Vegeta left.
Only after the threat had passed did Krillin and Son Gohan let out long sighs of relief.
Though no battle had taken place, the strain on them had been immense.
The pressure Vegeta brought to bear was overwhelming, even more terrifying than when they had faced him on Earth.
"What do we do now? Do we really have to go back to Earth? Uncle Krillin, Aunt Bulma?" Son Gohan asked anxiously.
"It looks like we don't have any other choice. They took the Dragon Radar, so we can't search for the Dragon Balls anymore." Krillin wore a bitter expression.
He'd been wavering before, but now that the Dragon Radar was gone, he felt he'd reached a dead end.
Deep down, he was beginning to agree with Vegeta's advice. Maybe leaving Planet Namek was the right thing to do.
After all, they weren't even strong enough to face Vegeta. How could they possibly stand against Frieza, the Universe Emperor, when even Vegeta feared him?
Hearing Krillin's words, Son Gohan felt deeply unwilling to give up. He had to bring Uncle Piccolo back to life, which was why he'd bravely come to Planet Namek.
Even in this situation, he didn't want to give up so easily.
But he was smart enough to know that things couldn't always go the way he wanted.
Son Gohan began to resent his own weakness. Because he hadn't been strong enough, Uncle Piccolo had died saving him. And because he was weak, now that he'd come to Planet Namek, he could only let others do as they pleased with him.
Just as the mood grew heavy, Bulma suddenly let out a smug laugh.
"Heh heh~~ You're underestimating me! Ta-da~! Look what I've got!"
As if performing a magic trick, Bulma produced a Dragon Radar.
Krillin and Son Gohan were both stunned. The next moment, they stared at Bulma in disbelief, excitement flickering across their faces.
"Bulma, you brought more than one Dragon Radar!"
"That's great! With the Dragon Radar, we can still do something," Son Gohan said.
But as soon as he finished speaking, Krillin brought them back down to earth. "Even if we have a Dragon Radar, we can't collect the Dragon Balls now. Vegeta has one too, so even if we find them, he'll just take them from us."
At that, Bulma smiled smugly again. "That's why you're underestimating me! How do you know the Dragon Radar I gave Vegeta was real? Before we came to Planet Namek, I was worried something like this might happen, so I prepared a fake one."
"A fake?" Krillin was taken aback again.
"Then we can find the Dragon Balls before him without worrying about being discovered—and stop that Universe Emperor from finding them," Son Gohan said, his mind already working.
He was quick-witted, but that idea was rather foolish.
For now, not much time had passed, so Frieza was still leisurely searching for the Dragon Balls and enjoying himself. But if things dragged on, would Frieza really remain patient?
Of course, the three of them couldn't imagine that.
They continued discussing their search for the Dragon Balls, while Bulma took out a communication device and prepared to contact Earth.
Just then, a voice came from far away.
The transmission immediately brought delighted expressions to all three of them.
There was no doubt about it: it was North Kai.
As the ruler of the North Galaxy, North Kai had been watching what was happening here.
If nothing major happened, he would remain an unseen observer. But now that Frieza was involved, he had to warn the three of them.
After North Kai explained the situation, Bulma, Krillin, and Son Gohan finally understood just how terrifying the Universe Emperor was.
Even North Kai thought Vegeta's advice was best: leaving Planet Namek, this dangerous place, was their wisest option.
Hearing him say the same thing only shook their resolve further.
They'd just started coming up with plans because the Dragon Radar Vegeta had was fake and the real one was still with them. Now those plans were being snuffed out once more.
They were at a loss, with no idea what to do.
It was only when North Kai mentioned that Son Goku had just recovered after eating a Senzu Bean and had already left Earth, heading for Planet Namek, that the three of them escaped their fear and found a little hope.
"If nothing unexpected happens, Goku will arrive in six days. But don't get too excited. I think you should return to Earth right away. I'll contact Goku too and tell him to change course instead of continuing to Planet Namek."
North Kai's words once again struck fear into their hearts.
After the connection ended, the three of them were weighed down with worry and couldn't feel happy at all.
In the end, Bulma decided they should contact Earth first and hear what their companions there thought. Then she would get in touch with her father, Briefs, and Goku, who had already set out, before making a decision.
If Goku ignored King Kai's advice and still came to Planet Namek, they couldn't let him be stranded alone on an alien world.
Besides, Goku could reach Planet Namek in six days. That meant her father's new spaceship could make the round trip in only twelve days.
By comparison, if they returned now by spaceship, the journey would take longer.
That was the situation on their end for now.
Elsewhere, at Frieza's location, Frieza and his group were heading toward the next village when they suddenly received new information.
It was a message sent by the scout Dodoria had dispatched, just before the soldier died.
"King Frieza, are we really going to keep letting Vegeta do as he pleases? He killed the scout, which will be a major obstacle to our search for the Dragon Balls. Also, before the scout died, he spotted people who had come from another planet..." Zarbon asked.
"Heh heh heh heh~~ Mr. Zarbon, you're getting too worked up. They were only two scouts. If they're dead, they're dead. Vegeta thinks he can get my attention with tricks like this just because he wants to oppose me? What a joke." Frieza didn't care and continued onward.
"I was presumptuous, King Frieza." A few beads of cold sweat trickled down Zarbon's forehead as he replied respectfully.
"What about those people who came from another planet? What should we do with them?" Dodoria cut in.
"Leave them alone. If I'm not mistaken, these outsiders are the people from Earth that Vegeta invaded earlier. They've come to Planet Namek, presumably for the Dragon Balls too." Frieza replied casually.
He was quite surprised and intrigued by the Earthlings' arrival, but with his status, he wasn't going to seek them out himself.