Collective Combat Power Soars

One year later.

Son Goku finished his closed-door training and pushed open the heavy doors of the Gravity Chamber, only to be momentarily taken aback by the scene before him.

Piccolo was sparring with Raditz, having clearly suppressed his own combat power to match that of his opponent.

As their fists and feet collided, shockwaves rippled outward, the intensity of their strikes making the very air tremble. Piccolo's Demon-style martial arts were vicious and cunning, while Raditz's Saiyan combat techniques were wide and powerful; every clash ignited a miniature hurricane within the chamber.

"Special Beam Cannon!"

"Energy Wave!"

"BOOM—!!"

The two energy blasts collided, the blinding light forcing everyone to instinctively squint. The overflowing shockwaves were absorbed by the chamber's buffer walls, transforming into ripples visible to the naked eye.

After a few more exchanges, Piccolo and Raditz simultaneously pulled back and turned to look at him. Piccolo's green chest heaved violently, while Raditz's long hair was plastered to his cheeks by sweat.

"Son Goku! You finally decided to come out!" Piccolo panted heavily.

"Just checking on your progress," Son Goku said with a smile, his gaze sweeping over the group.

Krillin was doing one-fingered push-ups while standing on his hands in the corner, his bald head gleaming; his energy was dozens of times more profound than it had been a year ago.

Yamcha was in another corner, throwing furious punches at a specially reinforced alloy sandbag. His strikes were sharp, each one carrying the unique, spiraling force of his Spirit Ball.

Tien Shinhan and Chiaotzu were sparring. Tien Shinhan, his three eyes tightly shut, dodged based solely on his sense of energy, while Chiaotzu's small face was flushed red, his psychic powers manifesting as an invisible field of telekinetic pressure as he attempted to lock down Tien Shinhan's movement.

"Report your stats," Son Goku said.

Piccolo snorted and crossed his arms over his chest, though his voice carried an unmistakable pride: "My combat power is... 25,000."

One year... from just over a thousand to 25,000. His combat power had increased nearly twenty-five-fold.

This Piccolo... he really was a monster.

Son Goku praised him silently, though he only smiled on the surface: "Not bad."

Raditz scratched his head, looking away with a hint of embarrassment: "My combat power is 15,000. Still... still a long way to go."

"15,000?" Son Goku's eyes lit up. He strode over and gave Raditz a firm pat on the shoulder. "You're already very strong. Ten times stronger than a year ago, brother!"

Raditz stiffened. That word, "brother," hit him like a heavy blow—no, it shook him even more than that.

His eyes reddened as he lowered his head, his voice muffled: "Don't... don't look down on me. I will catch up to you."

"I'll be waiting!"

Krillin flipped up, his bald head reflecting the light with a dazzling shine: "My combat power is 12,000! How about that? Pretty impressive, right!"

"Krillin, you're doing great!" Son Goku gave him a thumbs-up.

Tien Shinhan opened his eyes calmly, a flash of brilliance crossing his three pupils: "Combat power 13,000. I can now maintain the Multi-Form Technique for thirty seconds during combat."

"Tien Shinhan, you're as reliable as ever," Son Goku laughed.

Yamcha wiped away his sweat and walked over, looking a bit sheepish: "Combat power 10,000. Even if I can't compare to you monsters, I... I won't be holding you back anymore!"

"Yamcha, you've worked very hard," Son Goku said, looking at him earnestly.

Chiaotzu spoke softly, his small body hovering and swaying in mid-air: "Combat power 6,000. My psychic powers... I can now freeze an opponent with a combat power under 10,000 for two seconds."

"Two seconds?" Piccolo raised an eyebrow. "In a high-level duel, two seconds... is enough to decide life or death. Don't underestimate yourself, Chiaotzu."

Chiaotzu blinked, then nodded vigorously: "Mm!"

Finally, two high-pitched, childish voices rang out from outside the observation window:

"We have them too! We have them too!"

The door was pushed open with a "bang," and Wuqi and Wuhao tumbled inside. Wuqi, with his unruly black hair, ran in front, followed closely by Wuhao with his light blue hair. Both their little faces were flushed red, clearly having run all the way here.

"Wuqi! Wuhao!" Son Goku crouched down in surprise, opening his arms. The two children collided into his embrace like a pair of small cannonballs.

"Daddy!" Wuqi wrapped his arms around his neck. "We have data to report too!"

"You two have something to report?" Son Goku stood up, holding one child in each arm.

"Mm!" Wuqi puffed out his small chest, looking proud. "Our combat power is 4,000!"

Wuhao hugged his father's neck and added in a milky voice: "Me too..."

"Four or five-year-old Saiyan hybrids... combat power 4,000?!" Raditz's voice cracked, his eyes filled with shock. "I... when I was five..."

He didn't finish his sentence, because for a pure-blooded Saiyan elite, reaching a combat power of 100 at age five was a rarity.

Hybrid Saiyans... was their potential truly this terrifying?

Son Goku looked down at the two little ones in his arms, their faces tilted up in anticipation of praise, his heart swelling with pride.

Bulma stepped forward, adjusting her glasses while holding a brand-new scouter: "Goku, I've improved the combat power detector. The upper limit is now 20 million, and it won't explode as easily as the old version."

"20 million?" Son Goku took the device, the cold metallic touch reminding him of the smoking, broken machine from a year ago. "Bulma, you're a genius!"

"Of course I am!" Bulma lifted her chin with a smug smile. "When I take charge, how could I possibly fail?"

Son Goku tucked the scouter behind his ear, took a deep breath, and looked around at everyone.

The Gravity Chamber fell silent. Everyone's gaze was fixed upon him.

"Everyone! I have already asked King Kai! Vegeta and Nappa... will arrive on Earth in three days!"

The group's expressions turned grim.

Three days...

It was finally here.

"Their power levels," Son Goku held up his finger, "Nappa is roughly four thousand. Vegeta... is roughly eighteen thousand."

"Eighteen thousand?!" Krillin gasped, "Doesn't that mean..."

"Correct," Son Goku looked at Piccolo, their gazes meeting, "Only Piccolo is slightly higher than him."

Piccolo lifted his chin slightly.

"But!" Son Goku's expression turned abruptly serious, "Vegeta is not like us! He is the Prince of the Saiyans, and he... can transform into a Great Ape!"

"When a Saiyan sees a full moon... they transform," Raditz's voice dropped, tinged with a hint of fear, "Their power level... increases tenfold."

"Tenfold?!" Krillin's voice cracked, "Doesn't that mean... one hundred and eighty thousand?!"

"One hundred and eighty thousand..." Chiaotzu's small face turned deathly pale.

Son Goku nodded heavily: "With our current strength, if Vegeta transforms... aside from me, none of you are a match for him."

He paused, his gaze sweeping over every face—some nervous, some solemn, some burning with fighting spirit.

"And!"

His voice was like a heavy hammer, striking every word into their hearts:

"Above Vegeta, there is an even more terrifying enemy!"

"He serves the Universe Emperor Frieza! That is a notorious tyrant, a monster who takes pleasure in destroying planets! Vegeta's one hundred and eighty thousand... aren't even worth an ant in front of Frieza!"

"Our battle..."

He clenched his fists, his knuckles popping with a sharp crack:

"Has only just begun!"

The Gravity Chamber fell into a dead silence.

Wuqi and Wuhao seemed to sense the heavy pressure in the air; they stopped playing and simply lay quietly on their father's shoulders, their small hands gripping his martial arts uniform tightly.

"So—"

Son Goku looked around at everyone, his gaze burning like a torch, as if he wanted to etch every person's figure into his mind:

"Do not slack off! Keep training! Become stronger!"

"Because—"

He raised his fist and punched fiercely toward the sky. His voice was no longer calm, but carried the most primal roar from deep within his Saiyan bloodline:

"We are the Z Fighters!!"

"We are... here to protect the Earth!!!"

"To protect... the people we want to keep safe!!!"

Silence.

Then—

"Oh—!!!"

"Protect the Earth!" Krillin was always the first to support Goku; he roared, his bald head shining brightly in his aura.

Raditz followed closely behind, his brother's back reflected in his eyes: "Kakarot... no, Goku! This time, I will stand by your side!"

"Count me in!" Yamcha's voice trembled slightly, yet it was incredibly firm.

"We won't lose," Tien Shinhan said calmly, though his heart was surging with waves of emotion.

"Never!" Chiaotzu nodded vigorously.

Wuqi and Wuhao poked their heads out from their father's arms and, imitating the adults, raised their tiny fists:

"Protect the Earth—!!"

Son Goku watched this scene, watching these companions who were once enemies or strangers, but now stood shoulder to shoulder, and a smile as brilliant as could be spread across his lips.

Piccolo stood at the edge of the crowd, his green lips curling into an imperceptible arc. He turned his face away and muttered under his breath:

"Damn it..."

This feeling of hot-blooded intensity...

This... feeling of family, of friends...

"It's not bad."

He said softly.

Then, he raised his fist and joined in the roar of the others:

"Oh—!!!"