A Saiyan's Journey

"Oh? You've gathered the money this quickly? I was already prepared to wait until tomorrow."

In the market, Enya greeted Zuke with a faint smile as he returned, only a bit over two hours since he left. She appeared harmless, like an ordinary old woman.

Zuke didn't intend to expose her façade; he calmly nodded and placed a bag on the counter. It was originally Yoshihiro Kira's bag.

"Yes, here's the money. Feel free to count it."

The bag contained exactly the amount Enya had asked for. Zuke had taken out the extra cash to buy a satchel, where he stored the rest.

After all, he still needed funds to leave downtown Cairo, find a hotel, and quietly awaken his own Stand. It was wise to have some backup money.

Why not awaken his Stand in downtown Cairo? When a Stand first awakens, it can often go berserk. For instance, Jotaro Kujo's Stand, Star Platinum, was uncontrollable when it first awakened, hitting random people and taking things.

If Zuke's Stand behaved similarly, it would be like yelling under Dio's nose, "Everyone, look! I'm a new Stand user!"

Until he understood his Stand's power, Zuke felt it was better to keep a low profile. Once his abilities were certain, he could flaunt them in front of Dio.

Getting a quiet room away from the city center would help avoid detection by Dio and his subordinates, even if his Stand acted up.

"Mhm, the amount is correct. The arrow is yours."

Enya didn't pretend to be generous. Like a shrewd shopkeeper, she took the cash from the bag and counted it carefully, confirming it was the correct amount.

Zuke noticed that as Enya took out the wads of cash, many people around them cast greedy glances.

After all, Enya looked like a frail old woman, someone who might topple over in a breeze, and she held a lot of money—naturally attracting attention.

But if anyone dared to make a move on Enya, it would likely be their doom. Enya's Stand, Justice, would show them what it means to be unable to live or die by their own will.

However, Zuke didn't care if anyone would attempt to rob Enya or if she would take action against them. He closed the long box holding the arrow and prepared to leave.

"Oh, young man, though I don't mind where you got this money from, if you ever run into trouble, feel free to find me."

Enya spoke up again. Her stall still had the cash-filled bag, but she'd zipped it closed. From the outside, no one could tell how much was stuffed inside.

Her words seemed loaded with meaning. Zuke's heart sank as he noticed something—on the bag of cash, there was a trace of blood.

It was likely from when he kicked and broke Yoshihiro Kira's neck, and blood splattered on the bag's corner, which he hadn't noticed.

Enya had, though. Clearly, she realized Zuke's money was acquired illicitly. Yet she didn't care.

Enya idolized Dio, who garnered followers because he accepted and embraced their evil.

As a devoted follower of Dio, Enya shared this view. So even though Zuke had obtained the money through shady means, she had no problem with it.

In fact, she felt he was a perfect candidate to join Dio's ranks.

"We have some influence in Cairo. We can help you resolve issues and even tell you the true use of that arrow."

Enya gave him a sinister smile. Her gaze toward Zuke was now more approving.

"If you're willing to pay a fee for some assistance, just come find me. I'll likely be here."

Zuke didn't say much. He just nodded to Enya, then took the arrow and left—keeping his senses sharp, aware of any presence around him to prevent Enya from sending anyone to follow him.

But he sensed nothing unusual as he left the market.

It seemed Enya truly had no hidden scheme in selling the arrow; she simply wanted the cash. Otherwise, an ordinary person like Yoshihiro Kira wouldn't have left Egypt safely with the arrow.

As for Enya's suggestion of paying for help, it likely wasn't as simple as cash. She'd probably require his Stand awakening and joining Dio's ranks.

Zuke would refuse; awakening his Stand only required being wounded by the arrow, nothing complex, and he didn't need Dio's help for that.

And as for Enya's gaze, assuming he was already part of their circle… She was simply mistaken. Dio had some charisma, but not enough to gain his respect.

In the Dragon Ball world, Zuke had seen Saiyans, beings who could destroy planets. Dio's ambitions seemed unimpressive in comparison.

Plus, Dio was his main mission target—there was no way he'd stand with him.

As for joining Dio to be transformed into a vampire? Not a chance. In the JoJo universe, vampires had little more than minor regenerative abilities and were essentially vulnerable to sunlight.

With that in mind, Zuke opened his system panel and saw it had updated.

[Current World: JoJo's Bizarre Adventure]

[Main Quest: Eliminate Dio]

[Player's Power Synchronization: 10%]

[Please proceed with the main quest to unlock synchronization]

Clearly, the system recognized obtaining the "arrow" as progress toward eliminating Dio, advancing the main quest, and boosting his synchronization rate to 10%.

Unfortunately, Zuke still had no powers in the JoJo world yet. Unlocking synchronization now would leave him with nothing, so he needed to awaken his Stand first.

To be continued…

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