The Unopenable Box; The Daily Disputes of Vexatious Buddies

By the time the meal was halfway over, Son Gohan, Trunks, and Son Goten had returned after gathering the Dragon Balls.

Seeing them come back, Son Goku invited them to join the meal.

"Gohan, Goten, Trunks, you're back just in time. Come eat! The food Bulma prepared is delicious!"

Vegeta wanted to settle the score with Son Goku over this meal. He glanced at Son Gohan and the others, but instead of slowing down, he actually started eating even faster.

Naturally, Son Goku saw through his little trick. When Vegeta shamelessly took the chance to speed up, Son Goku immediately complained, "Hey!"

"Vegeta, you're so sneaky! You took the chance to eat one more!"

After shouting, he stopped paying attention to Son Gohan and the others and focused on eating again.

The two of them fought over the food like hungry tigers pouncing on their prey.

But when Son Gohan and the others saw them acting like this, they weren't surprised at all. They merely smiled.

If they hadn't eaten not long ago, they would have wanted to join in, too.

At first, they had planned to summon the Dragon God right away and rescue the Hero Tapion.

But since Tarble and the others had returned, they thought they should let them try to open the box first.

At that moment, Bulma asked, "Gohan, did you gather all the Dragon Balls?"

"Of course. They're all right here." Son Gohan gave the brown bag in his hand a shake. "Let's wait until Dad and Uncle Vegeta finish eating, then try."

"If that doesn't work, we can summon the Dragon God."

Hearing this, Bulma nodded. "I suppose that's all we can do."

Son Gohan and the others watched Tarble and the rest eat from the sidelines. They didn't notice the Demon Cultivator He Yi, who was eating elegantly, let the corner of his mouth curl slightly as he glanced discreetly at the brown bag in Son Gohan's hand.

A barely perceptible gleam of delight flashed in his eyes.

Treasure!

My precious treasure!

Just be patient a little longer. Soon, you'll see the light of day again!

It's almost time!

Unfortunately, no one present noticed his eager, smug, and greedy little look.

Of course.

His movements were subtle and careful, and they lasted only a moment, so Tarble and the others didn't notice.

Otherwise, they would have caught him.

After all, Tarble and the others were incredibly powerful now, and their perception and instincts were exceptionally sharp.

They were especially sensitive to hostile gazes.

If they hadn't all been focused on eating, Tarble and the others would definitely have noticed his little maneuver.

Another twenty minutes passed before the four of them finally finished eating.

With Tarble leading the way, everyone quickly helped clear away the dishes and utensils.

The servants were naturally left to wash them.

Afterward, everyone strolled to an open area in the villa: a spacious lawn.

For Saiyans, getting some exercise after a big meal was just the thing.

Tarble held up the Silver Box and gave it a shake toward Son Goku, Vegeta, and Rix.

"Which of you wants to try first?"

Under normal circumstances, Vegeta and Son Goku would definitely have fought over who got to go first.

But things were different now. They were putting on a show for that old man.

So neither of them stepped forward right away.

This left Son Gohan, Bulma, and the others, who didn't know what was going on, a little puzzled.

What was this?

Why weren't the two of them fighting to go first today?

They were all full of questions.

When neither Son Goku nor Vegeta responded, Rix volunteered.

"Your Highness, let me try first."

After spending so much time together, Rix generally no longer called himself "your subordinate," at Tarble and Vegeta's insistence.

But he still insisted on addressing the brothers respectfully.

Since he was determined, Tarble and Vegeta stopped trying to change his mind.

"All right, you try first. Don't force it if you can't open it."

Tarble tossed him the Silver Box and gave him a warning.

Rix nodded. "Yes, Your Highness."

At that moment, Bulma quietly edged over to Vegeta's side. Curious and a little concerned, she whispered, "Vegeta, you're acting a little strange today!"

"You and Goku—why aren't you going first to try?"

Vegeta certainly couldn't tell her the truth. If he explained in advance and things didn't turn out the way Tarble expected, it would be incredibly awkward.

But he had already thought of what to say.

"Hmph!"

"This is a simple matter. There's no need for the strongest to try first."

Bulma smiled. "Oh—"

"So that's how it is. Never mind, then."

Mm~

That was the tone!

Now that sounded right!

It seemed those two really didn't have any problems.

Satisfied that nothing had gone wrong, she relaxed.

Then she focused her attention on Rix, who seemed to be putting all his strength into opening the box.

Vegeta seemed to guess what Bulma was thinking. He silently pursed his lips, then watched Rix's strenuous performance.

At the same time, he considered how he should act when his turn came.

He needed to keep Son Gohan and the others from realizing he was holding back, without letting that old man see through the act, either.

He remembered that when he entered the Hyperbolic Time Chamber, his base power level had been around one hundred billion...

While Vegeta thought over his options, Rix appeared to be using every ounce of his strength. Sweat poured down his face, but he still couldn't open the Silver Box.

In the end, he gave up.

Holding the box, he walked over to Tarble with an embarrassed look.

"Your Highness, I did my best, but I really couldn't open it."

"I'm very sorry to have disappointed you."

Seeing how convincingly Rix was acting, Tarble gave him an approving nod in his mind.

Impressive!

He'd even made himself sweat all over. He was really putting his all into the act!

That was what Tarble thought, but aloud he comforted Rix. "It's all right. You did your best."

"Gohan said he already gave it everything he had before, and still couldn't open it."

"We've all seen how strong Gohan is. If even he couldn't open it, I don't think there's any point in wasting more time."

"How about we just summon the Dragon God and ask for help?"

As soon as he finished speaking, Son Goku and Vegeta immediately objected in unison.

"Let me try!" x2

They hadn't even tried yet. How could they go straight to the Dragon God?

Absolutely not!

Even if they were putting on an act, they still had to give it a try.

But since they had spoken at the same time, their subconscious urge to beat the other one was awakened.

They exchanged puzzled glances, then spoke in unison again. "Let me go first!"

"Hey, Kakarot, are you trying to pick a fight with me?

Why do you have to compete with me over everything?"

"What are you talking about, Vegeta? I said it first, so I have to go first."

"Bullshit! I said it first. I'm going first!"