Gohan couldn't have cared less. Right now, he only wanted to make himself stronger. Being a scholar wouldn't save the Earth.
He spread his hands. "I don't actually like homework that much either. I'm just being forced to do it. Actually, Uncle Piccolo..."
"I think the Earth is still in danger, so it's pretty important for me to train more!"
Hearing Gohan's words, Piccolo's eyes lit up, and a smile spread across his face.
This was exactly the kind of Gohan he'd wanted to see. Now that Gohan had finally come around, Piccolo looked pleased.
"Although it wouldn't be fair to Chi-Chi for me to say this, you should train and improve your abilities!"
"I can be your sparring partner, too. But my training is going to be brutal!"
Piccolo was still quite capable, especially with the techniques of the Namekians. As a training partner, he was the best choice for Gohan.
So Gohan had no qualms about transforming into a Super Saiyan right away!
Power surged through his body, enveloping him in an exhilarating rush.
He hadn't expected transforming into a Super Saiyan to feel this good. He wondered how incredible transforming into Super Saiyan Blue would be!
"That's even better. I don't need you to go easy on me. I've trained too little these past few years, so I have to make up for it now!"
"Here I come!"
With one movement, his Super Saiyan 1 form made him feel as if his body were bursting with power. And with Ultra Instinct...
He moved at hundreds of meters per second, reaching Piccolo in the blink of an eye.
But Piccolo was clearly at ease facing Super Saiyan 1 Gohan. As far as he was concerned, no matter how strong Gohan was, he'd lost ground from lack of training.
As long as Gohan didn't transform into the strongest form, Super Saiyan 2, Piccolo could handle him!
So, at first, he hadn't even considered using his full strength.
But as soon as Gohan reached him and threw a punch, Piccolo hadn't even had time to counter before it seemed as if Gohan had seen right through him.
Gohan changed the punch into a kick, catching Piccolo completely off guard and sending him flying!
Thud!
Piccolo had taken the kick head-on, and his face looked awful. He'd watched Gohan closely for a long time. Gohan hadn't trained in years and had only fought a few petty thieves.
His strength should have weakened, but Piccolo had let his guard down. He hadn't expected Gohan to seem like a completely different person!
And he'd gained some kind of ability that let him anticipate Piccolo's attacks. Compared to the old Gohan, he was like a whole different person!
"Uncle Piccolo, your face looks a little green!"
After landing the blow, Gohan felt fantastic. He couldn't help saying that, making Piccolo's expression even darker.
"Brat, my face is green to begin with!"
Piccolo charged forward in a fit of anger, holding nothing back as he fought Gohan.
Gohan now felt that Ultra Instinct did more than simply increase his battle power by a million!
That million points of battle power depended on where it was applied, especially when it came to his dodging ability.
He could anticipate Piccolo's next move. If Piccolo didn't use his full strength and only fought at 80 percent, Gohan could predict everything he did.
That meant the extra million battle power was still pretty useful!
Of course, it was only useful against Piccolo. Piccolo might have a sharp tongue, but he was softhearted. Even when angered, he wouldn't really use 100 percent of his strength.
He only fought at around 80 percent, helping Gohan train to his heart's content!
That let Gohan slowly get used to Super Saiyan 1. Half an hour later, he transformed directly into Super Saiyan 2!
"Ahhh!"
As soon as Super Saiyan 2 appeared, Piccolo's brow furrowed. He watched Gohan transform, his expression shifting.
After all, Super Saiyan 2 had defeated Cell. Even at full strength, Piccolo couldn't match it.
His face looked even greener as he watched Gohan transform into Super Saiyan 2, his expression changing by the second.
On high alert, Piccolo never expected Gohan to open with a technique he'd never imagined.
"Destructo Disc!"
Piccolo's expression changed dramatically. He stared in disbelief. "Nani?"
Gohan moved one hand and sent a Destructo Disc straight at Piccolo. Piccolo's whole body shuddered. This time, he had no choice but to use his full strength and dodge.
Even so, he was still shaken. The Destructo Disc ignored defenses and could have sliced him in half.
He was truly furious. "Brat, how did you learn the Destructo Disc? Are you trying to kill me?"
Gohan looked completely relaxed and laughed. "Uncle Piccolo, you can regenerate. As long as it doesn't hit you in the head, you can still come back to life."
Piccolo looked troubled. Gohan understood now that he couldn't go all out if he used Piccolo as his training partner.
Piccolo wasn't strong enough anymore!
He could only transform back from Super Saiyan 2 to Super Saiyan 1, which finally let Piccolo breathe a sigh of relief.
Watching Gohan fight with such intensity, Piccolo couldn't understand why he'd suddenly decided to train seriously.
Was the Earth really in danger, like the kid had said?
Was there an even stronger enemy after Cell?
Unfortunately, Piccolo couldn't imagine how powerful such an enemy could be. Cell had taken Kakarot away.
He'd nearly blown up the Earth. Piccolo couldn't imagine anyone stronger than Cell!
The two-hour sparring session ended.
By the end, Gohan had used up all his energy, only to find that his Ultra Instinct had increased to just 0.1%!
It wasn't even 1 percent. The progress was way too slow!
Even after increasing, it had only added another ten million to his battle power. That was nowhere near enough.
At 0.1 percent, he still hadn't reached the threshold of Ultra Instinct. He felt that he wouldn't truly have mastered the basics until he reached 1 percent.
Although Ultra Instinct hadn't reached 1 percent, with the constant training, his Destructo Disc...
Had reached 10 percent mastery. At this rate, the Destructo Disc would reach 100 percent mastery.
It would definitely get there much faster than Ultra Instinct. He truly had no idea how long it would take to fully master Ultra Instinct.
This progress was just way too slow!
For now, he accompanied Piccolo home.
They didn't get home until sunset. Chi-Chi had clearly grown impatient waiting. As soon as Gohan returned...
She gave them both an earful, including Piccolo, who was standing nearby.
Although Piccolo had tremendous battle power, he didn't dare say a word in front of Chi-Chi.
After all, she was Son Goku's wife!
After scolding the two of them, Chi-Chi shot Piccolo a fierce glare, making his face turn even greener.
Only then did Chi-Chi turn her attention to Gohan. "I made dinner ages ago, and you're only coming home to eat now."
"Goten's already fallen asleep waiting for you."
Little Goten walked over from nearby, rubbing his eyes. He looked exhausted. "Brother, what were you doing? Why did you come back so late?"
Looking at little Goten, Gohan suddenly remembered how capable he was.
He could develop Goten's abilities. Then he could use him as a training partner!
After all, they both had Saiyan blood. Goten could easily reach Super Saiyan 2, and he'd definitely be stronger than Piccolo.
As things stood, Piccolo could only handle Gohan's Super Saiyan 1 form. He couldn't bring out the strength of Gohan's Super Saiyan 2.
Gohan definitely had to find a stronger training partner. The person he most wanted to find...
Was Vegeta. But when he thought of Vegeta's proud personality, he figured things might turn into a fight to the death as soon as they started.
He decided to abandon that idea. He hadn't fully gotten used to Ultra Instinct or his Super Saiyan forms yet. He didn't need to take on such a difficult challenge right away.
He'd only be making things hard for himself!
Having made up his mind, Gohan walked over and smiled as he patted little Goten on the head.
"Goten, how about I take you out to play tomorrow?"
Little Goten was simple-minded. At the mention of playing, his eyes lit up, and all traces of sleepiness vanished.
He grew excited.
"Really, Brother? Then it's a promise! Wow, I haven't gone out to play with you in ages!"
"Great! I want to go out with you tomorrow, Brother!"
Little Goten immediately latched onto him. Seeing the playful child's nature, Gohan hid the mischievous smirk that briefly tugged at his lips.
Piccolo glanced over. He could tell what Gohan was thinking, and as he watched little Goten, he couldn't help feeling a little sorry for him.
Still, he didn't stop Gohan. His own strength couldn't keep up with Gohan's training anymore.
He knew Gohan needed to find more people if he wanted to get stronger. As Gohan's loyal supporter, of course Piccolo wanted to see him grow stronger!
Early the next morning, Gohan said he wanted to get to school early.
Instead, he took little Goten straight to a grassy plain.
Little Goten, still half-asleep, was brought here. He stared at the endless plain, looking confused.
He had no idea why Brother Gohan had brought him here.
"Brother, what's fun here? Weren't we going to the city? Why did we come here?"
Gohan's expression turned serious as he looked at little Goten.
"Goten, I'm going to teach you how to fight. You know we have Saiyan blood. Saiyan warriors are the strongest in the universe."
"As Saiyans, we must never forget our fighting skills!"
Little Goten still looked confused. "But Mom says kids who always want to fight are bad!"
Gohan raised a hand and put on a stern expression as he lectured him.
Little Goten was still very innocent, so it was easy to bring out his potential. After all, he was just a little kid.
"No, no. This is for justice and peace. You have to understand that there are lots of bad people in this world. To stop them from bullying us, we have to become strong ourselves!"
"Only then can we fight for world peace and protect ourselves!"
Gohan's serious expression made Goten's eyes light up. He immediately grew excited.
"Brother, you're so cool! I want to fight for world peace too! Hehe!"
This kid really was easy to fool!
Great. He'd found a second person to train, and little Goten was definitely stronger than Piccolo.
Once Gohan brought out his potential, he'd definitely be a worthwhile training partner. He was just too easy to fool.
Ideally, he'd get Trunks to join them too.
Then it'd be perfect!
Hiding his mischievous smile, Gohan began teaching in earnest.
"All right. I'll start by teaching you how to transform into Super Saiyan 1!"
Before you continue