The Z Fighters Assemble and Voice Their Doubts

A few days later, the Z Fighters began arriving at Capsule Corp in West City after receiving the message.

Tien Shinhan and Chiaotzu arrived first. They looked much better than they had the last time they met, their resurrection aftereffects clearly gone. Their eyes burned with a desire to grow stronger.

Krillin arrived next, looking weary from the journey. A trace of worry crossed his face, but determination shone through more strongly.

Yamcha arrived last, hands in his pockets and wearing his usual somewhat carefree expression, though a hint of gravity lurked in his eyes.

Puar, transformed into a small plane, circled overhead.

"Hey, looks like everyone's here."

Yamcha greeted them, then looked around at the backyard, which had practically become a massive construction site. Seeing the piles of strange materials and the busy robots, he whistled. "Wow, Bulma's family really went all out this time. What's with this huge operation?"

"Obviously, it's to deal with those monster Saiyans!"

Bulma stood with her hands on her hips, looking every bit the commander in chief. "Lin Fan told you all, right? You know how dire the situation is."

"Yeah, we heard."

Krillin nodded, his expression serious. "Even Goku's taking this so seriously... We absolutely can't hold everyone back!"

Tien Shinhan crossed his arms, all three eyes gleaming sharply. "A year isn't long. We'll have to train like hell. Lin Fan, you said you had a way to help us improve. What exactly is it?"

Everyone's eyes turned to Lin Fan.

Without another word, Lin Fan took two small jade bottles from his robes. He had made them from leftover jade over the past few days; they could preserve the pills' medicinal properties better.

He uncorked the bottles, and a strange, pleasant fragrance immediately filled the air. Just breathing it in lifted their spirits and seemed to ease their fatigue.

"These are pills I made using some special ingredients and methods."

Lin Fan poured a few pills of each kind into his palms. One kind was pale gold and gave off a faint warmth; the other was milky white, cool to the touch and radiating a refreshing chill.

"The golden ones are called Energy Boosting Pills. They can slightly stimulate your potential for a short time, increasing the speed at which you gather ki and your overall ki reserves, which helps with training. But don't take too many, or your bodies won't be able to handle it."

"The white ones are called Recovery Pills. They're mainly for quickly restoring your strength and treating injuries that aren't too serious, inside or out. They're nowhere near as effective as Senzu Beans, but they should work better than any medicine you've ever seen."

Lin Fan handed out three Energy Boosting Pills and five Recovery Pills to each person. "I don't have many, and the ingredients are hard to find. Save them for when you really need them."

Krillin picked up a Recovery Pill curiously. Feeling its coolness seep into his skin, he exclaimed in surprise, "Wow! It feels great just holding it! Lin Fan, you can make these, too?"

Tien Shinhan and Chiaotzu carefully sensed the unusual energy contained in the pills, their expressions growing solemn.

They could tell these things were no ordinary medicine.

"Hmph. Pills?"

Yamcha took his share and weighed it in his hand, looking openly skeptical. "Why does that sound like some kind of scammy strength tonic? No offense, Lin Fan, but training and fighting come down to hard work and natural talent! You think we can get stronger just by popping a few little pills? What's the point of all our training, then?"

He pinched an Energy Boosting Pill between his fingers and brought it to his nose. "It smells nice, sure, but who knows what weird stuff is in it? Could there be side effects? What if the Saiyans haven't even arrived, and we've already poisoned ourselves?"

"Yamcha!"

Bulma glared at him in annoyance. "Lin Fan put a ton of effort into making these. He practically turned the whole Earth upside down looking for ingredients! If you don't understand, don't go making things up!"

"I'm just telling it like it is."

Yamcha shrugged. "This stuff sounds way too far-fetched. How do we know it isn't all in our heads?"

Lin Fan looked at Yamcha without getting angry and said calmly, "It's good to be cautious. You don't have to take one yet. Keep it and see what happens. Or you could try a Recovery Pill now. You were injured in an explosion before. Even though you recovered, you probably still have some internal injuries that haven't healed, right?"

Yamcha's expression changed slightly. He did occasionally feel that his breathing was still a little labored. He hadn't expected Lin Fan to notice at a glance.

Krillin tried to smooth things over. "Come on, Yamcha, give it a try! Lin Fan wouldn't hurt us! Look, Tien and Chiaotzu aren't complaining."

Tien Shinhan said gravely, "I trust Lin Fan. His power system is different from ours. Perhaps it's exactly what we've been missing."

With that, he popped an Energy Boosting Pill into his mouth without hesitation.

The pill dissolved as soon as it touched his tongue, and a warm yet powerful current surged through his entire body!

Tien Shinhan felt as though his ki had been ignited. Its activity surged, and some of the bottlenecks he'd encountered in training seemed to be loosening! He snapped open all three eyes, their light shining brilliantly. "Incredible! My ki is growing at least thirty percent faster! And it feels gentle, too!"

Chiaotzu took one as well and floated up in delight. "Mmm! It's true! It feels so good!"

Seeing that, Krillin eagerly swallowed one too. He immediately felt the pill's surging power and exclaimed, "This is amazing! I feel like I could train for another three hundred rounds!"

Watching his companions' reactions, Yamcha remained unconvinced. He hesitated, but in the end he picked up a Recovery Pill and put it in his mouth.

The pill dissolved, and a cool, refreshing sensation instantly spread through his body, like rain after a long drought.

The dull ache in his chest and the tightness in his breathing quickly eased under that soothing sensation, then disappeared completely!

It was as if a heavy burden had been lifted from him. He felt clear-headed and full of energy!

"This..."

The skepticism on Yamcha's face froze, replaced by profound shock and disbelief.

The effect was simply too obvious, too immediate!

This wasn't the kind of healing brought about by modern medicine or the almost miraculous restorative effects of a Senzu Bean. It was something deeper, a nourishment and recovery that seemed to come from the very source of life.

He opened his mouth, looked at the remaining pills in his hand, then at Lin Fan's calm expression. His face flushed, and after a long pause, he finally managed to say, "...Sorry, Lin Fan. These pills of yours... really are incredible."

Lin Fan smiled. "It's all right. What matters is that they work. These pills give us a better chance of surviving. But real strength still comes from all of you training hard."

He looked at everyone, his tone turning serious. "The next year will be hell. Everyone, get ready!"

The Z Fighters gripped the pills in their hands, their eyes more resolute than ever.

"Yeah!" they chorused, their fighting spirit soaring.