So This Was Ki?

Puar was on the verge of breaking down. They were about to hit the road, and he hadn't even gotten more than a few bites of good meat.

" Young Master Yamcha, we should at least fill our stomachs before doing something important! Look at them, eating and drinking like there's no tomorrow. Do they look like they're about to put out a fire?"

"..."

Yamcha looked down at the meat in his hands, then toward Blazing Mountain in the distance.

"Why don't we eat while we're on the way?"

As clever as he was, he could always come up with a new idea!

✧٩(ˊωˋ*)و✧!

"..."

Puar really didn't know what to say.

"All right, Young Master."

If life trampled you and you couldn't fight back, you might as well lie down and enjoy it in silence!

By the time the two clueless troublemakers returned to the foot of Fried Bread Mountain and their usual spot, the feast was already over.

After eating and drinking their fill, Bulma looked at Master Roshi, who had a plaster stuck to his forehead, a mouth full of missing teeth, and a gaunt, bony frame. The more she looked, the more she had to complain about.

"Hey, Wuneng, he doesn't even have the Banana Fan Mr. Ox mentioned. So how's he supposed to put out the fire?"

"That lecherous old man keeps looking at me with that creepy expression. I don't think he has any good intentions!"

Master Roshi took a critical hit worth ten thousand points.

"Hey, isn't that the sort of thing you kids are supposed to whisper to each other? Why are you saying it so bluntly right in front of me?"

"Have some respect for your elders!"

"Hmph!"

"Oh, so you know you're an old man? You shameless old geezer! Don't think I don't know what kind of filthy things are going through your mind!"

Bulma glared and flailed her arms, her attitude every bit as forceful as his.

Master Roshi got an earful, but he didn't dare argue with her again. Instead, he turned to Son Gohan and grumbled under his breath.

He craned his neck, covered half his face with one hand, and leaned close to Son Gohan's ear to whisper.

"Hey, you see that? Women are terrifying. You can't handle Bulma, Wuneng. Why don't you—"

"Smack!"

A sharp sound rang out. Everyone stared in stunned silence, their jaws dropping as Bulma's fighting power shot up.

"Hey, you shameless old geezer! What do you think you're doing?"

Bulma didn't care what anyone around her thought. So what if he was an old bald man? What was wrong with hitting him? He'd spread rumors about her right to her face!

What if Son Gohan took him seriously and stopped hanging out with her?

"Hmph! You made me lose my temper, and I'm a lady!"

"Oh, my, oh, my. You're going to be a lucky man someday!"

Master Roshi rubbed his bald head, but didn't seem to mind Bulma's insolence.

"I'm really sorry, Master Mutaito!"

Son Gohan scratched his head awkwardly.

"Come on, give this old man a hand. I'll put out the fire right now."

Master Roshi didn't waste any more time. Under the Ox King's expectant gaze, he walked toward a stone platform.

Son Gohan silently stepped forward and supported him around the waist.

"Take it slow, Master!"

"Mm, very good!"

Seeing how respectful Son Gohan was toward his teacher, Master Roshi was filled with relief. The boy had a gift, and it seemed his character was just as impressive.

When Master Roshi stepped onto the platform, everyone's gaze followed him. Most of them still had no idea what was going on, and seemed confused about what he intended to accomplish.

Only two people in the crowd held their breath in eager anticipation of the legendary moment: the Ox King, who knew his master's power, and Son Gohan himself.

"Here it comes!"

Son Gohan keenly sensed a change in Master Roshi's ki.

"Hah! Huh!"

With a thunderous roar, the gaunt Master Roshi slowly dropped into a horse stance!

"Crack!"

Framed by the blazing firelight, Master Roshi's shirt ripped apart in the blink of an eye, revealing his bony frame!

Even more ridiculous, several plasters were stuck around his waist. He looked every bit like a malnourished old man on the verge of death!

But before anyone could finish gaping, Master Roshi took a deep breath, and his body swelled as if by magic.

In nearly an instant, the dried-up, scrawny old lecher vanished.

In his place stood a burly old man, every inch of him packed with bulging muscle!

Even though Son Gohan had been prepared for it, he still couldn't help staring in shock at the transformation!

In just a few seconds, Master Roshi had ballooned like an inflated rubber ball and changed completely!

Even more frightening, Master Roshi now radiated danger from head to toe. Son Gohan felt his ki pressing against him, making his whole body prickle with pain. Even breathing had become difficult!

"Th-this is the pressure of the God of Martial Arts!"

"S-so much pressure!"

Just as the old saying went:

If you don't cultivate, seeing me is like a frog in a well glimpsing the moon in the sky. If you do cultivate, seeing me is like an ant looking up at the heavens!

"This isn't just a threefold difference in numbers. Our fighting power isn't even on the same level now!"

Looking around, he saw that no one else felt the same crushing pressure he did.

Son Goku and Yamcha, who was secretly watching from a distance, were both within Son Gohan's sight. They seemed a little excited, but they didn't appear to be under any great pressure.

As for the Ox King... he had been Master Roshi's student for so long, yet still hadn't learned a thing about ki. His high fighting power came mostly from his natural strength.

When it came to sensing ki, he was completely clueless.

"Hah! Huh!"

With another roar from Master Roshi, his right foot instinctively slid back, and he unconsciously assumed the opening stance of Kame Style.

At that moment, Son Gohan instead squeezed his eyes shut. He wanted to block out all distractions and try to see Master Roshi's ki with his "mind's eye"!

As Master Roshi drew his hands together on his right side, steam began to rise between his waist and legs!

An indescribable aura began to gather and condense!

It gradually melded into a ball of energy. A point of light appeared at its center, then instantly expanded into a dazzling, water-blue sphere!

"Kame—"

"Hame—"

"Ha—"

"Me—"

"Ha!"

As the final syllable fell, Master Roshi abruptly thrust both hands forward!

The energy ball, which had been resting obediently between his hands, gentle as could be, suddenly became a wild dragon, raging through the sky!

In the dim world, Son Gohan suddenly sensed a vast blue shadow in front of him, seeming to have shape and yet no shape at all.

As the "shadow" he sensed surged violently, he saw a thick beam of energy shoot out. It seemed slow, yet moved astonishingly fast, vanishing into the darkness in the blink of an eye.

A smile curled at his lips. With his eyes still closed, Son Gohan felt as though inspiration had struck.

So this was ki!

At twelve years old, he had, for the first time in his life, "seen" the true shape of what people called "ki"!