In the tight space, Bulma, Yamcha, and Oolong woke up still dizzy from the sleeping gas. The ruckus from behind the wall made them panic, and they quickly noticed that Goku and Puar were gone.
Yamcha tried to break the wall with his strength, but it didn't budge.
Bulma started whining and panicking. "We're screwed now! They probably already made their wish while we were sleeping!"
Yamcha noticed that the wall Goku had broken was slightly out of its railing. He went there and put his full might into trying to move it.
Meanwhile, outside the castle, Pilaf was about to make his wish. He was mid-sentence when Goku fired a ki blast that passed inches in front of Pilaf's face, making him jump and look where it was heading. The energy ball crashed into a mushroom tree, destroying it into pieces.
Pilaf and Shu were shocked, while Mai had a pained expression, knowing exactly what that attack meant. They all turned toward the direction the ki blast came from to see Goku walking toward them, hand still raised and steaming, with Puar flying beside him.
"Y-you?! How did you get out of my trap?!" Pilaf asked nervously.
"Doesn't matter," Goku said nonchalantly. "The only thing you need to know is not to make a wish."
He continued walking until he positioned himself between Pilaf and Shenron, blocking Pilaf's view of the dragon.
"I'll be taking it," Goku declared.
The glow of the dragon behind him lit up his back while darkening his face, but his eyes gave off an ominous light, creating a truly menacing presence.
For a moment, Pilaf was speechless. Then he regained his composure and started protesting.
"W-what?! I'm not scared of you! Dragon! Hear my wish—"
Before Pilaf could finish his sentence, Goku's hand shot out and grabbed his face, squeezing his cheeks. He lifted the tiny emperor from the ground to his eye level.
Goku, clearly not in his right mind, started going off on Pilaf. "You know, I'm not a good guy. But when I arrived in this world, I acted like a 'good guy.' But people started annoying me left and right—there's only so much I can take."
"What...?" Pilaf asked, his voice muffled and confused.
"You know, it would be easier for me to just kill everybody. When Mai stole my Dragon Balls, I could've just blasted your castle with all of you in it—it would've been much easier. But no, I said to myself I won't just kill people like that. Plus, there was Mai there... I needed an explanation. An explanation..."
Goku realized he was ranting like a lunatic. All three of them were looking at him with fear, while Puar watched with concern.
"Anyway... let's end this."
Goku dropped Pilaf, but before the emperor could hit the ground, Goku struck him with a chop to the neck, knocking him unconscious. Then he kicked Pilaf's limp body through the air, where it landed on top of Shu.
"Take him away. I need to be alone..." Goku said, aiming his words at Puar but looking specifically at Mai.
He turned to face Shenron, hands in his pockets, looking up at the massive dragon.
"Now... MY WISH!!!"
Goku stood before Shenron, arms spread wide, a bright grin lighting up his face as the dragon's glowing light washed over him. "NOW, MIGHTY DRAGON, WILL YOU GRANT MY WISH?!" he shouted, his voice bold and unwavering.
Shenron's huge eyes burned brighter, his deep voice rumbling like thunder. "Name your wish, and I'll grant it."
"I DIED IN MY OLD WORLD! BRING ME BACK THERE!" Goku's words hit hard, full of determination.
Behind him, Puar and Mai stood still, their faces twisted with shock and confusion. "Old world…?" Mai whispered, her voice shaky and quiet.
Shenron's eyes glowed fiercer, his presence filling the air with weight. Mai's heart raced, pounding so hard she could barely think. She didn't understand everything, but one thing was clear: Goku was about to disappear forever.
Something inside her snapped.
In a flash, she rushed forward, pushing Goku to the ground with all her strength. He hit the dirt with a thud, and she landed over him on all fours, her eyes locked on his. Her breathing was ragged, panicked, her chest heaving with each desperate gasp. A tear fell from her cheek, landing warm on Goku's face.
Goku's looked down. Mai's loose top hung open, revealing her full, heavy breasts bouncing freely without a bra. They swayed and bounced with each shaky breath, their perkiness unmistakable as they clapped together softly, creating a faint rhythmic sound in the tense air. The firm, round shape pressed against her thin top with each panicked movement, their weight and bounce emphasizing just how overwhelmed she was. Her cargo pants clung to her toned legs and curved hips, her entire body trembling with emotions she couldn't name or control.
"What? What are you—?" Goku started, his voice softer now, confused.
Mai's face turned deep red, her eyes wild and desperate. She opened her mouth to speak, but no words came out. Her hands hovered in the air, shaking, not knowing where to go or what to do.
"I... I don't... why did I...?" she stammered, her voice breaking. She looked at her own hands as if they belonged to someone else. "I don't understand... why can't I let you go?"
Her chest continued to heave desperately, her braless breasts bouncing and swaying with each panicked breath, the soft clapping sound they made against each other filling the silence. Their perkiness was impossible to ignore as they strained against her thin top, quivering with every nervous tremble of her body. She was completely lost, her trained composure shattered by feelings she had no framework to understand.
"Goku-sama... I..." she tried again, but her voice cracked. She had never felt anything like this before. Her entire life had been orders, missions, logic. But this—this was pure, overwhelming emotion that made no tactical sense.
Puar, eyes huge, slapped his paws over his face, too embarrassed to watch the confusion unfolding.
Before either of them could make sense of the moment, Shu's voice cut through the air, loud and sharp on a microphone: "Mai! Emergency evacuation! Now!"
Mai jumped as if electrocuted, suddenly remembering who she was, what she was supposed to be doing. She scrambled off Goku, her face burning with embarrassment and confusion.
"I... I have to go," she whispered, backing away while staring at him with wide, conflicted eyes. She turned and ran toward the castle, her mind racing with questions she couldn't answer.
Goku got up, brushing off dirt, still processing what had just happened. he looked at her running in shambles.
The dragon's voice boomed, firm and final. "I cannot reach beyond this world."
"What?!" Goku's eyes flashed. "Then send me back! This body's fine!" he pushed, voice rising.
"I cannot reach beyond this world," Shenron repeated, unmoving.
Goku's frustration flared. He formed a ki ball, its energy buzzing in his hand, aiming at Shenron "I-..." then crushed it in anger, sparks flying everywhere. "FUCK!!!"
Mai, running toward the castle, glanced back one last time. Hearing Shenron's words, her face softened with an emotion she didn't recognize—relief. Goku wasn't going anywhere. Not yet.
Puar, looking a little scared, approached Goku cautiously. "A-are you alright...?"
Goku was still seething, but his face softened when he saw Puar's concern. He turned to the small creature, letting a faint smile slip through. "I'm sorry... I was a little pissed. I'm alright."
Internally, he was thinking: *I was angry at Shenron's answer—that he couldn't send me back. But what's this feeling? Somewhere inside me... I'm relieved.*
Puar flew up to touch his shoulder gently. "Even if your first wish can't be granted, try another one."
Goku looked at Puar, then up at Shenron with a clueless expression. "Well, I didn't think about it... Oh yeah, I know! Hey, dragon!" For some reason, he was much less formal than before. "Force Kinto'un to let me ride him instead of falling through!"
Meanwhile, in the tight space, Yamcha, Oolong, and Bulma had finally succeeded in moving the wall with great struggle. They fell to the ground, out of breath.
"Finally..." they gasped in unison.
They ran toward the exit to see the night sky illuminated by the light of a giant dragon. Bulma looked at the ground and spotted Goku and Puar standing in front of Shenron.
"GOKU! THANK YOU! YOU KEPT THE WISH FOR ME!!" Bulma shouted, running toward them.
When Goku heard her, he turned with a cringe-worthy smile, knowing perfectly well what her reaction would be when—
"You asked something simple. I'll grant you your wish," Shenron declared, his eyes lighting up.
The dragon disappeared, and the Dragon Balls floated up before blasting apart to scatter across the world.
Bulma saw this and understood immediately. Still running toward Goku, her eyes became shadowed with fury.
"Hey, Bulma! It's not what it looks like!" Goku said nervously.
She grabbed him by the collar and shook him violently. "MY WISH!!!"
While she held him by the collar, his head fell back as he looked up at the sky. That's when he saw it—the full moon hanging bright and beautiful above them.
"What a beautiful night..." Goku said, staring at the moon as if hypnotized.
"Son-kun, what's wrong?" Bulma asked, noticing his strange behavior.
Yamcha and Oolong came up beside them. "Did you shake his brain loose?!" Oolong asked.
Bulma dropped Goku, and he landed on his feet. His eyes began glowing red, and his canine teeth started growing longer and sharper. He fell to his knees, then onto his forearms as his body began expanding, growing larger and larger.
In Goku's mind, he found himself surrounded by darkness and void. Two giant red eyes opened in the blackness, and he felt himself floating toward them. A massive mouth opened, ready to swallow him whole.
In the real world, Bulma and the others grew scared and backed away from the transforming Goku.
Goku regained some consciousness and began slamming the ground with his fists, creating bigger and bigger craters with each impact.
"I—I feel my mind slipping away!" he cried out desperately.
In his mind, a brilliant light suddenly appeared and chased away the darkness along with the monstrous presence. Outside, Goku shrank back to his normal size and collapsed on his side, passed out.
What Goku didn't know was that he was the Oozaru that had killed Son Gohan. He had looked at the full moon that night and had no memory of it. But this time, through his training to overcome his weakness—his tail—he had become capable of withstanding the transformation without realizing it.
Yamcha approached him cautiously. "What happened?"
Bulma remembered something. "He told me that his grandfather was killed by a monster, and that he never saw what it was. Don't tell me... it was him."
"Well, we have to keep this between us," Yamcha said grimly.
In the background, a small aircraft flew away into the night. Inside, Shu was piloting while Pilaf remained knocked out, and Mai sat quietly, observing the group below.
After two hours, the sun was beginning to rise. Goku woke up from his "sleep" to find Oolong sitting next to him.
"Morning," Oolong greeted him.
Goku saw him and grimaced. "Why do I have to see your unpleasant face first thing?"
"I don't care—I'm gonna reveal everything to him," Oolong mumbled, clearly pissed off.
"What happened? I don't remember when I fell asleep," Goku asked, sitting up.
"Well, you made your wish and then collapsed," Bulma said, looking away.
Goku just accepted this explanation, thinking it seemed normal enough.
"So what do you want to do now? Go search for the Dragon Balls again?" Goku asked.
"No, we can't," Bulma replied. "Once a wish is made, the Dragon Balls become like ordinary rocks for a year. You can't use them or track them, so it's impossible to find them." She sighed dramatically. "I guess I'll have to wait another year before getting a wonderful boyfriend... Hmm!?"
"I guess my fear of women will have to stay with me for another year... Hmm!?" Yamcha said at the same time.
They both looked at each other with sudden realization.
Goku got up and stretched. Yamcha and Bulma approached him, skipping hand in hand, and Bulma said with an annoyingly sweet smile, "Son-kun, we've all decided to go back to the city together~ Wanna come with us? You're cute, so you'll be popular with the girls~"
Goku squinted his eyes at them, immediately understanding what was going on. "Well, I have to decline. I'm going to go see Roshi and find out if he has something real to teach me."
Bulma looked disappointed and turned to Oolong. "What about you, Oolong?"
"Are there a lot of girls there?" he asked hopefully.
"Oh yeah! But since you're perverted and unpleasant to be around, I don't think you'll be very popular," she said casually.
"YOU DON'T HAVE TO SAY THAT MUCH, DAMN IT!!" Oolong shouted.
"Well, 'til next year, I guess, for searching for them," Goku said to Bulma.
"Muhuhu, we don't need them anymore," she replied, blushing.
"Okay, I see," Goku said, cringing at their lovey-dovey behavior.
"How are you going to get to Roshi's?" Bulma asked.
"Oh yeah!!" Goku almost forgot. He stood up, took a deep breath, and shouted with a deafening scream, "KINTO'UN!!!"
"You can't ride it," Bulma reminded him.
The golden cloud came and stopped in front of Goku. He jumped on it and stood proudly on its surface.
"If something doesn't work, you have to force it!" Goku said with a smirk.
Next to him, Oolong mumbled, "That's not good advice to follow..."
"By the way, Son-kun, what about Mai? I didn't see her after they captured us," Bulma asked.
"She made her choice," Goku answered bluntly.
"Anyway, see you around! I gotta figure out how this thing works," he said before blasting away into the sky in the direction of Master Roshi's house.