"Well… if you wanted to take 10 or 20 beans, I wouldn't object… but if you want all of them… ahem…" Korin tried to politely refuse.
"I could just take them by force," Ken said with a sigh, "but I'm a reasonable guy. How about this—if I can guess exactly how many Senzu Beans are in this jar, you give them all to me. Sound fair?"
Korin: "…"
A brief silence.
Korin gave a small nod to indicate agreement.
This kid thinks he can guess how many beans are in there? I'd like to see him try.
"Ken, can you really guess it?" Bulma whispered.
"No problem," Ken smiled. "There are exactly 6,158 beans."
"Is that so? Then let's count them," Korin said, feeling a bit uneasy as he leaned in to examine the jar more carefully.
"Then let's begin." Ken snapped his fingers.
Snap!
With that crisp sound, the beans inside the jar suddenly floated into the air.
Whoosh whoosh whoosh!
The Senzu Beans grouped themselves in twos and threes before rapidly organizing into six hovering piles.
Upon closer inspection, each of the six piles was further divided into ten smaller sections.
"There are six main piles," Ken explained, "and each pile is split into ten smaller parts, each containing 100 beans. You can count for yourself. As for the remaining 158 beans, I separated them out into their own group."
Korin's eyes went wide with utter shock.
How… how did he do that? Why do I suddenly feel like… he's more of a god than I am?
Even that old guy in the heavens probably couldn't pull this off…
"No need to count… You win," Korin admitted, wiping his brow.
"Great, then I'll take them." Ken casually snapped his fingers again.
Whoosh whoosh whoosh!
All the Senzu Beans returned neatly to the jar.
"Thanks," Ken said politely.
"No problem…" Korin smiled bitterly.
"Let's go," Ken said to Bulma.
"Wait, let's see if he has any other cool treasures. He is a hermit, after all," Bulma whispered.
Korin didn't even want to respond.
You already cleaned me out of Senzu Beans… and now you want more?
"I don't think there's anything else," Ken said, shaking his head.
"Then never mind. I am a rich girl, after all—I don't really lack anything." Bulma pouted, then grinned.
Korin: "…"
If you really didn't lack anything, why are you still asking for more?
"We're off." Ken scooped Bulma into his arms and flew away from Korin Tower.
At the same time, he released a trace of ki, which wrapped around the Senzu Bean jar.
Instantly, the jar floated up and followed him.
"Whoa! The jar can fly?" Bulma exclaimed.
"The jar?" Ken blinked.
"Ken, you get the Senzu Beans, but I want the jar!" Bulma said with excitement. "I've never seen a flying jar before!"
Ken: "…"
"Sure, it's yours," he agreed without protest.
If only you knew the jar doesn't actually fly…
"By the way, could you make me a device to store the Senzu Beans? Like some kind of storage space?" Ken asked her.
"Leave it to me." Bulma thumped her chest proudly and agreed without hesitation.
Ken knew full well—despite being only five years old, Bulma was an absolute genius.
A scientific genius.
In the Jaco the Galactic Patrolman special, five-year-old Bulma had already invented a powerful energy blaster.
When she pulled the trigger and fired it into the ocean, it sent waves dozens of meters high, scaring poor Jaco half to death.
That's exactly why Ken had no doubt she could handle building a storage device.
Ken believed she could pull off this glorious and challenging mission.
"What kind of storage design should I go for?" Bulma muttered thoughtfully.
"Maybe a ring. Something easy to wear," Ken suggested.
"You're smart! Okay, we'll do that." Bulma nodded. "It'll take about a day. Not hard—just need to modify a Capsule a little."
"That simple? Thanks a lot," Ken said.
"No problem at all! But… I want to borrow your tail for a couple days." Bulma giggled and reached for it.
Ken: "…"
"What's so fun about a tail?" he asked, exasperated.
"It's fluffy! That's what makes it fun!" Bulma laughed as she gently stroked it.
"You only think that because you don't have one," Ken said flatly.
"Exactly! That's why it's fun!" she nodded seriously.
"There'll be even better tails in the future," Ken added cryptically.
Bulma: "????"
"Where?" she asked.
"You'll understand when you're older," Ken chuckled.
"Hmph! Don't act like you're older than me. We're the same age!" Bulma pouted.
Ken didn't reply and continued soaring through the night sky.
Before long, they arrived back at Capsule Corporation.
It was around 9 PM by now.
A crescent moon hung in the sky, and the gentle night breeze carried a fresh scent through the air. The whole atmosphere felt poetic, like a verse from an old song.
Broly was lying on the lawn, gazing up at the moon, lost in thought.
Seeing Ken and Bulma return, Broly quickly got up.
"What were you looking at, Broly?" Ken asked curiously.
"…Papa…" Broly pointed at the moon, suddenly reminded of his father back on Planet Vampa.
Dad's still on that planet… Shouldn't we bring him here too?
"Wait, your friend can talk? I thought he was mute!" Bulma said in surprise, staring at Broly and whispering to Ken.
"He can speak, just… not very clearly," Ken nodded.
"What did he just call you?" Bulma hadn't caught it earlier.
"Papa…" Broly pointed at the moon again, struggling to express himself.
"Huh? He called you Papa?" Bulma finally heard it clearly. Her little face was filled with shock. "You're already married with kids?! You aliens can get married at five?! That's so unfair!"
Ken: "…"
(End of Chapter)
[100 Power Stones = Extra Chapter]
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