Seen from high above.
The hemispherical Kami's Lookout floated not far below the atmosphere.
Lush plants covered it, with several buildings rising from its surface. Dreamlike and ethereal, it truly lived up to its name.
Son Gohan and Trunks landed.
Trunks looked all around, unable to take everything in.
His eyes widened as he bounced twice on the Lookout's floor, then jogged off, curious about everything.
He kept asking, "Gohan, is this really where Kami lives?"
"Yes, it is."
Watching Trunks's excitement, Son Gohan couldn't help smiling.
He was still a child at heart, unable to hide his happiness.
Of course, Son Gohan was happy too.
At the very least, the Androids hadn't attacked Kami's Lookout. Everything was still intact.
That meant the Hyperbolic Time Chamber could still be used.
I wonder if Mr. Popo is still here.
With that thought, Son Gohan followed Trunks toward the buildings.
An archway stood ahead. Beyond it lay the Lookout proper.
For now, they were still in the plaza at the front of the Lookout.
"Gohan, what does Kami actually look like?" Trunks asked, turning back as he ran ahead.
"Is he tall, handsome, and really, really cool?"
Thinking of Piccolo's appearance, Son Gohan laughed. "He is pretty tall."
Handsome, though? Not really.
After all, calling a Namekian handsome felt rather strange.
They didn't even have a distinction between male and female.
Just then,
Son Gohan's pupils contracted.
He sensed someone emerging from the darkness at the Lookout's entrance.
Son Gohan stopped, his eyes fixed on the entrance.
"Trunks, stop."
"Ah." Trunks stopped when he heard him.
Then he too noticed the figure emerging through the doorway.
The figure had no ki, and not even a trace of life could be sensed.
"This..." Trunks couldn't help retreating two steps.
What on earth was that?
The Androids had no ki, but at least they still gave off signs of life.
"Is that you, Mr. Popo?" Son Gohan asked, narrowing his eyes.
At his words, the figure finally stepped out of the darkness.
Or perhaps he was a patch of darkness himself.
Who else could it be but Mr. Popo?
He was pitch-black all over. Apart from his clothes, there wasn't a trace of any other color on him.
Blacker than any black man.
Seeing that it really was Mr. Popo, Son Gohan breathed a sigh of relief.
Mr. Popo looked at Son Gohan, then at Trunks. "Mr. Gohan, you've finally come. I've been waiting for you for a very long time."
His face was so dark that trying to read an expression on it was hopeless.
His voice held no emotion either, making him sound rather like a robot.
"Waiting for me? What for?" Son Gohan asked.
Mr. Popo said, "Ever since Kami died twelve years ago, not a single human has visited the Lookout. I've waited here for twelve whole years, and you've finally come, Mr. Gohan."
"I wanted to ask, Mr. Gohan: would you be willing to become the new Kami?"
At those words, Trunks's eyes lit up.
Cool. So cool.
Gohan was going to become the new Kami.
Nothing could be cooler than that.
But Son Gohan's next answer left him stunned.
"I'm sorry, Mr. Popo, but I don't want to become Earth's Kami," Son Gohan said, shaking his head.
Mr. Popo wasn't disappointed. He had expected that answer.
Still, he asked, "Oh? Why not?"
Son Gohan said, "Because even if I became Earth's new Kami, I still wouldn't be able to defeat Android 17 and Android 18."
"Besides, as far as I know, becoming Kami comes with certain restrictions, doesn't it? For instance, Mr. Popo, have you really taken a good look at the mortal world all these years?"
"For over a decade, the Androids have destroyed whatever they pleased and slaughtered people everywhere. The world has been plunged into misery, with no one answering its cries for help. What is the point of this Lookout's existence, then?"
"Isn't it supposed to protect Earth?"
Knowing he had no defense, Mr. Popo lowered his head.
"I'm very sorry, Mr. Gohan. As the guardian of Kami's Lookout, I cannot interfere in the affairs of the mortal world."
Hearing Mr. Popo's words, Son Gohan grew angry.
What bullshit god had set those restrictions?
Didn't you go down to help find Old Kami's spaceship back then?
Why couldn't you do it now?
He hadn't understood any of this before.
But merging with another soul had given him a new, all-seeing perspective.
And with it, he had learned that there were actually quite a few ways to save Earth.
But what good were those options?
No one cared at all.
All these years, no one had paid Earth any attention.
They had dumped a hopeless mess squarely onto a nine-year-old child's shoulders.
This world had become utterly forgotten.
Who could possibly know how Son Gohan had survived the past decade and more?
With no one coming to save him, he could only save himself.
If even one person had bothered to help, Earth wouldn't have ended up like this.
For example, if Mr. Popo had come down, brought him to the Lookout, trained him, and told him the secret of the Hyperbolic Time Chamber, Son Gohan felt he could have done something. At least things wouldn't have been this miserable.
Or, when the disaster first began, King Kai could have contacted him and told him where New Namek was.
Then he could have taken a spaceship to Namek, gathered the Dragon Balls, and brought his friends back to life.
But none of that had happened. None of it.
Now, more than a decade later, still no one cared.
They all seemed to have forgotten Earth.
Even if he found New Namek now, his old friends probably could no longer be revived.
And it was those dead friends who angered him most.
Disrespectful as it was, he hated their inaction.
King Kai could claim he had so many planets to manage that he'd forgotten Earth existed.
But what about them?
Unless something unexpected had happened, those friends should have kept their bodies and been training in Other World or on King Kai's Planet.
How had they managed to go more than a decade without asking about anything?
Was it because death had freed them of all attachments?
Or was there some other reason?
At that thought, Son Gohan couldn't help wiping his damp eyes before clenching his right fist.
Unconsciously, he pressed harder with his feet, and his aura suddenly swelled.
A ring of force exploded outward from him.
Several cracks split the floor beneath his feet with sharp snaps, and golden flames of ki surged up around him.
Son Gohan had never imagined that his first eruption of rage after his rebirth would happen here.
Everyone knew Son Gohan had always been gentle. The extent of his anger had always been a mystery.
But his rage could also be called his greatest cheat.
If he grew angry enough, the grass over Android 17 and Android 18's graves would probably be more than three meters tall by now.
Seeing Son Gohan suddenly unleash his aura and turn Super Saiyan,
Trunks and Mr. Popo both jumped in fright.
Oh my god, Gohan's aura is so strong! With ki like this, he might already be able to defeat the Androids! Trunks was utterly stunned.
Mr. Popo waved both hands, apologizing repeatedly. "Mr. Gohan, please calm down. I truly have no choice. My duties forbid me from interfering in mortal affairs. Besides, I couldn't beat them anyway."
He thought his earlier answer had angered Son Gohan.
"Phew..."
Son Gohan exhaled and calmed himself down.
In that instant, it all clicked.
Damn it, these were just plot holes Old Bird had left behind. He couldn't even be bothered to patch them.
He let his powerful aura dissipate, then said, "Sorry. That was rude of me."
He knew he had been trying to guilt Mr. Popo into helping, at least a little.
Whether someone chose to help was their own decision.
But whether Son Gohan got angry was his business too.
He had borne far too much over the past decade and more.
"It's all right, it's all right." Mr. Popo waved his hands repeatedly and breathed a sigh of relief.
Then he asked, "If you haven't come to become Kami, what brings you here this time, Mr. Gohan?"
Son Gohan stopped wasting words and got straight to the point. "We want to use the Hyperbolic Time Chamber. May we?"
"Ah, so you know about the Hyperbolic Time Chamber, Mr. Gohan. Of course you may. Please follow me, both of you." Mr. Popo gestured them forward, then turned and entered the Lookout.
Trunks looked at Son Gohan.
"What are you looking at? Follow him," Son Gohan said.
"Oh." Trunks immediately followed.
Son Gohan strode inside too.
"Gohan, your ki was incredible just now," Trunks said, looking back as they walked.
"Before long, yours will surpass it too," Son Gohan said earnestly.
He really wasn't boasting.
With the Hyperbolic Time Chamber to aid their training, Son Gohan was very confident.
Trunks would surely grow strong enough to surpass the ki he had just unleashed in no time, then keep growing stronger and stronger.
After walking for a while, the three stopped in front of a large door.
Son Gohan looked up.
He saw a clock hanging directly above the door.
Mr. Popo said, "Mr. Gohan, this is the Hyperbolic Time Chamber."
"Time flows differently inside the Hyperbolic Time Chamber. A year inside is only a single day outside."
"However, each person can only use it for two days in their lifetime, so you must keep track of the time yourself, Mr. Gohan. If you exceed that limit, the door will disappear automatically, and you won't be able to get out."
Son Gohan nodded. "Yes, I understand."
Mr. Popo said, "But I'm worrying too much. No one could possibly stay inside for two years. Heh, Mr. Goku ran out after less than a few months back then."
Son Gohan: "..."
"All right, go on in." As he spoke, Mr. Popo pushed open the Hyperbolic Time Chamber's door.
Could such an incredible place really exist?
Trunks poked his head inside and found an unknown world of endless white.
Plan two: ✔
Before you continue