Have You Heard the Story of the Dragon Balls?

Seventh Universe, eastern North Galaxy.

Dark clouds blanketed the sky, and an oppressive aura weighed down on the entire planet!

Despair had spread to everyone still stranded on Planet Vegeta.

The scattered crowds gazed up at the sky with ashen faces. As far as the eye could see, soldiers of the Frieza Force were slaughtering Saiyans.

No one knew how much longer they could stay hidden. They were like weeds in a gale, drifting duckweed without roots, their lives liable to be snuffed out at any moment!

Yet even then, one blood-soaked figure refused to yield.

"Frieza!"

With a bright red band of blood tied around his head, Bardock swiftly broke through the encirclement of elite Frieza Force soldiers in the sky.

With death in his heart, he charged toward the terrifying source above.

"Heh heh heh, what a pity. If not for that lord's orders, I really would have liked to let you lot live a little longer."

Watching the Saiyan monkey burst out from deep within the planet and charge toward the defensive line, Frieza remained unmoved.

The Scouter showed the newcomer's battle power was over 12,000. He could have earned himself a place in Frieza's army, but in the end, he was still only a measly ten-thousand-level fighter.

With an amused smile, Frieza gently raised his right hand. Flecks of light gathered at his fingertips, lending his petite figure an air of elegance.

"A bunch of mere wild monkeys dare to defy me, the emperor of the universe? I'll use your flesh and blood to add a little more color to my fireworks display!"

His casual words fell, and he gave a slight flick of his index finger.

"Oh ho ho ho ho! Sabo, Dodoria, let's enjoy this dazzling display of fireworks. The destruction of a planet is always such a captivating sight!"

A point of light drifted from his fingertip, then rapidly swelled. In the blink of an eye, the energy sphere had grown to the size of the planet before them. The enormous bomb hurtled toward Planet Vegeta!

At the sight of it, Sabo and Dodoria, standing beside Frieza's hovercar, turned pale and gaped. Cold sweat broke out across their bodies!

They believed that if they went all out, they could destroy Planet Vegeta with a Ki Blast. But afterward, even they would be completely drained.

They were nowhere near capable of doing it as effortlessly as King Frieza!

"Everyone knows King Frieza is incredibly powerful, but I never imagined he could do something like this!"

"Kakarot... Temuturs... you'll surely... avenge us!"

Seeing the "sun" suddenly appear above Planet Vegeta and slowly descend, Bardock charged forward without hesitation. In an instant, he was swallowed by the enormous energy sphere and vanished without a trace!

And so began a legend of his own...

"Year 749 of the Age, July 15. This is the twelfth year since I came to this world. I miss smartphones, my anime waifu, and the generous ladies online who used to send me money..."

"I remember my cheap mom telling me that she and Uncle Bardock made a promise back then. If their children were a boy and a girl, they'd arrange a marriage between them. If they were both boys, they'd become sworn brothers..."

"I could've lived with being sworn brothers, but why did Grandpa have to pick him up from the spaceship first!"

"But it's fine. So what if he's the older brother? According to the Battle Power Tester I picked up, Goku's battle power has already risen to ten, while mine..."

As if he'd thought of something amusing, the corners of his mouth curled wildly upward. He couldn't seem to stop himself from grinning.

"Mine has been 2.5 times his since birth! Even now, eleven years later, it's still higher than his..."

As his brush moved, elegant block characters danced across the paper. But after writing another line, the owner of the small hand seemed to think of something. He crumpled up the page and tossed it aside.

"Ugh! Who even keeps a diary? Seriously!"

"I'm back, Wuneng!"

In Mount Paozu, far from the bustle of the city, Son Goku returned home after a day of hunting, carrying two enormous fish-beasts over his shoulders.

"Oh, coming!"

A lazy voice came from inside. Son Gohan, who had just been writing and doodling, put away his notebook.

A child about four and a half feet tall stepped outside.

Standing side by side, it was easy to see he was half a head taller than Son Goku.

"You're a little slow today, Goku. That's not like you. Looks like you slacked off on your training!"

He teased Son Goku as he walked over. It had become their usual routine during the years they'd depended on each other.

"Not at all! We have a guest today!"

Son Goku swished his tail and cheerfully continued.

"Grandpa said she's a woman!"

He spoke excitedly, shifting aside with the huge beast on his back to reveal the person behind him.

"!!!"

Son Gohan's eyes lit up as soon as he heard that. Who knew how he'd managed to get by in the mountains for the past ten years?

Ever since he'd been transported to the Dragon Ball world and sent to Earth with Kakarot, then adopted by Grandpa, Son Gohan hadn't seen anyone else in a long time.

"Hello, my name's Bulma. Nice to meet you!"

A voice as clear as a songbird rang out. Bulma, a slender girl with long, light-blue hair, appeared before Son Gohan.

Looking at the handsome boy, she squirmed shyly. She already understood a little about the relationship between men and women.

"Hello, I'm Son Gohan, and I'm this guy's older brother!"

Son Gohan straightened up and replied with a smile.

"What? Grandpa clearly said I was the older brother!" Son Goku muttered under his breath.

"Hm?"

Son Gohan shot him a sideways glance, then turned back to Bulma with a cheerful smile.

"Please, come on in. You're our guest. It's just Goku and me at home."

"Just as you'd expect from the chosen heroine of Dragon Ball. She's already quite developed at only sixteen!"

Son Gohan muttered as he led Bulma inside.

As for Son Goku, he was already getting ready to prepare the food. There was no helping it; the two of them ate far too much, so they had to get things ready early.

And even now, Son Gohan would have to handle making dinner for the two of them.

"Is it just the two of you here?"

Seeing the simple surroundings and thinking that only two little boys lived here, the girl felt a surge of sympathy.

"Mm-hm. We brothers make a living by hunting around here. We're doing pretty well."

Son Gohan gave a noncommittal reply.

He poured Bulma a cup of hot tea, then sat back down in his chair and studied her carefully.

After looking around the room, Bulma's gaze settled on the shining orb on the altar.

Her eyes practically overflowed with excitement!

"The third Dragon Ball!"

Her eyes shifted as she quickly worked out a plan.

"It must be so hard for the two of them to live out here alone. Maybe I can talk them into coming with me to find the Dragon Balls!"

"Seeing how freakishly strong Son-kun is, his little brother's probably no slouch either."

"That way, I can borrow their Dragon Ball and have the brothers act as my bodyguards!"

Once she'd thought it through, Bulma quickly walked over to the Dragon Ball and spoke as though the thought had just occurred to her.

"Huh? This glass marble is so pretty. I can't take my eyes off it!"

Son Gohan propped his chin on one hand and quietly watched Bulma. For a moment, he wasn't sure whether he should play along. Beautiful women really were good at acting. She was still young, but she already had a real talent for it.

After thinking it over, he replied.

"Well, strictly speaking, it's not just a glass marble. Have you ever heard the story of the Dragon Balls?"