The icy expanse of the Arctic.
"You two really have no regard for your lives!" Son Gohan's voice rang out as he used his ki to lift both men into the air, slipping a Senzu Bean into each of their mouths.
Whoosh!
In an instant, both recovered to peak condition.
But there was something different about Son Goku. Even without using scouters, simply by sensing his aura, it was clear he had grown significantly stronger than he had been just moments ago!
"Goku, you're a freak. No, you father and son are both freaks!" Piccolo snapped, clearly irritated.
While Gohan had been training with King Kai, Goku and Piccolo had fought dozens of matches.
At first, Piccolo had managed to hold the upper hand, thanks to the potential unlocked for him by the Grand Elder of Namek.
But the longer they fought, the more the balance shifted, until Piccolo could no longer keep up with Goku at all.
"You're really strong too, Piccolo!" Goku said, trying to be encouraging.
"Cut the crap. Don't think I didn't notice. In that last fight, you deliberately suppressed your ki to match mine. That wasn't your full strength at all!" Piccolo growled.
"Ah… haha…" Goku scratched the back of his head sheepishly.
Watching closely, Gohan estimated Goku's true battle power to be around 28,000, while Piccolo's sat at roughly 15,000.
The fact that they had fought evenly just now meant Goku had been holding back deliberately.
"It's more fun when the fight is even," Goku explained. "That way we both get stronger. And I have to say, your new move the Special Beam Cannon is incredible. The damage output is way above your base strength!"
"Save it. I'm not stupid," Piccolo said with a scoff, though the faint curl of his lips betrayed how much he enjoyed the praise. "The real problem is the charge time. Only an idiot like you would just stand there and let me finish it!"
"If you want to surpass my dad, you'll have to seriously consider fusing with Kami," Gohan interjected.
"You don't need to tell me!" Piccolo shot back with a frown.
Truthfully, he had considered it, but the thought of Kami's personality influencing him was something he could not get past. That mental block remained unresolved.
"I think you shouldn't fuse with Kami just yet," Goku said suddenly.
During their recent talks, especially after Gohan had taken Piccolo to Namek and returned with tales of the Saiyans, both fighters' worldviews had shifted.
Piccolo no longer obsessed over dominating Earth or defeating Goku.
Goku, having learned of the countless strong warriors scattered across the universe, had reignited his fighting spirit.
The grudges between them had all but vanished after dozens of sparring matches, though their banter still sounded as sharp as ever.
"What, Goku? Afraid I'll surpass you?" Piccolo challenged.
"No, I'd be thrilled if you did. What I mean is your current base power still isn't at its limit. Even if fusing with Kami could multiply your strength several times over, how strong would that really make you? You've seen Gohan's Super Saiyan form. Do you honestly think you could surpass him right now?" Goku asked.
"Bullshit!" Piccolo roared. "What do you mean my base power 'isn't much'? You looking down on me? Let's fight again right now!"
"…" Gohan stared at them in exasperation.
"Can you at least focus on the main point?" Goku sighed.
"I got your point," Piccolo said, scowling. "But I don't see a path to improve my base strength. Even the Grand Elder never told me if Namekians have a specific way to grow stronger."
"I've got a way," Gohan cut in.
Both Goku and Piccolo turned toward him expectantly.
"At the end of Snake Way in the Other World, there's a small planet called King Kai's Planet. I've been training there these past few days. The North Kai isn't particularly strong, but his experience is vast, and he has a technique that boosts your power during battle."
"Kaio-ken?!" Goku and Piccolo's eyes widened.
"That's right, the Kaio-ken!" Gohan's aura suddenly flared into a crimson blaze, the shockwave blasting the two of them off their feet.
The instant he powered down, they were back at his side.
"Gohan, can I learn it?!" Goku asked eagerly.
Piccolo's gaze was equally intense.
"Dad, if I can learn it, you can too. But for Piccolo… well, the Namekian body is different from a human's, so I'm not sure if it's compatible. Still, I can take you both to King Kai and let him teach you directly," Gohan offered.
"Are you looking down on me? What's this 'different from a human's body' crap? And you Saiyans are exactly the same as humans, huh?" Piccolo snapped.
"Aside from bloodline and tails, yeah, we're basically the same," Gohan said with a smirk.
"You…!! Hmph!" Piccolo fumed, unable to come up with a retort.
"Dad, should I take you there now?" Gohan asked.
"Uh… should I tell Chi-Chi first?" Goku froze mid-thought.
Mount Paozu
"What?! Training in the afterlife? Do you have a death wish? The Other World is no place for the living! And if you leave, what happens to this house? You barely make any money as it is, living off hunting! If you go, what will Gohan eat? What will I eat?" Chi-Chi's tirade was a storm of complaints, tears, grievances, and scolding, all fired in rapid succession without a single repeated phrase.
"Uh… Gohan, maybe we shouldn't go after all?" Goku said meekly.
Outside the house, Piccolo's expression froze. With Namekian hearing as sharp as it was, he had caught every word.
"The so-called strongest on Earth? What a joke. Clearly, his wife holds that title. Wives… terrifying creatures. Good thing I'm a Namekian. Reproducing on my own is the ultimate truth!"
Inside, Chi-Chi was still in full flow.
"Mom, I'll be away for a while too, so you won't need to worry about feeding me," Gohan said, pouring oil onto the fire.
"What? You're leaving too?!" Chi-Chi turned her wrath back on Goku. "Training with you was already my biggest compromise, but now you want to drag my Gohan to the Other World? You'll be the death of me, losing both husband and son while I'm still young!" She burst into tears.
Goku nudged Gohan. "You handle this one."
Gohan sighed and stepped forward. "Mom, we're not going there to die, we're going to train. And while Dad and I are away, you can finally relax! Go visit Grandpa, take a trip, buy some cosmetics… And don't worry about money. Your son's smart; we'll never be short on cash. Oh, and here this is one hundred million zeni from Aunt Bulma for helping her out. You can spend it however you like."
"One hundred million?!" Chi-Chi snatched the bank card faster than light, her eyes sparkling.
But in the next heartbeat, she schooled her expression and scolded, "Gohan, how could you take money from Aunt Bulma? We might be poor, but we're not freeloaders!"
"Mom, I told you, it's payment for a job. I earned it, I didn't take it for free."
"I don't believe it!"
"Then call Aunt Bulma and ask her yourself."
"Fine, I will!" Chi-Chi whipped out the phone. "Hello, Bulma? Gohan just came home and said"