That line hit Bulma harder than anything.
She knew it too:
if Goku had been alive, none of this would have happened.
And because Gohan had said, "If Dad were here,"
hope rekindled in her.
She found a direction.
After twenty years of research, she built a time machine.
She sent Trunks to the past to seek help—
and to deliver medicine to Goku.
It worked.
When Trunks came back, he told her about Prince Vegeta's unexpected romance.
Even she was surprised.
She remembered clearly:
Back when Vegeta had been alive,
she'd never felt a shred of safety from him,
never a trace of care—only pride and coldness.
Trunks witnessing a different Vegeta
had to be because that world still had Goku,
slowly changing Vegeta over time.
Piccolo and Tien were living proof.
Goku looked foolish, but he was miraculous.
Decades passed.
The person Bulma trusted most—still—was Son Goku.
The time machine didn't just save another timeline's Goku with the medicine.
It also saved her world.
She felt deeply comforted. None of her effort had been wasted.
She had wanted to go back and see Son-kun herself.
But she was already old.
That world had a young her… and Chi-Chi.
She didn't know how she would exist there.
She was afraid that if she went, she'd never want to return.
So she didn't.
Still, living on this broken world…
on quiet nights, loneliness always crept in.
Over and over she'd thought:
If life could start again,
how wonderful it would be if she could choose Goku…
But there were no "ifs."
As her memories replayed, Goku Black's hand flared with energy.
In an instant—
Bulma was blasted into dust.
In her fading mind, a familiar song drifted by.
A romance offered to you…
As the melody echoed,
she saw little Goku again,
saw the days of adventure by his side.
Satisfied,
she finally lost consciousness.
When she opened her eyes again…
She was sixteen.
Back at the very start of her journey to find the Dragon Balls.
Bulma touched her face in disbelief.
"I… I've been reborn!"
A sudden roar startled her.
She turned and saw a flash over Mount Paozu nearby.
A dinosaur had been struck by something and was falling out of the sky.
Bulma stared, puzzled.
But the moment she saw that mountain, she knew exactly where it was.
"That's Mount Paozu… Goku's home."
Her tragic life had ended, yet she'd been given another chance.
How wonderful.
Ecstatic, her gaze hardened with determination.
"Son Goku, I'm coming to find you!"
"This time, I'm tying you to my side.
I'm not letting Chi-Chi trick you away!"
She slammed the accelerator and raced toward Mount Paozu.
They say a mountain in sight is still a horse to death away.
She could see it clearly earlier—
yet it still took her a full hour to reach the foot of the mountain.
Then she drove another hour up the winding mountain road
and still hadn't reached the summit.
Bulma sighed—her "pro driver" speed wasn't fast enough after all.
Soon a small river appeared on the roadside.
Long-buried memories resurfaced.
She remembered it—that same river from her first trip in her previous life.
That day, little Goku had caught a huge fish from it for dinner,
and nearly thought she was stealing his food.
Seeing the river meant she was close.
Through the trees she finally saw smoke curling from the summit.
She smiled.
No surprise there—
that smoke had to be Goku grilling meat.
Bulma's lips lifted as she stomped the gas,
speeding up the snaking road toward the peak.
Suddenly, a small figure popped into view right in front of the car.
That kid had a turtle shell on his back and seemed to be walking upside down,
his face turned away.
Bulma gasped and hit the brakes, but it was too late.
The tires screeched; the car slid straight toward him.
Panicking, she clenched the wheel and shut her eyes.
She expected a horrible impact—her car wrecked.
But there was no crash.
And she felt the car stop.
Bulma snapped her eyes open.
A tailed little boy stood right there.
Her breath caught. Her whole body trembled.
That was him.
The little Goku she'd missed for twenty years.
Those clear, innocent, slightly dumb eyes
made something inside her feel unbearably warm.
Bulma hurried toward him, hands shaking.
In this life, it was the first time he'd ever seen her.
But in that hopeless future, she'd gone a day without missing this face.
Without a word, Bulma hugged him tightly.
Goku, pulled into a sudden embrace, was completely stunned.
His mind raced with doubt.
"What's going on?"
"Isn't this Bulma?"
"Why didn't she pull out a gun and shoot me?"
"Why is she hugging me the instant we meet?"
Feeling her trembling against him, he froze.
She was soft.
Really comfortable to hold.
And she smelled good—really good.