Ultra Divine Water

Inside a picturesque estate villa, Bulma gazed at the big eater before her, who was eating with such gusto. His table manners were terrible, but the more she looked at him, the more she liked him. Her cheeks flushed slightly, and who knew what she was thinking...

"Hey, Bulma, why do you keep staring at me? Have you fallen for this great guy?" Vegeta teased, while continuing to shovel food into his mouth.

"As if! I'd never fall for a big eater like you," Bulma said stubbornly.

A whirlwind of activity later...

Every plate and bowl on the enormous dining table was completely empty.

Vegeta picked his teeth with a toothpick. "That was enough to fill me about seventy percent."

"Seventy percent??? Are you a pig? Even pigs can't eat as much as you!" Bulma exclaimed.

"What's so strange about that? We Saiyans spend our lives fighting, so we have powerful digestive systems. We convert almost all our food into energy for battle. Even when we're not fighting, it gets stored in our bodies!" Vegeta said disdainfully.

"No wonder Goku can eat so much too. He always has a huge meal after a fight," Bulma said.

"Alright, Bulma, I need you to do me a favor. Modify my spaceship and add a Gravity Chamber. The higher its maximum setting, the better. You can handle the rest however you like, just make it comfortable. It's too small and cramped as it is. Here's the remote. Press this button, and it'll fly back to wherever the remote is." As he spoke, Vegeta handed the remote to Bulma.

Bulma's eyes lit up as she looked at the remote. After all, for a genius scientist, nothing was more exciting than researching new technology!

In the bizarre world of Dragon Ball, Earth had no technology for exploring outer space, let alone traveling to other planets. Yet it had the Hoi-Poi Capsule, a magical way to store things in a pocket dimension, much like the storage rings in fantasy novels! And in Vegeta's memories, he had never seen anything like it on other planets either. This really was one bizarre world!

"Rumble... crash!" A round flying craft descended straight into the front yard of Bulma's house!

"Bulma, I'm leaving it to you. I've got something to do. I'll come back for it in two days!" Before he had even finished speaking, Vegeta used the Flight Technique and soared into the sky!...

"Damn you! What do you think I am, someone you can summon and dismiss whenever you like?" Bulma shouted after the departing Vegeta. "Forget it. A spaceship—how fascinating! Hmph, I'm only doing this because I'm interested, not for your sake!" she muttered to herself.

"I've sensed it. It's in this direction... two weak energy signatures," Vegeta murmured.

Hospital

"Ah... it hurts... no... don't...!" Goku cried out in pain and terror.

Everyone looked at the man before them, who hadn't made a peep despite having every bone in his body broken, yet was now wailing because he was afraid of getting a shot. They wanted to laugh, but the situation didn't seem appropriate. Their faces turned red from holding it in, until Krillin couldn't take it anymore and burst out laughing.

Suddenly, the few people who could sense energy all turned to look in the same direction.

Krillin said in alarm, "Vegeta... why is he flying toward the Lookout? Is he going to kill the Guardian of Earth?..."

Piccolo, hovering outside the window in meditation, said, "I'll go check. It shouldn't be anything like that—I can't sense any killing intent from him." With that, Piccolo took off toward the Lookout. After all, if the Guardian of Earth died, he wouldn't survive either, and he still wanted to see his homeland!

In the blink of an eye, Vegeta reached Korin's residence beneath the Lookout. He stopped suddenly, then flew into the temple!

Korin looked at the man before him, whose hair stood upright like flames, and asked with a trembling voice, "What... what do you want?!"

"Don't be nervous. I heard that Kakarot drank Ultra Divine Water here when he was a kid to draw out his potential. I want to see what it tastes like too," Vegeta said.

Korin let out a long breath. "You scared me to death. You want the Ultra Divine Water? That stuff won't do much for you now. You're already an adult, and you've nearly reached your full potential."

"Don't judge me by the standards of you Earthlings. I'm a Saiyan prince, and my potential is limitless. Enough talk. Hurry up and bring it to me," Vegeta said arrogantly.

"Fine, but I'll warn you first: drinking that stuff will make your whole body hurt. If anything happens to you, I'm not responsible. Come with me." As Korin spoke, he led Vegeta down to a secret chamber on the level below.

At the bottom, Korin took a strange bottle from a hollow in the wall and handed it to Vegeta. "Here. When you drink it, keep your energy under control. Don't destroy Korin Tower!" He then went back upstairs, leaving Vegeta alone.

Vegeta looked at the bottle, which held about half a pound of liquid with a pungent smell. He steeled himself, raised it, and gulped it down. A powerful burning sensation ran down his throat and into his stomach. Suddenly, his entire body trembled, his muscles twitching and spasming beyond his control. A feeling of helplessness and fullness, mixed with unbearable pain, surged through him!

He could no longer hold back and let out a loud cry. "Aah...!" His energy erupted uncontrollably. All of Korin Tower—and the ground within a ten-mile radius below it—began to shake!

At the Lookout, the Guardian of Earth felt that energy, and cold sweat ran down his forehead. In the sky, Piccolo suddenly stopped flying and was nearly forced to the ground by the pressure of that energy...

"Beast... I told him to control his energy, and he still let out such a powerful aura!" Korin gripped his staff in one hand and the railing beside him with the other, his feet lifted right off the ground!

Five minutes later...

Vegeta panted heavily, slowly reining in his explosive energy until it finally settled. He was soaked through. He hadn't expected it to hurt so much!

"System, open my status screen," Vegeta said in his mind.

Status Screen

Name: Vegeta

Race: Saiyan

Battle Power: 58,000

Skills: Artificial Moon, Heaven-Shattering Cannon, Galick Cannon, Prince Tactics!

Special Technique: Killing Intent Fist, First Level (5x Battle Power Increase)

Super Saiyan: Not Awakened (S-Cells: 35%)

Vegeta looked at the screen and, seeing the increase in his S-Cells, asked, "System, what's going on? Does drinking Ultra Divine Water also help increase S-Cells?"

The system replied in its cold, mechanical voice, "S-Cells are already present in the host's body. Any effort to draw out the host's potential can lead to an unpredictable increase in the development of S-Cells. However, the Ultra Divine Water was detected to contain potent toxins. Although it can develop S-Cells, doing so is like drinking poison to quench one's thirst. This one time, the host may be able to gradually expel the toxins from the body. If you drink it again, the system cannot predict what will happen!"

After hearing the system's explanation, Vegeta abandoned the idea that had just come to mind. Perhaps Kakarot's Heart Virus later on was related to the Ultra Divine Water too. Forget it. I have the system, and I have Bulma. There are plenty of ways to increase my battle power. My health comes first.