A Saiyan's Journey

"Dear Zuke, please select a world for your mission: 1. Dragon Ball (no time adjustment); 2. JoJo's Bizarre Adventure (main mission generating); 3. Fate/Zero (time flow 0.5x speed)."

After leaving the Dragon Ball world, Zuke found himself once again at the world selection screen of the "Infinite Terror VR Game."

"Come to think of it, I forgot to ask King Kai to give my cube spaceship intergalactic travel abilities…"

Only then did Shin realize he'd been so focused on learning the Kaio-Ken and Spirit Bomb from North Kai that he'd overlooked his initial goal.

To gather the Super Dragon Balls, Zuke needed King Kai to grant his spaceship the ability to cross universes.

As things stood, King Kai was the lowest-ranking god he knew capable of inter-universe travel. Back when Zamasu was merely a Kai in Universe 10, he went to Universe 7 to find Zuno.

Lower-ranking gods had no examples of crossing universes in the original series, so Zuke didn't want to take his chances.

"Eh, it's no big deal. I'll be visiting King Kai often enough; I can always handle it later."

Zuke also planned to train with King Kai to refine his Kaio-Ken, so he didn't worry about the matter further.

He looked at the world selection screen, where Dragon Ball was again showing as "no time adjustment."

This time, he didn't change it—there was no need to skip days since he wasn't on any urgent journey in the Dragon Ball world.

However, after leaving, the system hadn't unlocked any new achievements.

But Zuke's gains from this trip were nothing short of incredible: his power level had jumped from 4,000 to over 40,000, and he'd gained both immortality and the Turtle School techniques.

With a synchronization rate of 8%, Zuke was now essentially fearless in the real world.

Back when he only had a power level of 40, he'd needed to worry about heavy weapons and such risks. But now, they didn't concern him at all.

"Exit game."

With no new achievements or functions, Zuke had no reason to stay in the game, so he left.

…

{Transitioning to Shin}

Upon opening his eyes, Shin slowly turned his head to find that Sayo Ogiwara had already gotten up, leaving his side empty.

Don't be fooled by Shin's impressive physique—technically, he didn't need much sleep. But if he didn't use up the eight hours allotted in the mission world, he'd feel like ants were crawling all over him.

It felt akin to an online game where you're given daily dungeon cooldowns; if you don't use them all, it feels like a waste.

Got it—it was the "Infinite Terror VR" system's way of keeping players active.

Lost in thought, Shin climbed out of bed and gave his hand a firm squeeze.

Pop!

A crisp sound echoed in the room. Even this simple fist clench stirred a breeze around him.

"So this… is power exceeding 3,000 in the real world."

A faint smile played at the corner of Shin's mouth. Although he had a power level over 40,000 in the Dragon Ball world, it wasn't the same in reality.

In Dragon Ball, there were countless absurdly strong beings above him; even Frieza, a mid-tier boss, was an insurmountable mountain.

In the real world, though, there was no one above him.

If he wanted to, he could unleash a Ki blast at the moon right now and blow it up on the spot.

But remembering the cascading effects of destroying the moon in the real world, Shin held back.

He was, after all, a hedonist at heart. He enjoyed battles in the mission worlds, so there was no need to mess up the real world and ruin his peace.

He'd use his power, of course, but only in ways that would make his life easier—not cause him trouble.

Even if no one could threaten him, the thought of dealing with annoying mosquitoes and flies buzzing around him every day sounded irritating.

"But, now that I'm this strong… is there any point in continuing school?"

Out of habit, Shin took out his uniform, put it on, and looked at his reflection in the mirror. He still looked like an ordinary high school student.

School was supposed to prepare you for a better future, but given his current abilities and lifestyle… there wasn't much need for it.

"…I'll go anyway. Megumi is still at school."

After some thought, Shin decided that school could serve as a little diversion.

Besides, Megumi Kato was still there. He had a good feeling about her, and going to school to see a pretty girl didn't sound like a bad deal.

…

"…I came after all."

Standing at the school gate, Hitori Gotou's legs were trembling.

Last night, she had gone home and tried to talk with her family about transferring schools. Predictably, they had refused.

The idea of being threatened by a high school gangster sounded so ridiculous that she didn't even know how to explain it to them.

She figured if she did, her parents and sister would think her social anxiety had evolved to the point where she was fantasizing scenes from a shoujo manga.

So, despite shaking all night, Hitori Gotou forced herself to come to school.

Naturally, she still had her guitar case slung over her shoulder—she hadn't given up on making friends through music.

"That Shin said he goes to my school… Maybe he was just lying, threatening me so I wouldn't tell anyone about what I saw yesterday…"

Ichiri held onto a sliver of hope. Accidentally wandering into a gangster hideout and running into a mob boss who also happened to be a high schooler at her school… What were the odds?

Totally impossible, right? It wasn't like this was some fictional story.

As she reassured herself, Hitori Gotou's steps grew lighter as she walked into the school.

Socially anxious people are good at self-reassurance, just like students who confidently believe they can finish all their homework in the last days of vacation.

Though it rarely works out well, it does help lift the mood.

Ichiri thought so too, walking cheerfully toward the school entrance… until she saw the familiar figure waiting there.

"Yo, you came after all."

There was Shin, standing at the gate, watching as Hitori Gotou—clad in her pink tracksuit and lugging her massive guitar case—stepped onto campus.

Her face contorted in Terror, like a new painting by Picasso.

To be continued…

Hoi Ningen, FBI is after you after going through your search history. Hand over your Power Stones to me so I can bribe them for you winks.

Advance 50 chapters are up on my Patreon.

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