A.N.: The sequel is officially up! Here is the prologue. Something that you need to know: Book 2 and Book 3 diverge from Book 1. Book 2 is the Mirai timeline while Book 3 is in the regular timeline. Enjoy!

Different Upbringing (Book 2): Under Hardship

Summary: In the timeline where the androids terrorize the Earth, Son Arata falls to Frig but not before Natsuki, her daughter, is able to escape. Natsuki arrives on Earth and found by Gohan. Follow Natsuki through the tough challenges of going into the past and the possibility of getting her mother rescued in the past timeline.

By: Givihe

Prologue

-Fight then Flight-

-Somewhere in Space-

"Mamma!" a young girl's voice screamed. In front of the young girl, an unconscious body fell to the ground with a sickening 'thud'. Another figure heard the girl's cry and looked to his left. His eyes widened immediately in horror and shock.

"Don't worry, you two will join her soon." A crackly voice said.

"Over my dead body." The figure growled before throwing a powerful blast of his towards the voice that had tormented so many before him. He knelt next to the body that had fallen. "Arata. Arata, wake-up."

"Get Natsuki away." The body, known as Arata, sputtered out before letting out her last breath.

Anger and sadness built up in the figure's body, his power rising and falling. Keeping his promise, the figure ran towards the girl, known as Natsuki, and grabbed her while he still had time. He ran away from the dead body, much to Natsuki's protest.

"My mamma. Katsu, my mamma." Natsuki tried to remind the man, thinking that he had forgotten her dead mother.

"No time Natsuki." Katsu answered.

"But-" Natsuki protested again only to be cut off.

"Your mother is dead, Natsuki, and I'm going to fulfill that last promise I made to her." Katsu argued sternly, secretly feeling for the 4 year old that he thought of as a daughter.

Tears welled up in Natsuki's eyes. "B-But-" she stuttered.

Katsu looked at the young girl with sadness. "Natsuki, this isn't a time to be sad, alright?" he asked, the girl nodded. "Now, do you still have that note your mother gave you?"

Natsuki nodded. "I do." She said.

Katsu noticed that they were close to the ship bay. "Good." He said as they entered the ship bay and placed her down. "Go into that pod right there." Katsu pointed Natsuki to the pod he had meant.

Natsuki nodded. "Aren't you coming?" she asked.

Katsu sighed. "We don't have time Natsuki." He said. "I'll do my best to come behind you, but I can't promise anything."

Natsuki nodded and ran and go into the small pod. The door closed quickly behind her at Katsu's directions. Katsu typed in the coordinates that Arata had forced him to memorize. Within minutes of typing in the coordinates, the pod took off. Be safe, Natsuki. Katsu thought sadly.

"Well, isn't that sweet?" the crackly voice was back. Katsu turned to see the tormentor that had been in control of him for the past 2 years. "Tell me where the girl is heading and I'll spare your life."

"No." Katsu said sternly. "There is nothing that you can do Frig that would make me tell you where she is going. I made a promise and I plan to keep that promise."

The tormentor, also known as Frig, smirked. "Very well." He said. "Then it is your time to join that other monkey before we track down the girl."

Katsu smirked sadly. "We'll all be going." He said as he raised his hand in front of his body.

"What are you doing?" Frig demanded.

"Just what I need to do." Katsu said as he charged a dangerously large energy ball in front of his body. "This is for all of the torment you have caused to Arata and everyone else who was under you!" As Katsu yelled his last words, he threw the energy towards the space that held the ship's generator.

Already at a safe distance, Natsuki watched out of the small window at the ship she had called home for the start of her life blew up in a huge explosion. "KATSU!" Natsuki yelled as tears trailed down her cheeks. "NO!"

"Sleep mode activated." An automated feminine voice said threw the speaker.

Natsuki fought the gas as long as she could, but the fact that Natsuki was only 4 years old didn't help her. Natsuki was fast asleep within minutes. The ship and the 2 precious people in her life quickly faded as the small pod escaped the blast.

-Other World-

A familiar young woman paced in close respect to King Yemma's desk. She was the same person that had died not minutes ago trying to protect her daughter, Natsuki. Arata had failed to get Natsuki to safety and only hopped that Katsu was able to get Natsuki away fast enough.

"Arata, I'm positive Natsuki's fine." An unfamiliar voice said.

Arata growled slightly before apologizing to the older man beside her. "Sorry Father." She said softly as she stopped her pacing. "I'm just worried."

The man beside her smiled. "That's natural for a mother to be worried. Trust me, ChiChi was the same way." He said.

Arata sighed. "It isn't that I don't trust Katsu, I'm just worried that Frig caught him and Natsuki before he could do anything." She sighed.

"Have some faith in me." A voice said.

Arata looked in the direction of the voice and smiled with relief. Before she said anything, Arata shoved herself into Katsu's arms. "Thank-you." Arata said. "Natsuki?"

Katsu smiled. "Natsuki got away in the pod, heading towards Earth as you wanted me to do." He said. "Frig demanded that I say where she was going and I threw a blast towards the generator."

Arata chuckled. "Frig wasn't that bright to put the generator in such an open space." She said. "Anyway, Katsu, I'd like for you to meet my father: Goku. Father, I'd like you to meet Katsu: a good friend of mine for 3 years."

Goku nodded and smiled. "Nice to meet another Saiyan." He said.

Katsu nodded. "Same here." He said. "There weren't many of us left."

"Well, I think that we should get up to King Kai's planet." Goku said. "Everyone up there has been curious as to what has been going on. King Kai picked up on that battle near the end of the middle."

Arata smiled shyly as Goku placed his hand on her shoulder. Katsu grabbed her hand in his and smiled. Everything will be alright from here. Arata thought to herself before their figures disappeared from King Yemma's desk.

-On Earth-

An exhausted and badly beaten 18 year old Gohan slowly flew towards the direction of his home on Mount Pazu. His eyes were half-closed as he fought to stay awake a little longer. As he flew over a section of forest, a crater in the middle caught Gohan's eye; causing him to stop in the middle of the air.

In the crater was a white shaped sphere was tinted windows. Gohan eyed is suspiciously as he landed close to it. This looks just like the pods that Vegeta and Nappa came in years ago. Gohan thought curiously.

Without warning, the front of the pod popped out. Gohan's eyes widened as he noticed a little girl, not more than the age of 4, sleeping inside the pod. As he analyzed the young girl, a small corner, of what he guessed as paper, caught Gohan's eye. Leaning closer, he confirmed the corner as a sheet of paper.

Gohan gently pulled the paper and opened it carefully reading over the beginning of it. The paper slipped from his hands. Arata's daughter? I didn't even think she would still be alive. He thought.

Gohan grabbed the paper again and placed it in his already ruined gi before carefully picking up the small girl. He held her securely against his chest as he flew into the air once again. Gohan immediately headed in the direction of his home, knowing his mother should hear the note as well.

When Gohan arrived at the house, he sensed his mother's ki inside the house as usual. "Mom?" Gohan called softly.

"I'm here Gohan." ChiChi called in an equally soft voice. She set down the knitting she was currently doing, sensing something off. ChiChi stood up just in time for Gohan to walk into the kitchen with the young girl in his arms. "Oh heavens, where did you find her?"

Gohan sighed. "It is an extremely long story." He said, holding up the thick note. "And it's all here; you won't believe it. But first, I'd like for her to be in a bed first."

ChiChi nodded. "Let's put her in Arata's old room." She said, already leading the way.

Talk about irony. Gohan thought as he followed his mother to Arata's old room.

Arata. Gohan thought sadly. If it wasn't for me, you'd still be here.

Gohan placed the girl in the made, and slightly dusty, bed and pulled the covers over her to make sure the girl would stay warm. Gohan then followed his mother to the living room.

"You should probably sit down, mom." Gohan said softly.

"That bad?" ChiChi questioned her son.

Gohan sighed. "You have no idea." He said as he opened the note and started reading:

Mom, Dad, and Gohan-

If you are reading this, it means that I have failed to protect the one thing in my life that is important right now. In case you're wondering, this is, in fact, Arata: your daughter/sister. It has been a while and I'm sorry that I can't be there in person to say this to your faces.

The girl that you found in the pod is my daughter. Her name is Son Natsuki and she is almost 4 years old. I've kept the last name in honor of you guys: my family. Natsuki's story is a long story, as well is mine. There isn't a question needed to be asked to know that you all are curious as to what has, or in this case: had, happened to me.

After Raditz had captured me, he brought me to Frieza (whom I'm sure you know of by now). Frieza claimed that my emotions were a weakness and would have killed me on the spot if it wasn't for my incredible power (the reason Raditz took me in the first place). Not wanting to deal with a 2 year old "brat", Frieza sent me to King Cold (Frieza's father). King Cold assigned me to his right hand man: Onio.

Under Onio's eyes, he forced me to put away my emotions in order to be a better fighter and servant to Frieza. I'm not going to lie when I say that life under Onio was horrible. Just as cruel as King Cold himself, I was beaten to near death for every little emotion that I showed. The pain was intense, but it made me stronger. After a while, I learned to keep my emotions to myself until I was in my own room (where I wouldn't be harmed for it).

When I was 3, King Cold returned me to Frieza's ship. Frieza assessed my progress and deemed it acceptable. Following from there, Frieza put me under Vegeta's (Prince Vegeta himself) guidance and training. He was responsible for getting me stronger so Frieza could use me for missions. Vegeta would probably deny it to anyone who asked, but Vegeta did treat me well. In my opinion, he formed a small bond with me, thinking of me as his own daughter.

At the age of 4, it was informed that Raditz had been killed on Earth by 2 warriors named Piccolo and Goku. I recognized the name "Goku" and was informed that he was in fact my father. And because of this, Frieza forbid me from going to Earth with Vegeta and Nappa (who went there because of "Dragonballs". I'm sure you know that). So, while Vegeta and Nappa went to Earth, I was placed under the guidance and training of Zarbon.

Just like Onio, life under Zarbon was torturous. He treated me horribly and beat me nearly twice a day. Most of the time those beatings were for no reason. I soon learned to cope with the beatings since it only made me stronger.

When I was 5, I was by Frieza's and Zarbon's sides as they gathered the Namekian Dragonballs. As Frieza was gathering the 5th ball (I believe), 2 small figures jumped in and saved a young Namekian. One was bald and had an orange gi. The other, I recognized as you Gohan. Frieza saw my realization and pieced together the resemblance and quickly took action. He didn't want to lose my extraordinary power, so he sent me to King Cold's ship (yet again), before anyone could rescue me, let alone recognize me.

King Cold claimed that he didn't have any space for me, so he sent me to another leader of the Planet Trade Organization (that is what the Cold Empire is/was involved with). The other leader was Frig, Frieza's son. He wasn't nearly as strong as Frieza but enough to compete with.

Apparently another small group of Saiyans had escaped the explosion of Planet Vegeta and one descendant of that group was on that ship. Frig placed me under that Saiyan's guidance and training. His name was Daisuke. Daisuke treated me like his own daughter, often protecting me when we were confronted with any of Frig's minions.

2 years had passed before Frig was notified of King Cold's and Frieza's death by a mysterious stranger. Knowing of both of their power levels, I knew it must have been someone associated with you. Unfortunately, both deaths caused strain on Frig and Cooler (King Cold's other son).

Although it was often busy or straining or stressful, the years passed without many incidents. It was known throughout Frig's ship that Earth was having troubles, troubles of which I didn't know or care about at the time. By the time I turned 14, Frig called Daisuke and I into his quarters. He claimed to know of Saiyan ceremonies and forced Daisuke to perform the "coming-of-age" ceremony. I'm sure you can guess what this consists of, but in case you don't, here is it: Basically, an older Saiyan gentleman is to have sex with the young girl. Daisuke reluctantly did as he was told to do and was gentle with me, but only a couple months passed when it was told that I was pregnant.

Daisuke found out that Frig knew this would happen and he was furious. There wasn't much that we could do about it, but he told me not to let it tear me down; that was what Frig was trying to do since I still wasn't falling to him. Since you know the drill of pregnancy, mom, I don't have to explain it. 9 months later, I gave birth to a girl, whom I named Natsuki. I named her that because part of her meaning is "vegetables, greens". I did this to remember you guys and to be honest, if it wasn't for her, I would have killed myself earlier.

Another year passed and I was 15 when another descendant of the small group that escaped the explosion of Planet Vegeta came to Frig's ship. Apparently he had been a trouble maker on Cooler's ship, which soon blew up from one of his "tricks". His name was Katsu. Natsuki will often speak of him as a father figure and to be honest he was capturing my heart as well.

When I turned 16, Frig demanded that Natsuki started training. Daisuke erupted in rage, saying that she would not. That caused him to lose his life. Despite his argument, I did agree to train her, but only so she could defend herself. Natsuki does know how to fly, some of my ki attacks, and basic hand-to-hand combat.

Another 2 years later, Katsu was getting annoyed, angry, and restless. Katsu pulled me aside and said we should start a revolution. At first I didn't agree, but he persuaded me by saying that whatever was going on on Earth must be keeping anyone from rescuing me (and I'm sure he was right). I agreed and wrote this letter in case things went wrong. As said in the beginning, if you're reading this; things have gone wrong and I'm probably dead by now. I had prepared 2 months previous to the revolution to make sure of Natsuki's survival.

Gohan, I know what you're thinking. You're blaming yourself for this. DON'T. It isn't your fault. What happened all those years ago was the result of our young age. Trust me when I say that things happen for a reason. Personally, I believe that Natsuki can help you with whatever is going on there when she is much older and I strongly urge it. Natsuki may seem weak (or whatever you want to call it) but when she is angry or determined, Natsuki is incredible in any fight.

I'm not sure how things look on Earth and I'm not even sure if everyone I'm addressing is alive (I personally hope so), but Gohan, I know you're alive. I've had dreams over the years where I have seen you fighting some kind of enemy. So I trust you with this important task: I want you to protect her. Protect her like she was your own daughter, or if it helps, think of her as me. She has my personality, I can tell you that much. Gohan, you're just like father, strong and determined (I remember that). Whatever is going on there, you can handle it. I know and believe you can.

Natsuki will have some memory of me, so you may ask her for some detail of me, but I must warn you: it isn't all that pretty. There are times where I have been someone that I'm completely ashamed of. What I've done and what I've been forced to do over the years changed me in some ways that may not have been able to be reversed if I had been rescued (Vegeta would understand).

Mother, despite what I have been though, I can say that I've missed you incredibly. Knowing how protective you were of Gohan and I stuck in my mind. This made me realize of how painful this note of my life story could be for you and I'm sorry about that. The main reason I'm telling you this is to help Natsuki later. She has an incredible power that I believe can be brought out through painful memories.

As I had told Gohan, mom, treat Natsuki as if she were myself before I had been kidnapped. That way, it may help you through the tough times that may be ahead of you.

I love you all.

Your Daughter/Sister,

Son Arata

Gohan finished reading the letter with barely any volume in his voice. ChiChi was speechless herself. Gohan collapsed next to his mother with the note in one hand and his head in the other.

"Oh my." ChiChi said softly with tears in her eyes. "My little girl."

Gohan sighed, anger creeping into his mind again. ChiChi noticed this and placed a hand on his shoulder. "If I wasn't already injured, I'd take my anger out on the androids." He said angrily.

ChiChi frowned, but felt similar hatred in her mind and heart. "You know that wouldn't solve much but get you hurt all over again or even killed." She said softly.

"Mamma always said that pain makes you stronger." A young voice said. Both ChiChi's and Gohan's head snapped towards the sound of the voice. "Though she never let me fight hard enough to make that kind of pain."

ChiChi's eyes watered again. "A young girl like yourself shouldn't be put in that situation." She said as she walked over to the little girl and knelt in front of her. "Your mother was far too young when she was taken."

Natsuki's eyes widened. "You know my Mamma?" she asked.

"A little." Gohan spoke up.

"May I ask who you are?" Natsuki asked.

ChiChi smiled. "Well, it's nice to know that Arata kept her manners." She said aloud. "My name is ChiChi, your grandmother, and that's Gohan, your uncle."

Natsuki's guard immediately left her mind as a smile etched onto her face. "Mamma told me stories about you." She said.

Gohan smiled slightly. Natsuki does remind me Arata. He thought sadly.

ChiChi smiled widely and grabbed the young girl in a tight hug. Gohan smiled slightly but hung back. Mom hasn't been like this for years. Gohan thought.

Natsuki looked over at Gohan while in her grandmother's embrace. She noted the sadness in his eyes and facial expression. Carefully slipping out of her grandmother's embrace, Natsuki made her way to her uncle, whom hadn't noticed her yet.

Gohan looked down at the feel of contact. The little girl's arms were wrapped around his leg while her head dug into his leg as well. A small smile etched onto his face.

"Mamma told me what happened before she was taken." Natsuki started as Gohan knelt down next to her. "She knew you'd be stubborn about this."

"She did now?" Gohan said, smiling still. Secretly he was enjoying being around her with so little time.

Natsuki looked into Gohan's eyes before hitting him upside the head. ChiChi chuckled from behind. "Mamma told me to do that if you were still being stubborn." She said.

"Definitely your mother's daughter." Gohan muttered while rubbing the back of his head before smiling at her. "How about we make a deal?"

"What kind of deal?" Natsuki asked cautiously.

"Listen, if I knew my sister at all before she was taken, I have a feeling I know your personality. I know that you're sad about your mother-" Gohan started before being cut off.

"-and Katsu." Natsuki said stubbornly while looking at the ground.

"What?" Gohan and ChiChi asked at the same time.

"Katsu." Natsuki said defiantly. "Mamma would deny it, but Katsu was Mamma's boyfriend."

ChiChi smiled slightly and nodded for Gohan to continue. "Alright." He said. "I know that you're sad about your mother and Katsu, but you can't hold onto it." Gohan knelt in front of Natsuki. "What you can do is use their sacrifices to your advantage to become stronger."

"But why would I need to get stronger?" Natsuki asked curiously.

Gohan sighed while standing up. Before answer, he patted Natsuki's head. "You'll understand soon." He said before walking off. "Make sure she gets something to eat Mom." ChiChi nodded.

Oh Gohan. You're as blind as ever. ChiChi thought as she watched her son walk to his room. This is your chance to make it up to your sister. ChiChi shook her head and led Natsuki to the kitchen.

A.N.: Did you enjoy the prologue? What do you think of Gohan and ChiChi in this timeline?

Review and tell me what you think?