"Strange. Even I can't sense his location anymore..." Sweat trickled down the Grand Elder's face.
"What's that? Someone's coming!" Neil suddenly pointed behind the Grand Elder.
High above the sky behind the Grand Elder, someone was speeding toward them.
The Grand Elder struggled to turn his head and look behind him.
Someone was speeding through the sky.
There wasn't the slightest trace of energy coming from him.
"Could he be... that Saiyan named Lu Fan?" Neil asked with a frown.
"It should be him. There's no energy coming from him." The Grand Elder nodded slightly.
"Smack!"
Lu Fan dropped from the sky and landed beside the Grand Elder and Neil.
Neil stepped forward to shield the Grand Elder, watching Lu Fan warily.
"Don't be nervous. I'm not here to fight." Lu Fan grinned, showing a row of white teeth as his tail swished gently behind him.
"You're the Saiyan, Lu Fan, aren't you?" The Grand Elder looked at him and asked.
"Huh? How do you know my name? You're amazing." Lu Fan pretended to be surprised.
"I'm the Grand Elder of this planet. There's nothing on Namek that I don't know." The Grand Elder smiled. "I already know about your search for the Dragon Balls."
After speaking, he stared intently at Lu Fan.
Lu Fan looked at him calmly and didn't reply.
Lu Fan knew the Grand Elder was surely checking whether he had any evil thoughts.
I'm not evil at all.
With my current strength, if I had evil intentions, I'd have destroyed this planet long ago.
"Neil, give him our Dragon Ball," the Grand Elder instructed.
"Yes, Grand Elder." Neil nodded and was about to go inside to get the One-Star Dragon Ball.
"Wait. I didn't come here to get the Dragon Ball," Lu Fan suddenly said.
The Grand Elder froze for a second.
Neil stopped in his tracks as well.
"The prince and I have already agreed that he'll collect the Dragon Balls in this area," Lu Fan explained.
The Grand Elder: "..."
Neil: "..."
What difference did that make?
Wasn't it the same whoever got the Dragon Balls?
"Then what brings you here?" the Grand Elder asked.
"I'm here to learn," Lu Fan replied. "My father told me that mastering another language would be a great help to my survival in the future."
"Another language? You mean... you want to learn the Namekian Language?" The Grand Elder looked at him in surprise.
"That's right. I've been to Earth before and already learned the language there." Lu Fan nodded.
"Grand Elder... I suspect the reason he wants to learn the Namekian Language is so he can make a wish," Neil whispered to him.
"Neil, don't assume the worst of people." The Grand Elder smiled. "Besides, he doesn't know that making a wish requires the Namekian Language. And if he stays here, we'll have a good chance to observe him."
"The Grand Elder is right." Neil bowed.
"Neil, teach Lu Fan the Namekian Language," the Grand Elder instructed him, without objecting.
"Yes." Neil agreed.
Namek was enormous.
Vegeta had flown for a long time before finally finding the first village.
Vegeta dropped from the sky and landed in the village.
The Grand Elder had already spoken with the village elders.
If anyone came to collect the Dragon Balls, they were to pretend they hadn't seen him.
If he managed to find one, there was no harm in letting him take it.
After landing, Vegeta took out the Dragon Radar and easily found a Dragon Ball by following its directions.
Vegeta flew straight into the sky with the Dragon Ball in his arms.
The Namekians in the village acted as if they didn't see what Vegeta was doing.
Holding the Dragon Ball, Vegeta sped toward the location of the second one.
"Hmph. This planet may be huge, but its Dragon Balls are much easier to find than Earth's. Looks like most of them are in the villages," Vegeta muttered. "At this rate, I'll have them all gathered in five or six hours at most."
"Whoosh!"
Vegeta picked up speed.
Five hours later.
"Thanks, Neil. I can speak a little Namekian now," Lu Fan said gratefully.
"It was nothing. You're welcome." Neil smiled faintly. "It'll take a long time to master the language fluently."
"No need to go to all that trouble. Knowing a little is enough," Lu Fan said with a smile.
Neil: "..."
You really were willing to settle for anything.
After spending the past hour together, Neil had found that the Saiyan named Lu Fan didn't have much evil in him.
The Grand Elder agreed.
The two sides had gotten along fairly well.
"By the way, let me ask you something. Did you really learn the Namekian Language just to master another language?" Neil asked.
"Uh, I heard that summoning Shenron and making a wish both require the Namekian Language, so I figured it'd be more convenient to learn it myself," Lu Fan answered honestly.
The Grand Elder: "..."
Neil: "..."
The two looked at each other.
The Grand Elder wiped away his sweat.
So that was why you wanted to learn the Namekian Language...
This kid might not be evil...
But he was deviously clever...
"Well, I should get going to look for the Dragon Balls, too." Lu Fan stretched.
"Whoosh!"
Lu Fan shot into the sky and soon vanished from sight.
The Grand Elder and Neil looked at each other in silence.
After a moment of silence.
"Grand Elder, he shouldn't have any evil intentions, right?" Neil asked.
"He truly has no evil intentions, but he's the deviously clever sort..." the Grand Elder sighed.
Neil: "..."
Deviously clever?
That was a perfect way to put it, Grand Elder.
I thought so too.
"I have a feeling that Prince Vegeta may face quite a few hardships in the future with him around..." the Grand Elder remarked.
"Huh? Someone's coming. Is he back?" Neil looked up at the sky.
"It's not him. It may be that Saiyan prince," the Grand Elder said thoughtfully.
"Hmph. That Saiyan prince threatened to conquer Namek! I'll show him that Namekians aren't to be trifled with!" Neil said coldly, a fighting spirit appearing on his face.
"That's fine. We Namekians love peace, but we're not a race that lets others walk all over us." The Grand Elder nodded.
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