"All right! I finally made it!"
After spending half a year, Goku finally reached the end of the Snake Way. At this moment, the halo above his head had vanished. Following Aomori's advice, the Guardian had resurrected Goku ahead of time.
Goku looked around, spotted King Kai's Planet above, and grinned happily. He crouched and sprang upward, shooting toward the tiny world.
"There are buildings up there; this must be it."
However, his smile quickly froze. An invisible force seemed to yank him down, and his body plummeted uncontrollably onto the planet, instantly creating a human-shaped crater.
"What's going on?" Goku gritted his teeth, using every ounce of strength to pry himself out of the hole, propping himself up on his hands and knees.
At that moment, a figure walked up to him and said in a flat tone, "Son Goku, you're far too slow."
Goku looked up and cried out in surprise, "It's you?! When did you get here?"
"Five months before you."
"...That... that fast!" Goku slumped his head in dejection. "If only I had asked you for a ride back then. Now there's only half a year left. I don't know if I can get strong enough to beat those two Saiyans."
His optimistic nature took over quickly, and he looked up to ask, "By the way, what's your name? Have you seen King Kai? Where is he?"
"I am Aomori. As for King Kai..." Aomori pointed nearby. "He's lying over there. He won't be getting up for a while."
"Thanks!"
"Mm." Aomori nodded indifferently and walked to the other side.
Over the past six months, he had completely drained King Kai of his knowledge; all that remained was the slow, steady grind of practice. This place was the best training ground outside of the Hyperbolic Time Chamber, and he intended to use this time to merge his miscellaneous skills into a unified "Three-in-One" system. By mastering and simplifying his repertoire, his strength would surely reach a new level.
As for the matters between Goku and King Kai, Aomori didn't plan to interfere much. As the child of destiny, Goku certainly wouldn't face too much trouble.
Just as Aomori expected, Goku quickly gained King Kai's approval and began his training. As the days passed, Goku, whose strength was growing rapidly, would occasionally challenge Aomori to a spar, only to end up with a face full of bruises. Aomori also sparred with King Kai regularly, leaving him equally battered; King Kai and Goku became brothers in misfortune.
Toward the end, Goku's strength surpassed King Kai's, and his battles with Aomori became a proper back-and-forth rather than a one-sided beatdown. Of course, during these fights, Aomori used only physical strength from beginning to end. No one could tell exactly how powerful he truly was.
And so, the day of the Saiyans' arrival dawned.
…
"Oh no! I forgot to account for the time it takes to travel back across the Snake Way!" By the time King Kai notified Goku, there were only two days left until the Saiyans reached Earth.
"What?! What do we do? King Kai, can't you just send me directly to King Yemma?" Goku paced frantically like an ant on a hot griddle.
"How could that be possible?!" King Kai shook his head. "You have to return to King Yemma through the Snake Way yourself. I'll notify Earth's Guardian to come pick you up."
"But it takes half a year to cross the Snake Way! Everyone will be killed by then!"
"Goku, you underestimate yourself. Now, you only need a few days to cross it, and besides..." King Kai nudged his chin toward Aomori, who was resting with his eyes closed, and whispered, "You can ask him for a lift."
"Oh, right!" Goku immediately performed a prostrate tiger bow, kneeling before Aomori. "Please, Aomori! Please take me back to Earth!"
"No need to rush. There's plenty of time." Aomori kept his eyes closed. "King Kai surely factored in all the variables; he wouldn't make such a mistake. He was probably just telling you a joke earlier."
"I see! Then I'm relieved." Goku let out a sigh of relief.
"Er..." King Kai broke into a cold sweat and gave a nervous laugh.
Half a day later, Aomori opened his eyes, stood up, and said, "Let's go."
"Right!" Goku nodded heavily.
The two bid farewell to King Kai. Aomori grabbed Goku's shoulder and turned into a beam of light, shooting straight into the sky. Watching the two vanish like shooting stars, King Kai finally relaxed and collapsed onto the ground.
"They're finally gone. This past year has been so difficult... With him there, Earth should be safe this time."
…
"Haha! This is so fast! It feels great!"
Hitching a ride on the "Aomori Express," the surrounding scenery turned into blurred lines. Goku shouted with the excitement of a child. It was lucky they had Ki protection; anyone else would have disintegrated at this speed.
In just a few hours, the two arrived at the gates of the Underworld and met the Guardian. Without a word, the Guardian brought them back to Earth, straight to the Lookout.
"I'm back!" Seeing the familiar sights, Goku couldn't resist releasing his Ki without reservation to greet his friends.
The moment his aura erupted, Piccolo and the other Z Fighters stationed around the world felt a jolt.
"This Ki... it's Goku! He's back!" Krillin jumped for joy.
"It's Daddy!" Gohan's face beamed with happiness.
"Goku... he's grown this much? It seems he didn't slack off." Piccolo snorted and released his own aura. "Gohan, you should say hello to your father too."
"Mm!" Gohan nodded firmly, took a deep breath, and let out a roar.
An aura only slightly weaker than Piccolo's surged into the blue sky. Inspired by them, Krillin and the others also erupted with Ki, making their presence known.
"Hahaha, everyone has gotten so much stronger. Wait, is this Gohan? He's only five, right? That's amazing!" The smile on Goku's face never faded. Fighting alongside his friends was what made him happiest.
Goku's massive Ki turned into a hurricane, blowing away all the dust on the Lookout and giving the Guardian quite a scare.
"The others trained on the Lookout for half a year and grew a lot, but none can match you." Kami smoothed his disheveled robes and smiled with relief. "Goku, you've grown so much more than I expected."
"Yup!" Goku gave a thumb's up. "Don't worry, I won't let Earth be destroyed."
"Mm." Kami squinted and nodded. "There are still a few hours before they arrive. You two should rest and regroup here."
"What nonsense is that?" Aomori interjected. "How can we let them land so peacefully? We're going to give them a 'grand gift' first."
"They're bad guys, why are we giving them gifts?" Goku asked, confused.
"..."
Aomori ignored him and chose to call King Kai remotely. "King Kai, you can hear me, right? Give me the coordinates of their landing site."
"Ahem." King Kai's voice echoed in their minds. "I don't have precognition; how would I know the exact coordinates? I can give you a general area at best."
"An area is enough."
"Then I shall guide you."
"Good. As for the others, tell them to rendezvous with Piccolo."
"...Fine."
Ending the call, Aomori first went to Korin Tower to take his share of Senzu Beans, then set off with Goku under King Kai's guidance to wait in ambush at the landing site.
…
"Uncle Aomori, are we staying here?"
In the wilderness, Gohan asked Aomori. He really wanted to see his father.
"This place is deserted and suitable for a battlefield. Your father will be bringing the enemies here shortly," Aomori replied. During the year of training, the clones had returned to the main body one by one; now, only this Holy Light clone remained.
"Oh." Gohan nodded obediently.
"Someone's coming," Piccolo suddenly turned his head.
"Where? Is it Daddy?" Gohan looked back and saw a streak of light flying toward them. It landed, revealing a bald man.
"...It's not Daddy."
"Yo, Piccolo. And Aomori. Long time no see. Seeing you two here really takes the pressure off," Krillin greeted them with a wave. He saw the disappointed Gohan and immediately recognized him. "This must be Gohan! I'm Uncle Krillin, do you remember me?"
"Mm." Gohan nodded. The bald head was a very memorable feature.
"Hmph. What use is a guy who can't even keep up with Gohan?" Piccolo crossed his arms and spoke coldly.
Aomori chuckled. "He's more than enough for a cleanup crew."
"Er..." Krillin shook his head speechlessly. "You two are as annoying as ever."
Time ticked by. Tien Shinhan, Chiaotzu, and Yamcha arrived one after another, happily sharing their experiences. Suddenly, Aomori looked up at the sky.
"They're here!"
…
"Finally."
In mid-air, Aomori watched two massive fireballs friction-heating through the atmosphere. He patted Goku's shoulder and said, "Go on. Give them a greeting."
"Mm!" Goku overlapped his hands into a petal shape at his waist. The Ki within his body condensed into a dazzling energy sphere. As he thrust his hands forward, a massive beam of light pierced the heavens.
"Kamehameha!"
Boom!
One of the fireballs exploded instantly. The other luckily avoided the direct hit, but under Aomori's telekinetic control, its speed slowed until it came to a halt beside him, completely sealed by mental force.
Inside the spherical spacepod, a burly bald man looked on in shock. Having invaded many planets, this was the first time he had encountered something like this. However, out of confidence in his own strength, there wasn't a trace of panic on his face.
"Let's go." Aomori simply carried the spacepod and flew with Goku toward the rendezvous point.
Elsewhere, the dust cleared from the pod Goku had destroyed, revealing a short, furious Saiyan.
"Filthy Earthlings... how dare they treat a noble Saiyan prince this way?!" Vegeta, often read as "Tragedy-ta," watched his powdered spacepod with a twitching eye. Saiyans couldn't survive in the vacuum of space; they needed pods for interstellar travel.
"Whatever. I'll make those fools provide a new one later. Hmm? That idiot Nappa... why did he act alone without waiting for me?! No..."
Vegeta looked at his Scouter and saw two staggering numbers.
"5,400? 9,800?! Impossible! How could Earth have such high power levels? Was the Scouter damaged in the explosion?" Vegeta frowned. He flew toward Nappa while contacting him. "Hey, Nappa! What's the situation?"
"I'm trapped in the pod and can't get out! Vegeta, come save me!" Nappa said frantically; clearly, he had also seen the power levels on his Scouter.
"Tch, useless!" Vegeta cursed under his breath and accelerated. He had a bad feeling that things were slipping out of his control the moment he touched down. "Is someone targeting Saiyans on purpose? No matter. They underestimated me. The highest is only 9,800. If they try anything, I'll make them regret it!"
He increased his speed again, carving a rift through the clouds.
…
Aomori intentionally controlled his speed so that by the time they reached the rendezvous, Vegeta arrived at the exact same moment. Goku and the others didn't even have time for a reunion before they had to face the terrifying aura of the Saiyans.
Vegeta squinted, his gaze locked onto Aomori. His cold voice rang in everyone's ears.
"You're decent, but only decent. If you're smart, you'll hand over Nappa and the Dragon Balls. Otherwise, you can perish along with this planet."
"Heh, this bald guy is useless to me. Here." Aomori yanked Nappa out of the pod and tossed him out like a chick.
A noble Saiyan had never been treated with such disrespect. Nappa's eyes turned bloodshot. "I'll kill you all!"
"Nappa! Get back here!" Vegeta's roar instantly silenced Nappa's rage, and he slunk back behind Vegeta. It was no joke, there was someone over there he couldn't beat. Without Vegeta's support, Nappa wouldn't dare act tough.
"As for the Dragon Balls, I don't care. The only thing I'm interested in is the fight." Aomori grinned. "Fight us. If you win, everything is yours. If not, this will be your grave."
"Letting strength do the talking? Suits me just fine," Vegeta said confidently. Aside from the first two, the rest were just trash with power levels of one or two thousand; Nappa alone was more than enough for them. Vegeta only needed to deal with Aomori and the man with the spiky hair.
"That face... you must be Kakarot. You look exactly like Raditz. So you really were resurrected. It seems the legend of the wish-granting Dragon Balls is true." Vegeta's heart raced. If he could become immortal, he would one day defeat that so-called Emperor of the Universe and become the most powerful being in existence!