Dragon Ball Human

Shen and Tao Pai Pai weren't aimlessly wandering the world as Yamiru initially thought—they were on a killing spree.

Everywhere they went, someone ended up dead. Their travels were driven by assassination missions, the origin of which tied back to the very conversation Yamiru had overheard when he first arrived.

Tao Pai Pai had grown tired of mundane jobs. He decided to become a professional assassin.

It had all started when Shen, temporarily settling in a city, didn't want any trouble. To keep his adoptive younger brother Tao Pai Pai occupied and earning money, he had kicked him into a corporate job as a white-collar worker. Tao Pai Pai begrudgingly took up a nine-to-five office job.

The tasks Shen assigned weren't something Tao Pai Pai opposed. In fact, ordinary workloads didn't even begin to challenge someone of his caliber.

But the monotony was unbearable.

And every time he killed someone out of irritation, he had to concoct a cover story afterward. The entire ordeal left Tao Pai Pai thoroughly dissatisfied.

Finally, after a few years, he couldn't take it anymore.

Coincidentally, Shen had just taken in a three-eyed boy, planning to return to a more carefree lifestyle while training his new protégé. Tao Pai Pai, after slaughtering everyone at his company, resigned and left the city with his elder brother.

Intent on making his name as the world's greatest assassin, Tao Pai Pai took on assassination contracts in every city they visited. He not only covered travel expenses but also continuously upped his rates, cementing his fearsome reputation in the underworld.

As Shen's group of three roamed the land, the name Tao Pai Pai became one that struck terror in the hearts of the dark world.

It wasn't until the past few days that Yamiru began to piece together what was going on. After all, he'd been too preoccupied with merely surviving to pay attention to Tao Pai Pai's activities every time they stopped.

This time, the Crane School trio arrived in a small southwestern city and took up residence.

Shen, as had become his custom, napped after a meal.

Yamiru took advantage of this time to fill his stomach.

A few days earlier, Tien Shinhan had fought Yamiru in a sparring match but unfortunately lost. Ever since then, he'd started setting aside food for Yamiru ahead of time, ensuring the latter wouldn't sneak off in search of meals.

"Honestly…" Yamiru said, gnawing on the tender meat Tien Shinhan had prepared. Behind him, Shen lay on a small bed, snoring softly, while Tien Shinhan sat nearby with his usual stoic expression. "You're not such a bad guy after all!" Yamiru gulped down water, wiped his mouth, and laughed. "But you don't suit the Crane School at all!"

Tien Shinhan's face remained blank.

"I think the Turtle School would fit you better!"

Shen's ears twitched.

The eye on Tien Shinhan's forehead shifted to glare at Yamiru, who went on, "Compared to this carefree Crane lifestyle, you're clearly more like a stoic turtle with that brooding personality of yours!"

"Brooding... full of resentment..." Tien Shinhan repeated Yamiru's words, then frowned and asked, "Are you talking about yourself?"

Yamiru laughed. "Not very charming, are you?" He promptly threw a punch, sending Tien Shinhan flying.

Tien gracefully flipped mid-air, landing lightly on his hands and feet. Rubbing his jaw, he thought for a moment before saying, "Turtle School... is that the martial arts school your master comes from?"

Shen continued snoring softly, unperturbed by the conversation. Tien Shinhan, his tone calm, added, "But I've never seen them. Did they ever take me in and raise me?"

"Such a sentimental personality! Though you've been led astray for over a decade by these two old Crane scoundrels…" Yamiru smirked, staying silent but musing to himself:

"In the manga, Tien was the one who held the longest grudges against Piccolo and Vegeta. Probably because Piccolo killed Master Roshi, and Vegeta's allie killed both Chiaotzu and Tien himself... And later, Tien gradually distanced himself from Goku's little circle. Was it for similar reasons?"

After eating his fill, Yamiru tossed aside the stripped-clean bones and lay down on the ground. Sleep crept over him, and soon he was snoring peacefully.

When he woke up, it was to a cool sensation on his skin, which startled him awake. Breathing heavily, his golden eyes glowed as he instinctively activated his enhanced vision. His gaze landed on a faintly red, humanoid figure—it was Tao Pai Pai, who had returned and was now looming over him.

"Even in your sleep, you're sweating like crazy. Having nightmares, kid?" Tao Pai Pai asked with a malicious grin.

"Nightmares? The real nightmare starts when I wake up," Yamiru muttered, calming his breath and quickly averting his gaze while scrambling to his feet. He wiped his forehead, finding it damp with sweat.

Tao Pai Pai seemed pleased with Yamiru's submissive reaction. "Heh heh..."

"Why are you so late?" Shen, now seated and sipping tea, asked casually.

"The target knew a bit of martial arts, so I played with him for a while. Heh, but of course, he turned out to be garbage in the end," Tao Pai Pai said as he plopped down, chugging a cup of cold tea. "Compared to Crane School techniques, the martial arts of other schools are just trash!"

Shen scoffed. "Stating the obvious, are we?"

Tao Pai Pai chuckled. "I wasn't even trying, and he died. Utterly useless."

It was only then that Yamiru pieced together what Tao Pai Pai had been up to. It seemed Tao Pai Pai's journey to becoming the world's greatest assassin was just beginning.

As Yamiru was lost in thought, Shen suddenly said while holding his teacup, "Today, I think I heard someone mention the Turtle School?"

"Huh?" Tao Pai Pai frowned.

Tien Shinhan remained expressionless, and Yamiru didn't react much either. Shen, however, continued, "Did you think I was deaf just because I was napping? You idiots, digging into my turf right under my nose? Tien Shinhan, kill him!"

"Huh?" Tien Shinhan hesitated. :I can't beat him... Master should know that, right? He saw us sparring before, and he must know who's stronger…" But Shen's orders were absolute to Tien Shinhan. After a brief moment of doubt, he stepped forward.

"Let's go." Tien Shinhan adopted a fighting stance, his expression serious and focused.

Yamiru, having never formally trained in martial arts, had no idea how to respond. He instinctively tried to copy Tien Shinhan's pose but suddenly stopped, a thought striking him:

"Wait, aren't these techniques all from the Crane School? Could it be that this old Crane bastard is trying to subtly influence me through Tien Shinhan's moves, so I unknowingly replace all my skills with Crane-style techniques?"

Yamiru hesitated briefly, unable to decipher Shen's expression. Then, a thought struck him: "Wait a second... if it's the Turtle School…"

"Hmm?" Shen's sunglasses reflected the stance Yamiru had taken.

With a flash of white across the lenses, the reflection shifted as Yamiru launched himself into combat with Tien Shinhan.

Shen could clearly see traces of the Turtle School in Yamiru's moves. However, something was off. The Turtle School techniques appeared distorted, intermixed with a mishmash of other moves. Some resembled street brawling, while others were unfamiliar styles Shen had never encountered, even during his travels across the land.

"Heh…" Yamiru clumsily combined the Ox-King's moves with his own experience from street fights and sparring with Jiora, creating a chaotic amalgamation of styles as he clashed "fiercely" with Tien Shinhan.

Tien struggled to keep up, his three eyes working overtime to track Yamiru's erratic movements. But five or six times out of ten, he failed.

"Damn it! His chaotic techniques now include some strange moves… They seem a bit like our Crane School techniques… Ah!"

His thought was cut short as Yamiru landed a punch square on his nose, sending Tien Shinhan sprawling.

Though victorious, Yamiru was utterly exhausted. His attempts to forcibly integrate the Ox-King's moves, aiming to convince Shen he was a Turtle School disciple, had earned him countless blows from Tien Shinhan. Sitting down to catch his breath, he heard Shen remark, "Clumsy, awkward moves—was that all the old Turtle taught you?"

"What?" Yamiru was genuinely puzzled.

Although he had deliberately mimicked the Ox-King's style, he wasn't entirely confident about it. In the manga, Goku and Krillin never demonstrated any formal Turtle School techniques while training at Master Roshi's house. Could the Ox-King's moves really represent the Turtle School? Yamiru wasn't sure.

Shen's recognition of the style both reassured and surprised Yamiru. "How did you figure it out?" he asked.

"Who do you think I am?" Shen scoffed. "After all, the Turtle School originates from that old Turtle's master, Mutaito…" He trailed off mid-sentence, falling into silence.

When he snapped back to attention, he noticed Yamiru, Tien Shinhan, and even Tao Pai Pai staring at him.

"What are you looking at?" Shen barked. "Tao Pai Pai, are your targets dealt with? Tien Shinhan, useless as always—no dinner for you tonight!"

With that, he stormed off, his sleeves flicking dramatically behind him.

"Mutaito… Isn't that the name of my brother's master?" Tao Pai Pai murmured thoughtfully. "So, my brother and his arch-enemy are actually fellow disciples?"

Tien Shinhan, on the other hand, felt a pang of discomfort—no dinner for him tonight.

"What about me? Do I get to eat dinner?" Yamiru wondered in surprise. Usually, he was the one stuck with no food.

As night fell deeper, Tao Pai Pai had yet to return from his assassination mission.

After finishing his own dinner, Shen left the table without cleaning up. Yamiru, as if on cue, sat down to eat. Midway through his meal, he suddenly stopped and began counting the dishes on the table.

"Leaving out Tao Pai Pai, who isn't here, did Shen actually order enough food for Tien Shinhan too? But didn't he say…" Yamiru glanced toward the door, where the three-eyed boy was punching the air under the moonlight, his stomach growling.

"If I bring Tien Shinhan food now, wouldn't that be playing right into Shen's hands? Yamiru was conflicted." He strongly suspected that this was another one of Shen's tactics—using acts of kindness to build a bond between him and Tien Shinhan, slowly softening Yamiru's rebellious streak.

"Forget it! Why overthink things?"

With a grin, Yamiru drained the last of his soup, picked his teeth, and said to himself, "If I think it's the right thing to do, I'll just do it!"

Before long, he brought the remaining dishes to Tien Shinhan, who was drenched in sweat from his training outside.

"Your movements are so weak. Are you actually training, Tien Shinhan?"

"Shut up."

"Fine. Just eat already."

"Master said I'm not allowed to have dinner."

"Yeah? And your master didn't let me eat either, but you still sneaked food to me every day. Stop talking nonsense and eat."

"…That was with Master's tacit approval."

"Bingo. Consider this the same. If you don't eat, I'll knock you out and force-feed you."

"…"

Finally, Tien Shinhan devoured the food ravenously while Yamiru plopped down beside him, staring at the full moon.

"How long has it been since I left South City?"

Suddenly, a shadow passed in front of the moon and leapt down. The air was immediately thick with the stench of blood. Yamiru's golden eyes flickered faintly as he turned his back to Tao Pai Pai's imposing figure.

"No matter how long it takes… I must make it to Mount Paozu."

"Huh?" Tao Pai Pai flicked a droplet of blood from his sleeve.

Tien Shinhan froze mid-bite, only relaxing after Tao Pai Pai entered the house. Then, he resumed eating his meal.

"Otherwise…" Yamiru spread his arms wide toward the full moon and shouted, "What's the point of coming to this world at all? Hahaha!"

"Is this guy insane?" Tien Shinhan thought while eating, watching Yamiru stand up only to flop down on the ground in a starfish pose. "What a strange person!"

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