Dragon Ball Roshi

Boom, boom, boom, boom! Piccolo, from afar in the forest, ran after Son Goku and the others. He wore a white cape with a vest, a replica of the clothes worn by Son Goku and his friends, made using the special abilities of the Namekians to create super-heavy clothing. Unlike the magic light-weight clothes made by Taro, his vest could only increase weight, not decrease it...

Piccolo clumsily ran behind, stumbling with every step, drenched in sweat.

"Damn it! They've accelerated again?!"

He was furious but unwilling to give up, so he forced himself to increase his speed.

---

By noon, Son Goku, Krillin, and the Phoenix followed Taro and Hathaway to eat. Piccolo, however, slipped into the forest alone to pick some wild fruits, mostly those rich in juice... To the west of the forest, there was a small pond, thankfully not salty sea water. Piccolo was able to live on the fresh water.

The noise was theirs; this place was mine.

Piccolo pulled out a stem and tossed a green fruit into his mouth. His sharp teeth crunched, releasing juice that was bitter, but he didn't mind.

"Master, aren't you going to give him anything to eat?" Krillin asked as he ate.

Taro ate slowly and calmly, answering flatly, "No need. He can survive on just water."

Son Goku paused with his chopsticks, imagining a life where he only drank water. His face immediately soured as he said, "How miserable!" He then happily resumed eating, stuffing his cheeks with food.

"Just water?" Hathaway was intrigued. "Is he like a plant? Photosynthesis?"

Taro placed some greens on her plate and knocked on the bowl edge. "Don't tell me you want to slice him up for research…"

"Who said that? What kind of image do you have of scientists in your mind…" Hathaway pouted but didn't press the matter about Piccolo any further. As she chewed on the greens, she glanced at the Phoenix on the ground beside her, holding a green vegetable in its beak with a disgruntled expression. Hathaway couldn't help but laugh and threw a piece of fatty meat in the opposite direction. Swish, a red flash blinked back and forth, and before she knew it, the Phoenix had already finished the meat, with oil on its beak.

"Haha…" Krillin couldn't hold back a laugh but then felt a sharp pain in his head. He looked down to find his bowl of food had mysteriously disappeared. With a black line on his forehead, he turned around to find, of course, the Phoenix happily tilting its neck back, gulping down the food.

Krillin gritted his teeth in frustration.

---

In the afternoon, Taro personally guided Son Goku and Krillin in their martial arts training. It had already been over half a year since they arrived on the island to train. The basics had long been laid down by Taro, and now, Son Goku and Krillin mainly raised their individual doubts, with Taro answering them one by one.

Additionally, Taro sparred with them, offering guided combat sessions. With his abilities, he could ensure they wouldn't die while still allowing them to experience real, near-death struggles that greatly benefited their martial arts progress.

Meanwhile, Piccolo was always hiding in the shadows, using his excellent Namekian senses to secretly observe, listen, and learn.

Of course, Taro knew Piccolo was secretly learning, but he didn't mind.

Sometimes, Son Goku and Krillin noticed it, but since their master didn't say anything, they didn't feel the need to mention it either.

So, the two of them kept practicing on their own, completely unaware that their training was being thoroughly observed by a pair of hidden eyes. Sometimes, when Taro practiced in the sky, he would glance down casually, offering only a faint smile without saying anything.

As for the Phoenix...

At Taro's gesture, it frequently sneaked into the forest late at night to cause trouble for Piccolo. It seemed to be looking for trouble, chasing Piccolo through the woods every night, pecking at him, forcing him to run. The next morning, Piccolo would feel weak when running. On the other hand, the Phoenix was also training Piccolo, helping him turn the skills he had secretly learned into his own.

Gradually, Piccolo began to understand the trick...

Though he didn't know why, it seemed that the despicable guy didn't mind him secretly learning his disciple's techniques. As a result, Piccolo's secret training location slowly started getting closer to where Son Goku and Krillin practiced. After two or three months, he was crouching just ten meters away from their training ground, making his observation no different from simply eavesdropping.

"This guy's getting bolder!" Krillin couldn't help but laugh as he watched Piccolo, who was getting more and more careless about hiding himself.

"Heh... looks like he's gotten a lot stronger," Goku grinned, stopped his punches, then looked over at Piccolo, who was squatting nearby, observing them like a prefect. He raised his brow and called out loudly, "Hey, Piccolo, how about a sparring match? What do you say?"

"Huh?" Piccolo, who had been lost in thought about the scratch on the back of his neck left by the Phoenix, was startled. He pointed at himself and asked, "Are you talking to me?"

He'd been "observing" their martial arts training for a while now, but Wutian, Goku, and Krillin acted as if he didn't exist. They had never acknowledged him. Now, suddenly, someone was talking to him, and it left him stunned... It had been a long time since he'd been so unnoticed, and he wasn't quite used to it.

As for Goku and Krillin knowing his name, that was something Wutian had told them.

And then...

[Let me do it!] A voice echoed in Goku's mind, naturally, it was Kakarot. Goku frowned, a bit annoyed, and said, "What? I called dibs first! No way! I'm going first!"

Krillin thought to himself: Here we go again...

Ever since Goku had managed to maintain a clear mind under the influence of the Great Ape transformation, it seemed he'd broken through another level of "self." He could now converse with Kakarot during normal times. Also, around the time of the full moon each month, it had become difficult for Kakarot to break free from his seal when Goku was asleep.

Goku had realized that the reason Piccolo seemed so familiar was that Kakarot had dealt with this Piccolo a lot in the past.

"..." Piccolo scowled, "What does that idiot Kakarot think of me?" He coldly replied, "I have no interest in fighting weaklings..."

Just then, a gust of wind rushed past his head. A sharp pain shot through the back of his skull as the Phoenix ambushed him from behind, knocking him to the ground with a wing strike.

"Hah, looks like the weaker one here is you!" Krillin mocked with a grin.

"You!" Piccolo glared at the Phoenix, who was flapping its wings in the air, laughing mischievously. He then glared at Krillin, who was mocking him. Gritting his teeth, he slammed his palm to the ground, propelling himself into the air. He had completely adapted to the weight of his cape, and his movements remained precise and fluid, agile and sharp.

"Heh..." Krillin rolled up his sleeves, ready to make a move.

"Let me handle it!" Goku stopped Krillin, his eyes shining with determination as he eagerly rushed forward...

The Phoenix chuckled, flapping its wings before soaring higher into the blue sky. Eventually, a figure landed on its back — it was Hathaway. She hovered beside Wutian, who was watching the trio spar below with a faint smile, overlooking the lake where they were engaged in combat.

---

It had been almost a year since Goku and Krillin arrived at Muten Island to train.

Time passed...

This day was in the year 750, the opening of the 21st World Martial Arts Tournament.

Amid the crowded masses, a young man with a bare, finely crafted torso, a satchel on his back, and three eyes on his forehead, looked at the grand opening of the tournament. He sighed at the pale-faced, short young boy standing beside him.

"Chiaotzu, we finally made it here!"