I'll Stay and Guard the House! Lest It Be Stolen!

"You mentioned the Dragon Balls before... if we gather all seven, can they really grant any wish?" Tien Shinhan changed the subject, asking curiously.

"That's right, but only one wish—and that wish is to bring Krillin back to life." Bulma took a sip of water and nodded lightly.

"But the wish we need to make right now... it'd be best to destroy King Piccolo." Yamcha suggested. "If we succeed, we can get rid of that demon."

"Once the wish is made, the Dragon Balls turn to stone. So if we want to revive Krillin, we'd have to wait a year." Puar's cat face dripped with sweat.

"By then, the body would be rotten." Oolong's mouth twitched into a dry smile. "Even if he comes back, he'd be a skeleton... what then?"

Broly glanced at Oolong, and couldn't help picturing it in his mind.

A skeleton Krillin waving hello at him.

Broly slapped his forehead.

I'd better stop thinking about weird stuff like this.

The guy's dead...

The old man said, respect the dead!

"Don't worry about that. I can make a cryo-capsule to preserve Krillin's body." Bulma mused, then turned to Oolong. "Want me to put you in there too?"

"I'm not dead yet..." Oolong rolled his eyes.

"Hmm, it's light gray..." Master Roshi suddenly spoke up, adjusting his sunglasses.

"Huh? What are you talking about, Master Roshi?" Puar asked excitedly.

"Is it some kind of strategy?" Yamcha perked up too.

"Uh, the old man's talking about Bulma's... color..." Broly pointed at Bulma and nodded in appraisal. "It is light gray."

Bulma suddenly caught on and quickly pulled her skirt down.

"Bam! Bam!"

Bulma punched them both, knocking Master Roshi and Broly to the ground, and snapped irritably, "The world's about to be ruled by a demon, and you two still have the nerve to gawk at nonsense!"

"I was just... just trying to lighten the somber mood." Master Roshi lay on the floor with a lump swelling on his head, looking troubled.

"We don't need you to lighten it!" Bulma fumed.

"What... what does this have to do with me?" Broly rubbed his head as he got up.

"You've got some nerve! You used to be so innocent—did that old geezer Roshi corrupt you?" Bulma glared at Broly.

"Broly, so you like light gray, huh? I'll go change right now!" Launch stepped up to Broly, blinking rapidly, her golden wavy hair making her fiery figure stand out even more.

"Uh... that's not what I meant..." Broly felt a bit embarrassed.

"Or do you only want to look at Bulma's?" Launch planted her hands on her hips and glared at Broly.

Bulma: "..."

Bulma covered her face, unable to listen anymore.

Is this ever going to be dropped?

"Ahem... anyway, let's find the seven Dragon Balls first... it's dangerous, but we have no choice." Master Roshi voiced his thoughts.

"I'll go change into that..." Launch turned to head upstairs.

Broly: "..."

Are you really going to change?

But just as Launch reached the stairway, a news report came on the TV, and she stopped in her tracks.

"This is the murdered Mr. Nam." The TV news displayed a photo of Nam. "According to eyewitnesses—his family and villagers—the killer was a strong, terrifying monster! A note with the word 'demon' was reportedly left at the scene. What this person's goal is, further investigation is still needed."

The group fell silent.

"Fast work." Launch murmured.

"Is... is that Nam?" Yamcha broke out in a sweat.

Nam had participated in the last World Martial Arts Tournament and lost to Son Goku in the second round.

"The other contestants on the list are in danger too—we have to warn them right now!" Yamcha clenched his fist and shouted.

"But the list was stolen, wasn't it? Even if we wanted to contact them, we don't know where they live." Master Roshi shook his head.

"Ah..." Yamcha realized he was right and fell silent.

"Warning them through the news media would cause worldwide panic. This is really bad." Tien Shinhan gritted his teeth in frustration.

"We're in danger here too. Let's move somewhere else first." Master Roshi suggested, then asked Bulma, "Bulma, how long will it take to make a new Dragon Radar?"

"At least half a day!" Bulma answered seriously.

"Once the radar's ready, we'll jump straight into action and search for the Dragon Balls." Master Roshi made the call decisively.

"I still think why bother with all that—just beat him to death and be done with it." Broly muttered again.

"Keep your mouth shut... Do you really think King Piccolo is that easy to deal with?" Master Roshi scolded irritably.

"I'm not interested in finding the Dragon Balls. I'm staying..." Broly replied. "I'll watch the house! Make sure nobody steals it."

"What are you talking about? If you stay here, King Piccolo will come knocking sooner or later!" Master Roshi barked angrily.

"Isn't that perfect? Let me handle him!" Broly cracked his knuckles, a grin spreading across his face.

"No way! You have to pull your weight finding the Dragon Balls too!" Bulma snorted.

"Better to come with us, Broly..." Yamcha chimed in. "We'd worry if you stayed here alone."

"If you're worried about food, I'll grab some capsules to pack for you." Master Roshi sighed.

"Fine." Broly thought it over and finally nodded in reluctant agreement.

"What a curse... Did I owe this kid in a past life?" Master Roshi looked up to the heavens with a sigh, then went off to grab capsules to pack some pre-made meals for Broly.

Meanwhile, Bulma didn't waste any time and immediately started building the Dragon Radar.

8 hours later.

The Dragon Radar was completed right on schedule.

"Whoosh!"

Launch piloted the jet helicopter up into the sky.

Left with no choice, Broly went along.

"Looks like we'll need a lot of freezer capsules." Launch flashed a sinister grin.

"You've been a huge help here." Master Roshi said gravely to Tien Shinhan.

"But... to face an opponent stronger than Goku..." Tien Shinhan lacked confidence.

"If only Goku were still alive..." Bulma sniffled sadly.