Naruto nodded.
"He's strong — so strong that the word invincible wouldn't be an exaggeration. If that guy ever came to Earth, I'm afraid no one here could stand against him."
It wasn't just Turles — even his subordinates would be unmatched by Earth's current warriors.
A power level of 3,000 was no joke.
"Whoa, that powerful?" Goku's eyes lit up with excitement. The fighting instincts in his Saiyan blood boiled at the thought of such a challenge.
Then he asked curiously, "So how did you end up beating him, Naruto?"
"I only managed it thanks to help from my friends on Planet Namek."
Naruto briefly recounted the incident with Turles and the Tree of Might. When Goku heard about the battle-type Namekians and their strength, he couldn't help but exclaim, "So there are that many powerful beings in the universe… I really want to fight them someday!"
And when he heard how effortlessly Turles had crushed Puru, Goku's eyes shone brighter.
"So even a lower-class Saiyan warrior can be that strong!"
By the time Naruto finished his slightly edited version of the story, Goku's blood was surging with excitement. He wished he could've been the one to fight Turles himself.
Even though Naruto had approached the fight strategically rather than head-on, his vivid description made the whole thing sound thrilling and epic.
"Don't worry," Naruto said, patting Goku on the shoulder meaningfully. "There aren't many Saiyans left… but you'll have your chance soon enough."
So long as the general flow of events stayed unchanged, Raditz, Nappa, and Vegeta would all come to fight Goku eventually.
"Not many Saiyans left?" Bulma picked up on that phrase instantly. But since Naruto didn't elaborate, she assumed it wasn't important and didn't press further.
"Hey, where are Tien and the others?" Goku asked, looking around.
"Weren't you all training together at the Lookout?" Master Roshi asked curiously.
Goku nodded. "Yeah, but after Grandpa Roshi left the temple a year ago, the Lookout was attacked by a group calling themselves the Garlic Army — led by Garlic Jr. the Second."
He briefly recounted the battle with Garlic Jr. and his followers.
"After we defeated them, everyone realized we'd hit a plateau — we couldn't get stronger no matter how hard we trained. So we decided to split up and each find tougher training. I stayed behind with Kami, but the others all went their own ways. So right now, I have no idea where they are."
"I see… so while I was gone, you guys already faced another powerful enemy," Master Roshi said with a nod, pride and nostalgia mingling in his voice.
At that moment, Naruto, Goku, and Roshi suddenly stopped talking simultaneously. Their eyes shifted in the same direction.
Feeling the tension, Bulma and the others looked confused.
"What's wrong?"
"A strong presence," Naruto and Goku said at once. Roshi added, "Looks like Tien and the others just arrived."
As soon as he said that, a gust of wind whipped across the courtyard. Several figures appeared before them — each wearing travel cloaks or straw hats.
It was Tien Shinhan, Yamcha, Krillin, and Chiaotzu — the comrades they hadn't seen in a whole year.
"Long time no see, Master Roshi," Tien greeted warmly. He was still wearing his yellow-green gi from the Crane School, but the Crane symbol on his chest had been replaced with the character Heaven (天).
It symbolized that Tien had completely severed ties with the Crane School — and found his own martial path.
Chiaotzu, too, had changed along with him.
"Krillin, Yamcha — everyone! It's been so long!" Goku waved cheerfully.
Krillin tilted his head back to look up at him, jaw dropping. The last time they'd met, they'd been about the same height — but now Goku towered over him.
"Y-you're Goku?!" he sputtered.
Tien and Yamcha both froze in disbelief as well, while only Chiaotzu stayed calm.
Krillin circled Goku suspiciously, inspecting him from every angle. "We've only been apart for a year, and you've grown this much? Come on, tell me — what's your secret? Some kind of miracle growth formula?"
Goku scratched his head sheepishly. "Haha, I don't know. I just woke up one morning and my clothes didn't fit anymore. Guess I really did grow."
Krillin felt like crying.
You just… went to sleep and got taller?
They'd been the same height a year ago — and now Goku had secretly outgrown him by a head!
"Oh right!" Bulma suddenly said, a mischievous grin curling her lips. "Let's check your power levels!"
Everyone stared blankly at her, not understanding what she meant. The only one who knew — Naruto — just smiled silently.
Under their puzzled gazes, Bulma reached into her bag and pulled out a small device.
It was a Scouter — the same type Naruto had once used. He had given her one he'd recovered from Turles's crew, and she had upgraded it herself.
Naruto's current scouter was a newer model with a maximum reading capacity of over 3,000,000.
Bulma pointed to the device over her eye proudly. "This handy gadget visualizes a person's strength — in the universe, it's known as a Power Level Scouter!"
"Whoa, seriously?" Everyone was amazed.
The idea of turning one's strength into numbers was beyond imagination — but since it was Bulma who made it, they all accepted it instantly.
After all, when the genius scientist Miss Bulma said something existed, it existed.
"Come on, let's test it out!" Everyone was eager and curious.
Even though they could already sense ki, they could only estimate — not quantify. This was something new and exciting.
"Let's start with you, old turtle," Bulma said, aiming the scouter at Roshi.
Beep-beep-beep!
"139… only that much?" Bulma frowned.
She had secretly tested Naruto's strength before and gotten a reading of 500. Compared to that, 139 seemed pitifully low.
"I feel a little offended," Roshi said with a laugh, not taking it seriously.
Naruto glanced at him. He knew that Roshi's true power was far higher than 139 — that number represented his suppressed base level. Having trained at the Lookout, Roshi's real strength was far beyond that.
He, like Naruto, simply kept his power sealed and steady. When he unleashed it fully — say, in his muscle form — it would far exceed the displayed number.
Such self-restraint was the mark of a true martial arts master.
That, Naruto thought, was the essence of returning to simplicity. True mastery meant being able to hide your strength completely, appearing no different from an ordinary person. Roshi wasn't there yet, but he was close.
"Master Roshi's power level is 139, huh? Then what about mine?" Krillin asked eagerly. "Test me next, Bulma!"
"Alright," Bulma said, scanning him. The numbers flickered, then stopped.
"770! That's… surprisingly high!"
Roshi's 139, Naruto's 500… and now Krillin's 770.
Did that mean Krillin was even stronger than Naruto?
But then she remembered — Naruto had already mastered training under one hundred times gravity. There was no way Krillin had surpassed him.
Still, for a genius scientist like Bulma, the numbers were confusing.
"770!" Krillin shouted proudly. "Haha! I've surpassed Master Roshi by that much!"
"It's gotta be broken," Roshi muttered. But he didn't argue — everyone could tell he was just being humble.
Unlike Roshi and Naruto, Krillin hadn't yet mastered power control, so his number was accurate — his actual, current strength.
"Let's check the others next," Bulma said, scanning the rest.
Chiaotzu: 410.
Yamcha: 680.
Tien Shinhan: 830.
Tien's was the highest yet.
"As expected of Tien," Krillin said admiringly, hands behind his head. "That's really strong!"
Ever since seeing his own result, Krillin had been feeling rather pleased with himself.
"Now let's check Goku," Bulma said, turning the scouter toward him.
The reading made her eyes widen in disbelief.
"Th–thirteen hundred and seven?!"
Goku was the first person she'd ever seen break a thousand.
"Goku's that strong?" Krillin gaped. "But we all trained together! How did your strength get that far ahead?"
"You must've been secretly training behind our backs," Krillin teased, only half-serious.
"Nope," Goku laughed. "After you guys left, Kami took me to this strange place to train with Mr. Popo."
As he spoke, his face darkened slightly, remembering something unpleasant. "But the conditions there were brutal. Food was scarce — I couldn't even eat properly! I only lasted a month before I came out."
"That sneaky Kami — he gave Goku extra training!" Krillin grumbled.
Yamcha nodded. "If even Goku says it was tough, that place must be terrifying."
Naruto, however, knew exactly what that "place" was —
the Hyperbolic Time Chamber.
Inside, the gravity was ten times that of the outside world.
But gravity was the least of it — the air was thin and suffocating, every breath a struggle. The temperature swung violently between fifty degrees Celsius and minus forty.
Those with weak willpower or poor concentration would easily hallucinate.
Most importantly, one year inside equaled a single day outside.
It was a supreme training ground for strengthening body and spirit alike.
But it came with harsh restrictions: only two people could enter at once, and each person could only stay inside for a total of two Earth days — two years in chamber time. Beyond that, the exit would vanish.
Unless one's strength could literally shatter the boundaries of space and time, they'd be trapped forever.
Even with those limits, it was one of the greatest sanctuaries for training in the Dragon Ball universe.
And though Goku had only stayed there for a month, the boost in his power was tremendous.
"How are we supposed to fight now?" Krillin groaned.
He and Tien weren't far apart in strength — but compared to Goku's 1307, the gap was nearly double.
Yamcha sighed as well. "Just when I thought I'd finally caught up, the gap got even bigger…"
In contrast, Tien's eyes were blazing. He stared at Goku, determination burning.
"Goku," he said, "even if your power level is far above mine, I won't back down. Let's fight seriously and see who's stronger!"
"Well said." Master Roshi nodded approvingly. "Power levels are just numbers. The real outcome of a battle is determined only through combat. Remember that, Krillin, Yamcha — never lose heart before a fight. That's the greatest taboo for a martial artist."
While power levels might rule the universe, among true martial artists, victory could only be proven through fists.
Beep-beep-beep!
Suddenly, Bulma's scouter started beeping again — this time rapidly.
When she saw the number, she froze.
"Eleven thousand five hundred?!"
"What?! That's higher than Goku's! Is it malfunctioning?!"
Bulma quickly removed the device to check, but found nothing wrong. Which meant… the reading was accurate.
Everyone turned to look in the direction Goku was facing —
and there, not far away, stood a tall, muscular man with a turban-like head wrap. His skin was green.
Piccolo.
The son — and reincarnation — of the Great Demon King Piccolo.
Krillin, Tien, and the others instantly went on guard.
That oppressive aura — it was just like when they'd faced the old Piccolo.
No, not "just like." Stronger. Much stronger.
After all, Piccolo was far more powerful than his father ever had been.
Piccolo only gave a cold snort, ignoring the others. His sharp eyes locked onto Goku — the man who had killed his father.
Their gazes met, clashing silently but fiercely. After a moment, Piccolo looked away — his eyes briefly flickering toward Naruto — then he turned and left without a word.
As his presence faded, the scouter's beeping finally stopped.
Clearly, that enormous reading had come from him.
I'll defeat you all… Piccolo thought darkly.
And in the name of my father, the Great Demon King Piccolo — no… in my own name.
You'll see that I've grown into a true Demon King.
I am Piccolo…
The second coming of the Demon King — the Demon Prince himself!
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