You, Too, Want to Dance?

Bulma watched Son Goku leap far ahead, and her competitive spirit stirred. She quickly urged Son Gohan to start the motorcycle.

But strangely, Son Gohan seemed to have gone dumb, standing frozen in place. She had no choice but to lean forward from the back seat and study his expression.

"Why aren't we moving? Goku's already so far ahead!"

The girl was in a playful mood, so she sounded rather impatient.

"Do you think... it's possible Goku ran in the wrong direction...?"

Son Gohan raised a hand to shield his eyes and gazed into the distance, murmuring as he watched Son Goku speed away through the forest.

"Ah! Then hurry up and call him back!"

Bulma's heart clenched, and she hurriedly spoke up.

"Vroom! Vroom!"

"It's fine, we'll go on ahead. Hold on tight, hahaha!"

Son Gohan twisted the throttle all the way with his right hand. Before Bulma could sit back up, the motorcycle shot forward like an arrow loosed from a bow!

Bulma's body snapped backward, and she let out a startled cry. Instinctively, she flung both arms around Son Gohan's waist and clung to him, not daring to let go!

"Hey! Y-you, slow down!"

Even after the motorcycle had traveled far away, her frightened cries seemed to linger in the air!

Meanwhile, Son Goku was just about to leave the valley when he heard the commotion. In mid-leap, he turned to look back.

In the distance, he could only make out the motorcycle speeding away from him in the opposite direction, with a cloud of dust billowing high behind it!

"Oh no, this is bad! Looks like I ran the wrong way again!"

Just as he was about to leap onto a large tree, he executed a nimble aerial flip. His tail had already curled around a branch, carrying him in a circle.

Once he had turned himself in the right direction, he then went into free fall, leaping straight down from the tree. At the very last moment, he slammed one foot against its trunk, which was so thick that three people could barely encircle it.

With a sharp crack, the tree toppled. Using the force of its fall, he launched himself forward!

"Damn it! That iron monster's way too fast!"

As the distance between the three of them grew, Son Goku's feet flew over the ground, his short legs pumping so fast they blurred!

Feeling the wind roar past her ears, Bulma gradually got used to the speed and began to perk up.

Only then did she realize that just a moment ago, her entire body had been pressed against this big boy. She wasn't sure whether the rush of speed was to blame or not.

Her heart was pounding away, noticeably faster than usual, and her whole face had flushed red.

"Son-kun looks so handsome from the side! If only he were a little older!"

At sixteen, Bulma was at the age when a girl began to dream of romance. Being around a boy had her daydreaming without even realizing it, and she was completely smitten.

Up front, Son Gohan had felt the motorcycle rumbling beneath him, and earlier he had naturally felt the soft, springy sensation against his back. Once it was gone, he felt a little wistful. Without thinking, he squeezed the brake on the left handle.

Bulma, who had been lost in thought behind him, was caught off guard and pressed against him again from the force of inertia.

"What are you doing?!"

His sudden move left Bulma flustered, and she cried out in alarm.

"Ahem. Well, we've reached the edge of Mount Paozu. We'll have to wait for Goku here."

Son Gohan gave a pointed cough to change the subject. After traveling for half a day, they had reached the outermost edge of the mountain range.

The place where they stood was the last mountaintop in Mount Paozu.

Looking around, there were no more towering mountains in the distance. Instead, the landscape had given way to endless rolling grasslands!

Here and there, steep hills and ravines rose from the plains. Gusts of wind swept through, producing a mournful howl. From somewhere beyond sight, they could faintly hear the roars of tigers and dragons. Beneath the desolate scenery, though, life seemed to teem.

Bulma had grown up in a big city and had never seen anything like this. Her heart sank, and her legs shook like a sieve.

"Son-kun, th-there are so many wild beasts here!"

As a wolf howled on the wind, she could no longer hold back. Nervously, she clutched the hem of Son Gohan's shirt.

Just then, Son Goku came trudging up the slope, panting hard with two enormous bundles in his hands.

Even with his inhuman stamina, he could barely handle running at high speed for half a day.

After casually tossing the two bundles to the ground, he collapsed there without a shred of dignity, gasping as he stared blankly at the sky.

"Ah, th-this feels great!"

"I haven't felt this refreshed in ages!"

Though his body was exhausted, Son Goku was in an especially good mood.

"Hey, this is the perfect time to meditate. You can't just lie down!"

Before Son Goku could catch his breath, Son Gohan came over and hauled him to his feet.

The brothers sat cross-legged together and began their training for the day.

Bulma watched the brothers fool around. Anxious as she was, she quietly let out a sigh of relief and began to move away.

After traveling for half a day, she had already needed to find a bathroom. Then Son Gohan's antics had given her a terrible scare, and now she was at her limit.

For the moment, she didn't care about anything else. While the brothers weren't paying attention, Bulma hurried toward a large rock nearby.

"This is awful. Even a lady runs into problems sometimes!"

What Bulma didn't know was that both brothers had noticed something was up. They were martial artists, after all, with keen senses.

Son Goku simply wasn't interested, while Son Gohan had been using her as bait all along!

Not long after Bulma disappeared behind the rock, a piercing scream rang out. Son Gohan's lips curled into a smile as he thought, There it is!

"Goku, keep training. I'll go check things out!"

He gave the order, grabbed the Ruyi Staff, and dashed off.

No matter what, I'm going to become a dragon rider today.

Son Gohan had wanted a cool mount for a long time. Unfortunately, the large beasts around Mount Paozu had nearly all been eaten by the brothers, so he had never managed to find one.

Now, though, he had the perfect opportunity. He could get a mount and play the hero saving a beauty, bringing him closer to Bulma in the process. It was a win-win!

When Son Gohan arrived, he saw a hulking pterodactyl with a five-meter wingspan. It was holding Bulma in its talons. As soon as it spotted someone approaching, it tucked her inside its tail.

"Hey, little dragon! Didn't you know it's rude to bother a girl while she's peeing?"

The pterodactyl had just been delighting in its tasty catch, but at the sight of the tiny figure before it, its expression changed at once.

"You insolent brat. Want to climb into Lord Dragon's belly and have a little fun?"

The pterodactyl, Ribut, felt the wild monkey's taunt. Its body leaned slowly forward, looming over Son Gohan.

Son Gohan calmly watched the hulking dragon before him, the corners of his mouth lifting slightly.

"You, too, want to dance?"