Dragon Ball Human

The night grew deeper.

The mountain winds became colder.

The stones beneath Yamiru's feet felt like blocks of ice.

He had been running through the mountains for most of the night. Even though he did his best to keep moving and preserve his body heat, it was steadily slipping away. His movements became sluggish, his limbs less obedient. Earlier, while climbing a small slope he would usually scale with ease, his grip failed, and he tumbled down, the back of his head slamming against the icy ground.

He had no idea how long he had been unconscious. When he woke up, even his eyeballs felt like frozen orbs of ice.

The fact that he regained consciousness, wasn't captured, and hadn't frozen to death felt like a miracle.

When he set out again, he felt as though even the air leaving his lungs was cold.

His feet were completely numb, frozen to the point of an almost comforting warmth. Yamiru knew this was just his brain playing tricks on him, but he couldn't afford to dwell on it.

Although his Golden Eyes detected no ki signatures resembling Red Ribbon Army soldiers, as long as he remained trapped in this unknown mountain range, he dared not relax.

Besides, in his current condition, stopping would mean freezing to death without any need for a pursuit.

The only small blessing was…

When he escaped, he had eaten a Senzu Bean, which could sustain him for ten days without food. He wasn't entirely sure how the "ten days without eating" mechanic worked in the Dragon Ball universe, but he could only hope it provided enough energy for ten full days. Otherwise, the "one bean for ten days" claim would be contradictory. This faint hope was all he could cling to.

"Thud!"

While running, Yamiru suddenly tripped, losing his balance and falling forward. Normally, with his skills, he would have reacted instinctively, flipping or bracing himself with his hands. But now his arms were stiff, and his fingers unresponsive.

This time, he fell flat on his face.

A sharp, sour heat spread through his nose.

He tried to wipe away the blood trickling from his nostrils, but his frostbitten fingers trembled uncontrollably. Instead of cleaning his face, his shaking hand nearly poked his own eye.

"Blood… is quite… warm…"

Yamiru shivered as he struggled to stand, his teeth chattering uncontrollably. Out of the corner of his eye, he caught a glimpse of something white. Startled, he thought it might be one of the Red Ribbon Army's soldiers catching up to him! A closer look, however, revealed that it was too short—much too short. Squinting, he made out two glowing green eyes.

A wolf?

He licked the crusted blood on his lips, his thoughts swirling. Wolf pelts would certainly make for excellent insulation, wouldn't they?

The wolf, a large specimen adapted to the frigid climate, began to approach Yamiru leisurely. It was in high spirits—what a delightful surprise! A random nighttime stroll had led to such a substantial meal. What's more, the prey seemed frozen stiff, as if its brain had already succumbed to the cold. It wasn't even running!

The massive wolf happily lunged at its immobile prey—and immediately blacked out.

Yamiru, fully aware of his current state, likened himself to a video game warrior cursed with a severe frost debuff. His agility had plummeted into the negatives, but his strength and stamina remained intact. He played dumb, waiting for the clueless wolf to charge, then seized the moment. With a single punch to the wolf's skull, he nearly shattered it.

He would have preferred to use his Sword Sphere to dispatch the wolf quickly, but his fingers were so stiff from the cold that he couldn't even bend them properly. Attempting to summon the blade might have been a disaster—if the weapon misfired and impaled him instead, it would've been a tragedy of epic proportions.

However, the wolf's massive corpse toppled onto Yamiru, slamming him hard onto his back. Pain shot through his body, and stars danced before his eyes.

"Damn it… This is so ridiculous…"

Gritting his teeth, Yamiru tried to push the wolf's body off him, but then he noticed something surprising. The thick, furry body, still warm with residual heat and fat, was surprisingly comforting. He decided against shoving it away and instead propped it up slightly, using the wolf as a makeshift blanket.

"In this cold, merciless world, the only warmth comes from a dead wolf…"

Turning his head slightly, Yamiru stared at the night sky from under the wolf's corpse. Gradually, his trembling body began to calm.

He wondered absently how long he'd been a prisoner of Gero. How many days had passed since he set out for Mount Paozu? He had no idea.

For a while, he simply lay there, counting the stars.

Eventually, his thoughts drifted again, replaying the events that had brought him to this miserable situation.

After resting for a while, his body warmed up slightly. Yamiru kneed the wolf corpse off himself and got back to his feet. Clumsily gripping the Sword Ball with both hands, he extended the long blade and began to skin the wolf. During the process, he discarded the blade and shoved both hands into the wolf's body.

The blood hadn't yet cooled.

White breath puffed from his mouth as his hands soaked in the wolf's warm innards, almost as if life was returning to them.

However, the sudden surge of warmth in his frostbitten hands brought intense pain. The agony shooting through his fingertips, directly connected to his heart, was beyond words. Yet for Yamiru, physical pain was no longer a big deal; it was something he could endure with relative ease.

Pulling his blood-covered, now-red hands out, he flexed his fingers. They were much more responsive now.

He grabbed the blade with one hand, swiftly finishing the skinning job. Roughly cutting the pelt, he fashioned a crude set of wolf-skin clothes, including a pair of makeshift shoes.

Slipping the wolf-skin coverings over his feet, he acknowledged the trade-off. The added bulk would slow him down, but given that he was likely far from the Red Ribbon Army's experimental base, he decided it was worth it to protect his feet from frostbite, even at the cost of some speed.

"It stinks of blood, but it's so much warmer…"

Yamiru felt he looked utterly pathetic in his current outfit, but survival took precedence over dignity.

The Senzu Bean he had eaten earlier provided him with ample energy. Not wanting to waste it, he pressed on through the night. He moved non-stop until dawn painted the mountain ridges in pale light. Hiding behind a large tree, Yamiru couldn't resist reaching out to touch the sunlight filtering through the branches. He hadn't felt natural light in what felt like ages, and the warmth stirred a bittersweet feeling of self-pity.

Suddenly, his eyes flicked open.

Someone was nearby.

Yamiru remained still, swiftly scanning the area with his Ki-Sense. He quickly detected several humanoid ki signatures approaching from his four o'clock direction.

Observing the way these individuals moved—spread out yet maintaining an arrangement that allowed them to cover each other—Yamiru knew at once they were Red Ribbon Army personnel. He was surprised they had managed to track him down.

After all, during his initial escape from the base, he had used a few of the tricks taught by Dalet to repeatedly alter his route and even left behind misleading traces to throw off the pursuers.

Still, there weren't too many of them.

Yamiru's expression darkened as fury and a thirst for vengeance stirred within him.