Inside the brightly lit Capsule House, Bulma was sitting at the round table, munching on bread with her coffee and having so fruit salad on the side. The more she thought about it, the more annoyed she beca—Goku had actually gone out to catch a giant centipede because he wanted to roast and eat it. Was he insane? That was just stupid! Who would eat sothing like that?!
"Ugh..." Bulma picked up her cup and stared at the coffee, imdiately regretting even thinking about the giant centipede.
Just then, she heard so voices at the door.
"Goku, don't tell you brought back so other weird creature?" Bulma put down her cup and walked toward the door, exasperated. "Seriously, I'm a normal girl, okay? I don't have the sa horrifying appetite as you—huh? Who's this?"
She looked toward the door, where beside Goku stood a small bald boy rubbing his head—it was Krillin.
"H-hi! I'm Krillin!" Krillin had never t a girl as youthful and beautiful as Bulma before. His face turned bright red on the spot. Bulma had taken off her long sleeves and was now only wearing a tight black tank top and denim shorts. As a young monk, Krillin had never seen anything like that in his life—her long, pale legs nearly made his eyeballs pop out.
"Hehe..." Bulma looked quite pleased with herself. Finally, soone with eyes sharp enough to recognize her beauty. She glanced at Krillin's monk robes. "Those clothes are from the Orin Temple, right? Little Baldy, are you a monk from Orin Temple? That place is pretty far from here!"
Krillin didn't care about the pain in his nose and mouth anymore, nor about arguing with Goku. After fumbling for a bit, he awkwardly replied, "Uh... I'm not a monk from Orin Temple anymore. I've co down the mountain to find a great master and beco a student!" Maybe it was saying that aloud that gave him strength, but Krillin's expression grew determined.
"Oh, you're quite ambitious!" Bulma nodded. She was really just asking out of curiosity. With Goku here—who was not only Gohan's grandson but also Taro's future disciple—she didn't feel unsafe at all, so she wasn't too guarded around Krillin.
Thinking of Goku, she turned to glance at him. He was crouched down near the door, fiddling with sothing. In his hand, he was still holding that disgusting giant centipede. Bulma imdiately scowled. "Goku! Why are you still carrying that centipede around? Throw it away already! Tonight, you're taking an hour-long bath, you hear ?!"
Goku didn't hear a word Bulma was saying. He was drawn in by a flash of light on the ground. The lighting near the door was dim, so he lay down and searched for a bit until he found the yellow glint that had caught the corner of his eye. "Bulma, it's a Dragon Ball!" he said, happily standing up and holding out the seven-star ball.
"A Dragon Ball?!" Bulma was stunned. Seeing the orange sphere in Goku's hand, she pushed past Krillin and rushed over, snatching it up and widening her eyes. "One, two, three... seven! Seven stars—it's the seven-star ball!"
"Uh, that's not mine..." Krillin was caught off guard. He reached back to check his bag and, sure enough, the yellow ball he'd pulled out of a bird's nest earlier was gone.
Bulma didn't hear him. She bolted back into the Capsule House excitedly. "Haha! One-star ball! Four-star ball! Seven-star ball! Lucky us—it's only the first day and we've already found three Dragon Balls!" Her voice rang out joyfully from inside.
At the door, Krillin curiously asked Goku, "What's a Dragon Ball?"
Goku gave the giant centipede a toss into the forest, then dusted off his clothes and stepped under the light. "They're the seven Dragon Balls! My grandpa said if you gather all seven, you can make any wish co true!" Suddenly, he noticed Krillin staring at him like he was so kind of miracle. Goku tilted his head. "Hey, Baldy, what's wrong?"
"So-So... Son Goku? You're Son Goku?!" Krillin suddenly realized that the reckless guy who'd knocked him flat at the door was the very sa Son Goku he'd once seen on a televised broadcast! Gohan's grandson, heir to the Muten School—Son Goku?!
"You know ?" Goku bead, patting Krillin on the shoulder. "I'm gonna go hunt sothing. Bulma's soup is too bitter and there's no at. Wanna co with?"
Bulma had actually called Goku's na earlier, but Krillin hadn't caught it, and Goku hadn't noticed either.
Krillin was still in a daze. He was exhausted and looked into the brightly lit Capsule House. He could faintly see its sleek and modern interior layout. Then he turned back to look at Goku, whose face wasn't entirely clear in the shadows.
He rembered who Goku was. He rembered the more than three years of hard training. He rembered fighting his way up the virtual Earth's Muten Tower last night. He rembered the invitation and coordinates that Jarvis had given him at the end. He rembered... the vow he made—to cross mountains and rivers and find Master Roshi, the Muten Hermit, and beco his student.
Krillin swallowed hard, took a deep breath, eyes gleaming, and smiled. "Okay! I'll go with you!"
Goku grinned back. "Heh, let's go!" he said, pulling the Power Pole from his back and twirling it into his hand.
Krillin tightened the strap on his pack. "Um..." He paused and said to Goku, "Wait a sec..." Goku stopped and looked back as Krillin shouted toward the Capsule House, "Excuse , can I leave my pack here?"
From inside, Bulma casually replied, "Sure."
Krillin dropped off his bag and instantly felt lighter, then followed Goku into the dark woods. Unlike earlier when he'd been rushing through in a panic, this ti, Krillin felt no fear or exhaustion. The forest no longer seed gloomy and foreboding—only bright with possibility.
Back in the house, Bulma happily admired the three Dragon Balls for a while. Then it suddenly hit her—where exactly had Goku found the third one? Krillin's face flashed through her mind, and she thought back to their path earlier that day. "Wait a second..." She jumped onto the couch and grabbed her backpack, pulling out the Dragon Radar. With a click, she activated it.
"Just as I thought—this Dragon Ball was our target for tomorrow! Can't believe it 'ca' to us on its own!" Bulma realized out loud. "So this Dragon Ball belonged to that little monk? Seriously... I wonder if he'd be willing to give it to us."
With that, she carried the three Dragon Balls toward the door—only to find that Goku and Krillin were gone.
"Ugh, where'd they run off to?" Bulma grumbled. At that mont, a distant howl echoed from the woods, sending a shiver down her spine. She quickly shut the door. "You better hurry back..."
---
Late at night, Goku and Krillin had already roasted and eaten two wolves. Goku was patting his belly in satisfaction as they headed back. Krillin, anwhile, was still in shock over Goku's incredible skills—he couldn't even rember what they'd eaten.
"What? You're saying the destination of your journey is where the Muten Roshi lives?"
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