One after another, the elders from several other Namekian villages arrived quickly, each bringing a Dragon Ball with them.
Upon arrival, the elders respectfully greeted the Grand Elder and shared their observations about the recent phenomenon—how the negative energy on Namek seemed to have mysteriously vanished.
Even those Namekians who had been suffering from serious illnesses were inexplicably cured.
When the Grand Elder revealed that Ken was the one responsible for saving Namek, the gathered Namekians were visibly stunned.
Anyone could see that the person who saved their entire planet looked incredibly young—still a child, really.
Nevertheless, the Namekians were very polite and immediately bowed respectfully to Ken.
So far, five elders had arrived from afar. With the one Dragon Ball Elder Moori held, that brought the total to six.
Only the Grand Elder's Dragon Ball remained—they were one short of completing the set.
About five minutes later…
Shoom!
Two streaks of bright light shot across the sky.
Nail and Vegeta had returned, bringing the last Dragon Ball.
Vegeta was gasping for breath, and when he glanced at the Dragon Ball in Nail's hands, a sudden thought struck him:
Wait… Why did I even come along on this errand?
Did I just play errand boy?
I didn't do a damn thing.
What was Ken trying to get rid of me for?
But just then, Vegeta noticed that all seven Dragon Balls had now been gathered.
His heart skipped a beat with excitement.
Nail respectfully handed the final Dragon Ball to Ken.
Ken placed all seven Dragon Balls together in a row.
"Well then, I'm going to make a wish now," Ken said politely to the Grand Elder.
"Very well," the Grand Elder nodded.
But then—whoosh—Vegeta suddenly lunged forward and shouted loudly at the Dragon Balls, "Dragon Balls! Let me, Vegeta, become a Super Saiyan!"
And then… nothing happened.
Every Namekian present stared at him as if he were an idiot.
Vegeta: "..."
He stood there dumbfounded for a long moment, but nothing changed in his body.
"Ken, you LIED to me!" Vegeta shouted, turning on him furiously. "Didn't you say once we gathered all seven Dragon Balls, any wish could be granted?!"
"No, you misunderstood," Ken corrected him calmly. "It's three wishes. Not just one."
Vegeta: "..."
"What difference does that make?! Why couldn't I make a wish just now?! I want to become a Super Saiyan! Why isn't anything happening?!"
"Ahem… Prince Vegeta," the Grand Elder sighed, explaining patiently, "you can't just blurt out your wish. You have to summon the dragon first."
"Summon the dragon? What the hell is that?" Vegeta was utterly lost.
The Grand Elder said no more. He began chanting in the Namekian language to summon the dragon.
As his final word echoed through the air, the sky instantly turned pitch black.
A brilliant golden light burst from the seven Dragon Balls, forming a beam that shot into the sky. The light twisted and gathered in the clouds.
Pop!
The light condensed into the form of a massive green dragon.
It was slightly chubby—oddly cute for a godly entity.
"Speak your wish, O one who has gathered the Dragon Balls," the dragon's voice thundered from above. "I shall grant you three wishes, within my power."
"What… what is that thing?" Vegeta's eyes bulged. He was in complete shock.
"Ken, Prince Vegeta, this is our Namekian dragon—Porunga. It means 'God of Dreams,'" the Grand Elder explained with a smile.
It was Ken's first time seeing Porunga in person, and he couldn't help but be awed.
From his vantage point, Porunga looked like a colossal beast, a titanic monster coiled in the sky.
"All three wishes are yours," the Grand Elder said with a hearty laugh.
"Can I make a wish now?" Vegeta asked cautiously this time, no longer rushing in like before.
He had embarrassed himself enough already.
Twice now, in fact. He'd embarrassed himself all the way back to Planet Vegeta.
This time, he figured it was smarter to confirm first.
"You may," came Porunga's deep voice. "Speak your first wish."
Vegeta's eyes lit up with excitement, gleaming with anticipation.
Even the dragon himself had confirmed it!
No problem now!
"Hey! Let me, Vegeta, become a Super Saiyan!" he shouted eagerly.
Porunga ignored him completely.
"Shenron, give me Aladdin's magic lamp," Ken said leisurely in fluent Namekian.
Porunga: "..."
The Grand Elder was stunned—he hadn't expected Ken to be able to speak Namekian.
"Hehe, I taught him," Delta said proudly. "Well… it's not super fluent, but he gets the point across."
Moori: "..."
Moori wiped his forehead nervously.
I'm really starting to think this brat only learned Namekian… just to make wishes.
Those syllables he practiced earlier… were just enough to form that one sentence.
This guy's way too sneaky!
Vegeta turned to Ken in confusion.
"Hey, Ken, what language was that? Bird-speak?" he asked, baffled.
Grand Elder: "..."
All the Namekians present glared at him.
Did this brat just insult our sacred language?!
"You're asking for Aladdin's lamp—the one where you rub it and a genie appears to grant a wish, correct?" Porunga asked. The great dragon sounded… a little done.
So wait… your wish is something I can't even grant? You're asking me for a lamp so another genie can grant your wish?!
You summoned me… just to ask for THAT?!
"Yep, exactly! As expected of the almighty dragon—you know everything!" Ken nodded enthusiastically.
Porunga: "..."
A brief silence.
"That is merely an ancient myth. It does not exist in reality. I cannot grant that wish," Porunga finally said.
"I figured it wouldn't work… Fine, I'll change my wish," Ken replied. Then he made a new wish in Namekian: "I wish for the universe to be free from conflict—let it be eternally peaceful."
Porunga: "..."
"…I'm sorry. That wish cannot be granted," Porunga replied, sweat appearing on his massive dragon brow.
"Why not? You can't do it?" Ken asked, confused.
"No… As long as intelligent life exists, conflict is inevitable. Not even the gods can prevent it," Porunga replied, still sweating.
(End of Chapter)