Mount Paozu, Earth.
Broly stared wide-eyed at the scene in front of him.
There was no nauseating stench that made him want to throw up.
The air was so clean. So fresh.
"Son Gohan, that…?" Broly pointed at the lake in shock.
"Ah… right. I forgot you've never even drunk proper water before. You've been living off that disgusting egg goo all this time.
"If Saiyan stomachs weren't built different, you would've died ages ago.
"That's water. Go on, jump in and take a bath." Gohan said.
Splash.
Broly leapt straight into the lake. He scooped up a handful of the clear, sparkling water and stared at it, his throat working as he swallowed unconsciously.
Gulp.
He parted his lips and slowly brought the water to his mouth.
"This… this taste…" Broly's eyes were filled with disbelief.
Then
Splash!
He dunked his entire head under, gulping down mouthful after mouthful of lake water.
The environment around Mount Paozu was still pristine. This lake was fed by mountain springs flowing down from above, all gathered here in the valley.
The water was crisp and sweet, crystal clear and bright.
An hour later, Broly burst up from beneath the surface. The sour reek that had clung to his body for thirty years was finally gone.
You had to admit, the close-fitting armor Saiyans wore was ridiculously durable.
The quality was insane. Broly had worn the same outfit since childhood. After countless battles, the external armor was in pieces, but the underlayer hugging his body was still intact.
"Broly, use your ki to dry your clothes," Gohan said, sitting on a boulder while slowly roasting two fish, each over a meter long.
He had used Instant Transmission to pop home and grab a pile of seasonings too.
"Ki?" Broly repeated blankly.
"Uh, energy. The energy you release when you fire energy blasts. Use that to dry your clothes."
Gohan suddenly remembered Broly didn't even know what the word "ki" meant.
But the word "energy" he understood. Paragus had been an elite Saiyan soldier, after all.
Whoom.
Broly's hair bristled slightly, a thin aura washed over his body, and his soaked clothes dried immediately.
"Here. Eat."
The two giant fish were finished. Gohan handed one to Broly and kept one for himself.
The two of them started wolfing them down.
Broly, who had never tasted anything so delicious in his life, ate like a storm tearing through a forest, his eyes shining.
In less than two minutes, the entire fish was gone. Even the hardened spine and bones had been crushed between his teeth with loud cracks and swallowed.
"Whoa, whoa, hey Broly, you're not supposed to eat the bones," Gohan quickly reminded him.
But it was too late. The fish was gone, leaving only the head.
"You can't eat them? I thought… they tasted pretty good," Broly said, stunned, carefully savoring the memory of the bone's flavor.
Once again, you had to marvel at Saiyan teeth. And Saiyan stomachs.
"Here, take this. But seriously, don't eat the head. Just throw it away." Gohan tore off the rest of his own fish and handed it to Broly.
"Th… thanks," Broly said. He still wasn't very fluent, but his gratitude was written all over his face.
Less than a minute later, he had devoured that piece too meat, bones, everything.
"More. Want more," Broly said, pointing at the fish head in his hand.
"Enough. Come with me. I'll get you something good for dinner. Leave some room in that pit you call a stomach," Gohan said, rolling his eyes.
He'd only bothered grilling fish because he was hungry himself. Otherwise, he wouldn't have lifted a finger.
There were robots at home. Who did he look like, a live-in chef?
"…All right," Broly nodded.
Gohan took him back to the Saiyan gathering place.
The team grew again.
Everyone who had been in secluded training sensed an unfamiliar ki and stepped out of their rooms.
"Gohan, who's this?" Goku asked curiously.
"He's called Broly. He's a Saiyan too. But he's the real Legendary Super Saiyan. He's "
Gohan explained Broly's origin to everyone.
Their expressions shifted from calm, to surprised, to outright stunned.
"Whoa, the Legendary Super Saiyan… four trillion battle power… that's insane!" Goku said, practically buzzing with excitement.
Vegeta was even more shaken.
"Gohan, how have I never heard about this?" he demanded.
What shocked him most was that King Vegeta had exiled someone like Broly.
"Well… how to put it. Your old man's mentality was… let's just say 'a bit petty.'
"But blessing and misfortune come together. If Broly hadn't been exiled, he would've died in the destruction of Planet Vegeta too," Gohan said, rolling his eyes.
"Raditz, we're falling further and further behind," Nappa muttered under his breath.
"That's you, not me," Raditz shot back, suddenly full of confidence in himself.
"Tch, you bastard…" Nappa grumbled.
"Nappa, I suggest you go find Tien and learn the Crane School's martial arts from him. I think the Crane School suits you better," Gohan said, offering his advice.
"With that three-eyed guy?" Nappa didn't look convinced.
"Nappa, don't get full of yourself. You've seen Tien's strength for yourself.
"Saiyans may be born warriors, but there's always someone stronger out there. The sky's higher than you think.
"If you stay this arrogant forever, then just leave Earth," Vegeta snapped.
Compared to Gohan, Nappa still listened to Vegeta more.
"Yes, Prince Vegeta. I understand," Nappa answered with a full-body shiver.
"Tien should've been sent back by the Supreme Kai already. Focus, sense his ki, and go find him," Gohan said calmly.
"Got it, Gohan!" Nappa shot into the sky, locked onto Tien's ki, and sped off.
"Dad, you guys chat with Broly for a while. I'm going to Bulma's to buy a house capsule. Otherwise Broly won't have anywhere to stay tonight," Gohan said, and vanished.
Goku, ever the natural people person, took Broly to familiarize him with the gravity chamber and began teaching him how to control his ki.
Vegeta, on the other hand, felt a new sense of crisis rising in his chest. A crisis that he was about to be dead last again.
He didn't spare anyone another glance, hurrying back to his room to meditate on the God Ki Gohan had given him.
Raditz, meanwhile, returned to "exercise" with his disciple behind closed doors.
It was late, after all.
Bulma's place.
"Bulma, do you have any spare house-type capsules?" Gohan asked the moment he appeared.
"Son Gohan, what do you take me for? You just show up whenever you need something if you're missing anything, you come to me. Do I owe you or something?!" Bulma shouted, furious.
"Could you, like, lower the volume a little? My hearing is fine," Gohan said, his ears ringing from her roar.
"You little brat. Whenever you need something, you come find me. When you don't, it's like I don't exist.
"And you still expect me to just give you stuff?" Bulma's anger slowly shifted into something more like wounded resentment.
Gohan felt a cold shiver run down his spine.
Inwardly he thought, No way. No way, right? Why does she sound like a jealous girlfriend complaining I don't text her back?
His gaze drifted on its own… toward those towering "mountains," and the faint curve that stood out even from the side…
Gohan's invasive stare made Bulma feel like his eyes were peeling her clothes off. Her face flushed red, and she cursed silently in her heart, Bulma, what the hell are you thinking?!
"Ahem. You little perv, where do you think you're looking?" Bulma folded her arms over her chest.
"I wasn't I mean… Bulma, come on, tell me if there's anything I can help you with," Gohan said, realizing where his eyes had wandered and immediately switching to flattery mode.
"I, I…"
For a moment, Bulma really couldn't think of anything she needed him to do.
She stared at him, and a thought suddenly popped into her head.
"I want you to help me collect the Dragon Balls," she said.
"The Dragon Balls? What wish do you want to make?" Gohan asked, tilting his head slightly.
"None of your business. I just want a wish," Bulma said, not revealing her real intention.
Gohan thought about it for a moment and basically guessed what she had in mind.
"Fine. I'll help you gather them. But you give me the capsule first."
"Here, take it, take it," Bulma said, tossing a house capsule to him after grabbing it from her lab.
Gohan returned to Mount Paozu and picked out a good spot before tossing the capsule.
With that, Broly finally had a place of his own on Mount Paozu.
Then Gohan grabbed the Dragon Radar and headed out to collect the Dragon Balls.