mouse game. I like that."
So Aeris flew around through the air, seemingly without direction.
In truth, that was more or less exactly what she was doing.
But by pure coincidence, most of the time she ended up right in front of them. Or rather, almost right in front of them.
She was searching for them.
And Android 20 was thoroughly annoyed.
This woman is so irritating...
Of course, Aeris had no idea how many times she had barely missed them. If she had known, she probably would have exploded on the spot and wrecked everything nearby.
Well... no, maybe not.
Bulma would absolutely scold her to death.
After failing to find anything, Aeris could only return.
At the end of the day, Androids 19 and 20 were no longer human in any real sense. Hiding their presence was far easier for them than it was for ordinary people.
"Aunt Aeris, you're back."
"Yeah. Those two rats are too good at hiding. I'm not going to find them anytime soon. And I can't stay in this timeline for long either."
There was a trace of disappointment in her voice.
Still, she quickly made up her mind.
She was going to train Gohan.
Only if Gohan himself became strong enough would he be able to protect the people and things he cared about.
Once she decided, she acted immediately.
Aeris first took out a capsule and handed it to Bulma. Inside were a large amount of badly needed food and medical supplies.
After giving Bulma the supplies, she left with Gohan.
On the way out, she noticed a cute little child with light purple hair. Aeris glanced at him twice, then looked away.
Gohan noticed and quickly explained,
"That child is Trunks. He's..."
He stopped halfway through.
He honestly did not know how to explain it.
Aeris had never liked Trunks' father very much in the past. At one point, she had almost killed him.
"Bulma's child, right?"
"...Yes."
After hearing that, Aeris's body stiffened slightly for a brief moment, then returned to normal.
"You don't need to explain. Bulma has her own life. There's nothing to dwell on. Still, just imagining the man who won her heart makes my teeth itch."
Gohan could only laugh awkwardly.
Aeris and Bulma had always been incredibly close.
And in the end, someone else had taken Bulma away.
Anyone would be upset about that.
Especially this person standing in front of him.
"Let's go, Gohan."
Aeris said no more and walked forward without looking back.
But the atmosphere around her made Gohan's scalp tingle.
He knew very well that this aunt of his had a strange temper. Other than Aunt Bulma, there really was no one who could keep her in check.
"Are you coming or not?" Aeris turned back to look at him.
"Y-Yes, Aunt Aeris!"
Gohan hurried after her at once.
If he kept standing there, he had a feeling things would end very badly for him.
Aeris took Gohan to Bulma's old house.
Then, to his confusion, she started digging into the ground.
Soon, she pulled out a strange box.
"This contains clothes your father used to wear. A special training outfit."
As she spoke, she handed one set to Gohan.
He quickly took it, but the moment it landed in his hands, he felt the weight.
Still, he managed to hold it steady.
Then he looked at the other set.
"Aunt Aeris, whose is the other one?"
"Piccolo's."
Aeris did not bother hiding it, so she answered directly.
"Enough questions. Get dressed. Training starts now."
With that, Aeris sat down on the spot.
Gohan did not question her and quickly moved aside to change.
But the moment he put the clothes on, his expression changed.
He felt as if his strength had suddenly disappeared, and even his body felt different.
Aeris looked at him and casually explained the function of the clothes again.
"All right. Start with a ten-kilometer run to warm up."
The moment he heard that, Gohan immediately started running.
He had the distinct feeling that if he did not adapt fast, he would collapse like a dead dog before he even finished the ten kilometers.