Bulma was still crouching there.
Yamcha didn't see Bulma, but he did spot the short, stocky Little Goku.
He froze for a moment, then burst out laughing. "Hahaha! You're just a kid.
"Hand over your valuables!
"If you want to live, give me everything valuable you've got!"
As he spoke, Yamcha drew his long knife and pointed it at Son Goku.
Just then, Bulma shook the dust off herself,
stood up, and looked at Yamcha.
The moment she saw him, a nameless fury surged through her.
The resentment she carried from both her past and present lives welled up in an instant.
In her previous life, after she and Little Goku finished searching for the Dragon Balls,
Bulma had thought she'd found her Prince Charming: Yamcha.
So she'd brought him back to West City with her.
But their happy days didn't last.
He had a somewhat handsome face and a touch of a bandit's swagger,
which made him very popular with girls.
Lots of girls in West City flirted with him.
That brought out his womanizing nature. He spent all day chasing after women, and it never stopped.
Because of the unreliable Yamcha, Bulma had wasted more than a decade of the best years of her life.
Worse, she'd missed her chance with Son Goku.
And Yamcha was always disappearing, vanishing for years at a time.
Even when Bulma wanted to break up with him, she couldn't find him to tell him so.
Finally, after she returned from Namek, Bulma managed to cut ties with him.
She'd thought she'd never have anything to do with him again.
Yet this time, instead of losing the Capsule Corp Capsule in Gao Village,
she'd had her house blown up by this guy.
Enough was enough!
Furious, Bulma pointed at Yamcha and shouted, "You bastard! You destroyed my house!"
Then Bulma turned to Goku and ordered, "Goku, beat him up!"
Son Goku blinked in astonishment,
looked at Yamcha, then turned back to Bulma.
A flicker of confusion crossed his eyes again.
He wondered if he'd heard wrong.
Bulma had actually told him to beat up Yamcha?
That didn't suit her personality at all!
A thought flashed through Goku's mind.
He couldn't help but suck in a sharp breath.
The Butterfly Effect really was terrifying!
Wasn't she supposed to be obsessed with handsome guys like Yamcha?
Why didn't she seem to like handsome guys at all anymore?
Was this really Bulma?
The Butterfly Effect had even changed Bulma's taste in men!
Terrifying!
But then Goku reconsidered. It seemed to make sense, after all.
After Future Trunks traveled through time and returned to the past,
Android 17 and Android 18, who should have wreaked havoc on the world, had changed their personalities and become good people.
Anyone would find it hard to reconcile them with the two merciless killers from the future.
Son Goku took a deep breath and silently accepted this reality,
then looked at Yamcha with a hint of pity.
He gripped his right hand with his left and squeezed, making his knuckles crack.
Radiating a savage aura, he strode toward Yamcha.
Since Yamcha was still a bandit, giving him a beating
was practically an act of justice. It wasn't overdoing it, was it?
At first, Yamcha had been acting pretty cocky when he saw Goku,
but the moment he saw Bulma, his legs went weak.
He had a phobia of women.
Yamcha's legs trembled as he stammered, "Damn it, why is there a woman here?
"Puar, let's get out of here..."
As he spoke, Son Goku flashed in front of Yamcha, blocking his way.
In the next instant, Goku pulled out the Power Pole and pointed it at Yamcha.
"Where do you think you're going?"
Just as Goku was about to hit him with the staff, Bulma's voice rang out.
"Goku, just teach him a good lesson. Don't kill him!"
Goku thought, Well, Bulma may not like handsome guys anymore, but she's kindhearted and doesn't like killing people.
That makes two of us.
Without even looking at Bulma, Goku replied, "Got it!"
In the next instant, Goku darted toward Yamcha and struck him on the shin with the staff, sending him tumbling face-first to the ground.
After Yamcha fell,
Son Goku followed up with a flurry of punches, not missing a single blow,
and within moments, Yamcha's face was swollen and bruised.
By the time Goku stopped, Yamcha was lying on the ground, covered in injuries.
Puar was heartbroken.
"Master! Master!"
"Are you all right?
"Please don't die..."
Yamcha opened his swollen eyes and peered through the narrow slits at Puar.
His mouth was crooked, his face was covered in lumps, and he'd even lost seven or eight teeth.
"Puar, quick, help me up. We have to run..."
Goku stepped aside and let them leave.
Only after watching Yamcha limp away did Bulma emerge from the rubble.
She looked scornfully at Yamcha's retreating back, then turned to Goku.
"My Capsule house has been destroyed.
"Without a house, we can't rest here, so let's keep going, okay?"
Son Goku nodded.
"All right. Good thing I've eaten until I'm half full. Let's go!"
17. The Girl Chi-Chi
Bulma cupped her hands around her mouth like a megaphone,
and shouted up at the sky, "Flying Nimbus!~"
The Flying Nimbus appeared in an instant and swooped right down in front of Bulma.
Watching Bulma with the Flying Nimbus, Goku found himself momentarily dazed.
He'd never imagined Bulma riding the Flying Nimbus.
A moment later, Bulma rode off westward on the Flying Nimbus, streaking away like a golden beam of light.
Winter training in the coldest days, summer training in the hottest—Goku couldn't let his training slip.
He ran on foot with extra weight strapped to him, following Bulma on the Flying Nimbus as they crossed mountains and valleys toward Fire Mountain.
Three days later...
The two of them could feel the weather getting hotter and hotter.
Bulma realized that even on foot, Goku was fast enough.
They were nearing their destination for the sixth Dragon Ball: Fire Mountain.
It seemed they were about to meet Chi-Chi.
Bulma thought, I have to prepare him for this.
I've already been reborn, and I'm still sticking close to Goku.
If he ends up pledging himself to Chi-Chi again, I might as well bash my head against a block of tofu.
She lowered the Flying Nimbus and brought it closer to Goku.
"Hey, Goku! Are you hungry?"
Goku stopped jogging and looked up. "A little. Is it time to eat?"
Bulma said, "Our house was destroyed, and we lost a lot of food.
"I only have a little food left in my Capsules, and it's not enough for you to have a full meal.
"Here's what I'm thinking.
"It's almost dark, so let's call it a day.
"I haven't taken a bath in three days, and I'm itchy all over.
"Let's find a town and rest,
"have a good meal, and stock up on some food.
"Then we can take a bath to cool off and set out again tomorrow. How does that sound?"
Goku looked into the distance. Fire Mountain was nowhere in sight yet.
But when he thought of the Ox-King's castle being engulfed in flames,
he'd already come up with a plan.
It seemed there was no need to go to all the trouble of looking for Master Roshi,