In the Dragon Ball story, the most memorable major villain to emerge because of someone's recklessness is Cell.
A certain prince got carried away when things were going well, performing a series of extreme actions that allowed Cell, who was almost defeated, to make a desperate comeback and mercilessly beat the prince.
But this was only one representative example.
Soon after, Son Gohan also got reckless once, directly causing his own father's death.
Later, the Supreme Kai's astonishing actions led to Buu's resurrection, and during the battle against Buu, every warrior in the main group who could stand against him failed to suppress the surging waves in their hearts, as if they were unworthy of being Saiyans if they did not act recklessly.
Including the protagonist, Son Goku, who also got reckless many times. Otherwise, Frieza would have been reduced to ashes on Namek.
From this, it can be seen that to join the protagonist's group in this world, one must learn how to "surf," in other words, how to be reckless.
Of course, there are also examples of villains being incredibly reckless, like Cell. Considering that guy has Saiyan cells, it is completely understandable that he has this bad habit.
Now, Ethan seems to be joining this group as well.
"What's wrong? Aren't you happy after winning the championship?"
The competition was over, and everyone gathered together again.
Tien, thoroughly confused by Master Roshi's "chicken soup" wisdom, left Master Shen, gave up his dream of becoming an assassin, and decided to focus on becoming a martial artist.
At present, his goal is to catch up to the powerful Ethan, who is simply on a completely different level from himself and the others.
"No, I'm just thinking about what to do next."
"Yeah, you're already so strong, you must have lost your goal, right?"
"Lost my goal? Not really."
What is this little bit of strength of mine? At most, it is only a few hundred battle power. I might not even be able to beat the revived Piccolo, let alone the later Saiyans Raditz and Vegeta.
As for the even stronger and more terrifying Frieza, that is not a goal he needs to consider right now.
"I've always had a clear goal. I'm just getting started."
"..."
The few people around him looked at Ethan with bewildered expressions. He was already this strong and was still just getting started? Just how strong did he plan to become?
"How strong?"
Ethan did not have a clear concept of it right now. The battle power later in Dragon Ball is so immense that it is hard to describe. The group of warriors protecting Earth had to carefully control their power to avoid accidentally destroying the planet they were supposed to protect during a fight.
Even during the battle on Namek, Frieza blocked several powerful attacks capable of destroying the entire planet, leading many readers to jokingly call him the "True Guardian of Namek."
Given this situation, who knew just how strong those guys really were?
"It's hard to say. In any case, this level of strength isn't enough to satisfy me."
"This level of strength..."
Including Krillin, everyone felt as if their hearts had taken critical damage. Only Goku was very excited, expressing his desire to train with Ethan.
After seeing Ethan's rate of progress, Goku felt certain that training with him would let him learn better training methods and become even stronger. This was an instinct practically engraved into Saiyans, a constant pursuit of greater power.
"Tien Shinhan, do you want to come along?"
Tien had left the Crane School and no longer spoke so aggressively. Everyone found that he was actually quite easy to get along with.
"Well... although I've left the Crane School, I'm not planning to join the Turtle School."
"A few of us aren't disciples of the Turtle School either."
Yamcha pointed to himself, Ethan, and Yoruichi beside them.
"We live at Bulma's house in West City, at her place..."
He also introduced Bulma to Tien. Bulma did not object to inviting him either. She liked having a lively home. It was better than having the house quiet with only herself and her parents, with nothing to do every day except research and tinker with technology.
With more people around, she would not have to worry about not finding someone suitable to talk to whenever she wanted to chat.
"Um... isn't that a bit too much?"
Hearing that he would be staying at someone else's house, Tien felt very embarrassed.
"It's no problem. My house is very big."
"It's really big, like a wildlife park. It's easy to get lost in her house if you're not careful..."
This was not an exaggeration. Oolong got lost there when he first arrived.
Seeing Yamcha invite him so enthusiastically, Tien finally stopped refusing and agreed to stay at Bulma's house for a while.
In addition, Krillin also wanted to go to Bulma's house with Goku to learn "advanced training methods" from Ethan. Even Master Roshi decided to stay at Bulma's house for a while.
With everyone gone, going back alone would be a bit boring for him. Having grown used to a lively atmosphere, Master Roshi did not want to live alone on the island with only the turtle.
Furthermore, he also wanted to know exactly how Ethan had trained to achieve such powerful strength.
"Alright then, everyone, let's go to the Kame House to get some things first, and then head to West City together."
After deciding, everyone was about to set off. However, just then, a strange-looking fellow suddenly descended from the sky.
This sudden arrival had green skin, scales on his body, and wings on his back. The fact that this strange man had just descended from the air proved that his wings were not just for show and that he possessed the ability to fly.
After landing, the strange man glanced at everyone with disdain and spoke very impolitely, saying something that surprised them all.
"Are the Dragon Balls in your hands? If you're smart, hand them over quickly."
"?"
Everyone was puzzled. Where had this strange man come from, to be so arrogant? Did he not know how powerful they were?
"Be careful, this guy is filled with an evil aura."
When Master Roshi got a clear look at him, an ominous feeling arose in his heart.
Ethan, however, knew that this guy was actually Tambourine, one of King Piccolo's subordinates.
Glancing at Krillin nearby, who did not take it seriously, and at Yamcha and Tien Shinhan, who also treated the newcomer as an ignorant fool, Ethan decided to reveal some information at the right time to avoid unnecessary casualties.
"For you to appear here, it seems King Piccolo has been resurrected!"
"???"
Krillin and Goku did not understand who Ethan was talking about when he mentioned King Piccolo, while Tien had heard of King Piccolo before, and Master Roshi's face filled with disbelief.
"How is that possible? King Piccolo was clearly sealed by my master using the Evil Containment Wave, and the rice cooker that sealed the Great Demon King was personally sunk to the bottom of the sea by me."
But the words of the monster opposite them confirmed that Ethan was not talking nonsense.
"Oh? You actually recognize who I am."
"Yeah, although there are all sorts of people on Earth, I haven't seen anyone this ugly..." Ethan directly mocked him. "So you're not human. I just casually tried guessing whether you were a Demon Clan member."
Then he looked at the "Demon Clan" member in front of him with an expression full of concern for the mentally deficient. "I just didn't expect the Demon Clan's intelligence to be so worrying."
"..."
Terms like King Piccolo and Demon Clan were supposed to be terrifying things, so why did they sound so funny when he said them?
Even Master Roshi, who had psychological trauma from King Piccolo, could not stay serious at that moment. However, he still took the opportunity to explain to everyone who King Piccolo was and what a terrifying existence he was.
He was an evil demon from three hundred years ago, possessing terrifying strength. At that time, Master Mutaito, the teacher of Master Roshi and Master Shen, sacrificed his own life to seal King Piccolo in order to stop him and prevent the world from falling into the demon king's hands. Because King Piccolo was too powerful to be defeated and killed, sealing him was the only option.
"How did King Piccolo break the seal? This situation is truly terrible!"
As he spoke, Master Roshi recalled the fear of being dominated by the Great Demon King three hundred years ago. His expression was no longer relaxed, and he reminded Ethan to be careful.
Although the one in front of them was not King Piccolo himself, the Great Demon King's subordinates were not easy opponents either.
"Master Roshi, no need to worry. A small fry like this can't threaten me."
"Small fry?" Tambourine was very unhappy. As a proud member of the Demon Clan, he had never been looked down on like this before. "Ignorant human, I'll let you feel the terr..."
Before he could finish speaking, Ethan, who should have been standing not far in front of him, had disappeared, while the remaining people stared blankly.
"Wh-what's going on?"
"Only this much strength?"
The voice coming from behind sent a chill down Tambourine's spine. He immediately leaped up and looked behind him, but there was no one there. Instead, he heard a whooshing sound from above his head.
Bang!
Tambourine, who had been hit hard on the head, fell directly to the ground. The people watching from a distance all relaxed again.
"What the heck! He talked so big, but he's so weak!"
Krillin put his hands on his hips and chuckled as he looked at the green-skinned monster Ethan had smashed into the ground, unable to get up. His heart, which had been a little flustered by Master Roshi's description, returned to normal.
"It seems the so-called Demon Clan's strength is nothing special."
It was not just Yamcha who thought this. Bulma and Launch, who had been hiding behind the others, also came forward, wanting to see what the so-called Demon Clan looked like.
Anyway, with so many powerful friends around, they were not worried that this Demon Clan member could threaten them.
Only Master Roshi's expression remained serious. After all, King Piccolo had left too deep an impression on him. That was not something easily reversed.
"Ethan, kill him quickly."
Only then did everyone notice that after knocking down the monster claiming to be a Demon Clan member with one punch, Ethan did not continue attacking. Instead, he stood to the side with his arms crossed, seemingly thinking about something. He did not even pay attention when the Demon Clan member suddenly jumped up to launch a sneak attack, merely batting him away with a casual slap and smashing a section of a nearby wall.
"Damn it, how is this possible..."
Ethan raised his head again, looked at Tambourine crawling out of the rubble, put his hands in his pockets, and said something that utterly shocked everyone.
"Go back and tell Piccolo that I will gather the Dragon Balls, and he should just wait obediently!"
(To be continued.)