"Wuneng? You two think you can call me that? Have you no respect for your senior?"
Wuneng was in a foul mood. And when he was in a foul mood, he needed a punching bag.
As luck would have it, two had just arrived!
"Come on. I can see you two haven't trained enough today, so your senior here will personally give you some pointers!"
A cold glint flashed in Wuneng's eyes. The corner of his mouth curled into a cruel smile, chilling as ice in the height of summer!
Yamcha and Krillin shivered out of nowhere and hurriedly waved their hands in refusal, but by then Wuneng had already stepped between them.
He raised both arms, hooked them around their shoulders, and marched them outside.
Yamcha was noticeably much taller than Wuneng, yet even his towering frame was bent nearly in half.
Dragged outside against their will, the two exchanged a glance, both looking utterly resigned to their fate...
A long, long while later, Wuneng came back in alone. He brushed off the nonexistent dust on his clothes and casually said, "Let's eat, let's eat," before digging in with gusto.
Goku glanced toward the doorway behind him. When he saw that the other two who'd gone outside hadn't returned, he looked puzzled and bounced over to the window.
Looking out, he saw the two fellow disciples who'd just sparred, both sporting bumps all over their heads and faces as they bandaged each other up.
Before long, their entire heads and faces were wrapped up like mummies, with only their eyes visible through the bandages.
"Hahahaha! They look so funny! Hahahaha!"
Bulma had finished tidying up and came over to see what was going on. Instead, she found two thoroughly bandaged brothers in misfortune.
Outside, the two looked at each other in tearful silence, both lamenting their rotten luck at having crossed Wuneng.
But after sizing each other up, they were so startled by the sight that they pointed at each other and burst out laughing.
Hearing them, Wuneng's mouth twitched slightly, but he didn't say anything more. At least he'd gotten that out of his system.
Those two hadn't suffered any internal injuries; they just looked a little worse for wear. He'd been very careful not to go too far.
After dinner, the master and his disciples gathered together again to listen attentively as Master Roshi explained some of his training insights.
Goku pestered Master Roshi with question after question, a regular little bundle of curiosity, until the old man was ready to tear his hair out.
At last, after impatiently shooing everyone away, Master Roshi sneakily took a treasured book out of the cabinet and began enjoying it in private, giving no further thought to his disciples.
After checking the time, Wuneng said goodbye to the others. He'd planned to take Bulma back to his little house for some quality time, but then he spotted Ribut lying by the door, gazing up at him expectantly.
Wuneng slapped his forehead. He'd finally remembered what he'd forgotten.
At least I'm not Tang Sanzang, and Ribut isn't Old Turtle!
He hurried over to greet Ribut.
"Good evening, Ribut!"
He scratched his head and greeted him awkwardly.
Ribut blinked his pair of resentful little eyes at him.
"Boss, did you forget something?"
"Ahem! How could I? A big brother is always thinking of his little brother. You mean the training, right?"
"I thought you'd forgotten."
Earlier that day, Ribut had watched Master Roshi take the others out. He knew they were going to train.
But first, he wasn't one of their disciples, and second, his boss hadn't said anything. So all he could do was watch them go.
Now the day was nearly over, and everyone was about to turn in. With no patience left, he'd had no choice but to wait outside the little house.
Heaven rewarded the persistent. Sure enough, his boss had finally shown up!
"Your training should be easy enough to arrange. We can ask Master Roshi to set something up. I'll talk to him."
Wuneng had already worked out a training plan for Ribut; he'd just forgotten about it for a while.
There were two animal overlords on this island. One was a gigantic Tyrannosaurus Rex in the island's interior, and the other was a Great White Shark in the river that encircled the island.
When Goku and the others trained, they'd challenge those two overlords. Ribut could take them on too.
Training among beasts was always brutal and bloody.
As long as Master Roshi kept watch and Ribut challenged them every day without getting himself killed, a few months would be enough for him to make a great deal of progress!
After Wuneng told him about the plan he'd made, Ribut's dragon eyes filled with a deep yearning for strength!
No dragon could witness the terrifying battle prowess of Wuneng in his Giant Ape form and not yearn to become stronger!
"Please train me as hard as you can! I'm counting on you!"
Sensing Wuneng's sincerity, Ribut lowered his dragon head to the ground and bowed deeply!
It was a heartfelt submission, with the spirit of a knight ready to lay down his life for a lord who had treated him as a true warrior.
Ribut had gone from being forced to join the Dragon Ball team to accepting it wholeheartedly in just a few months.
"Dragons are never slaves! Unless they get free room and board and martial arts lessons..."
Wuneng helped Ribut to his feet, then turned and went into Master Roshi's little house to discuss it with him.
Master Roshi had no objection to Ribut's request to train. One sheep was no harder to herd than a whole flock; he'd just have to keep an eye on him.
"Leave the little things to me. You've only been gone for a day, but it seems your skills have improved again. Sometimes, when I face you, I feel as if I've gotten old—as if all these two hundred years have gone to waste..."
"Don't worry, Master Mutaito. Even if my skills someday rival the Celestials, you'll still be my teacher. You were the one who first guided me into Martial Arts."
Master Roshi heard that and laughed, scolding him, "You little brat!"
He was an open-minded man, so he didn't take it to heart.
"For the next while, stick to the plan we discussed. When you finally surpass me, you'll have to rely on yourself."
Master Roshi patted Wuneng on the shoulder again and spoke with a warm smile.
"I hope that day comes soon. Keep working hard, Wuneng!"
"Yes, sir!"
"..."
"So, you spent all that time away discussing martial arts with the old pervert?"
Late at night, Bulma sat cross-legged on the bed, staring at her boyfriend.
"Don't you dare let him corrupt you! No reading those unhealthy books, and another thing! You can't watch those videotapes you took from me before, either!"
She brandished her arms and threatened him, afraid that Wuneng's teacher would lead him astray.
Wuneng nodded seriously, promising he'd hold fast to his principles and wouldn't touch any of his teacher's works until he was fully grown.
And even when he was older and ready to watch them, he'd watch them with her. Bulma blushed bright red.
Come to think of it, I might know more than Master Mutaito. After all, Teacher Aoi and Teacher Ozawa aren't exactly amateurs!
Wuneng muttered to himself, but he didn't actually dare say it aloud.
Before you continue