Though several of the members expressed distrust of their former enemy Piccolo, this first Z Fighter roster consisted of Goku, his inexperienced son Gohan, Piccolo, Tien Shinhan, Krillin, Yamcha, and Chiaotzu. After Goku's death against Raditz, Piccolo trained Gohan to prepare for the arrival of the Saiyan warriors Vegeta and Nappa. The battle against the Saiyans, Vegeta and Nappa, is commonly considered the first time Earth's Special Forces engaged enemies together. Gohan then responds that he is not in a little gang, he is a Z Fighter.
While sleeping, he had a dream in which his mother Chi-Chi said she did not want Gohan to be in Goku's little gang. The first being in the Androids Saga, when Future Trunks explains to Goku that in the future, "the Earth's Special Forces are gone." The Second character to use the term was Gohan when he was training in the Hyperbolic Time Chamber to defeat Cell.
The term itself is very rarely used in the series by anyone other than the narrator. The Z Fighters consisting of Yamcha, Gohan, Piccolo, Krillin, Tien Shinhan, and Chiaotzu prepare to battle the Saibamen The team-up is considered the true birth of the Z Fighters. Goku formed an alliance with his arch rival Piccolo in order to fight for a common cause. The first actual formation of the Z Fighters was out of necessity, brought on when Goku was faced with Raditz, who had kidnapped his young son Gohan and wanted to destroy the Earth. Its members consisted of Goku, Krillin, Yamcha, Tien Shinhan, Chiaotzu, Yajirobe and their supporters. The team that could be considered an early rendition of the Z Fighters was formed mainly in response to the threat posed by King Piccolo and later his son in the ultimate story arc of Dragon Ball. This included evils such as Emperor Pilaf and the Red Ribbon Army. Typically, this brought the group into conflict with a host of villainous characters who sought to use the Dragon Balls for power, whereas the Dragon Ball Gang desired the balls for good. Their original purpose for coming together was not to protect the Dragon Balls, but to use them themselves. Goku and Piccolo form the first "Z Fighter" alliance to battle Raditz and to save GohanÄuring the Dragon Ball anime, a similar team existed, but it was called the Dragon Ball Gang.