Then everyone set off on their own.
Aboard the aircraft, Master Roshi took out the new radar. When he saw the positions of the seven Dragon Balls displayed on it, his heart sank.
Six of the Dragon Balls had already gathered in one place.
"We're too late!" Master Roshi's heart sank. "Someone's already collected six Dragon Balls."
Hearing this, Raditz, who was using his Scouter to search for Goku's energy, narrowed his eyes.
He took the radar and glanced at it. Just as Master Roshi had said, six Dragon Balls were indeed gathered together. Worse still, they were slowly moving toward the location of the seventh.
"How could this happen?" Raditz looked perplexed. Why had King Piccolo collected the Dragon Balls so quickly? Wasn't he supposed to hunt down the martial artists first?
Could it be that killing Tambourine earlier had kept them from getting the list?
"We have to get the last one before they do," Master Roshi said urgently. "Tien, push the engines to maximum!"
The aircraft sped up again.
The atmosphere in the cabin grew tense. Everyone understood that the one collecting the Dragon Balls now was most likely King Piccolo. Once he gathered them all and summoned Shenron, what would he wish for? Just thinking about it sent a chill down their spines.
Master Roshi silently watched the seven Dragon Balls drawing closer together on the radar and made up his mind. It was time to use that forbidden technique again—even if it cost him his life.
Meanwhile, a huge spaceship flew over a barren wasteland.
King Piccolo sat on a throne-like seat, idly playing with two orange orbs in his hands. His crimson eyes were lowered, giving away nothing of his mood.
Four more Dragon Balls were neatly arranged on the metal table before him.
Six gathered. Only the final step remained.
He calmly looked at the orbs, his thoughts returning to what had happened not long ago.
When the Pilaf Gang had first released him from the Rice Cooker, his plan had been clear: first eliminate the potential threats—the martial artists.
So he had sent his men to the World Martial Arts Tournament venue to get a list of the competitors. Then he would hunt them down one by one and spread fear across the world once more.
As for the Dragon Balls, all he needed was one to confirm they were real. Restoring his youth was certainly a goal, but there was no need to rush. In his eyes, his current power was already enough to crush anything in his way.
However, the plan had changed.
"G-great Demon King," Pilaf stammered, nervously presenting a playback device. "W-we just found this in the spaceship's system. It's a recording of the World Martial Arts Tournament. Perhaps you'd like to watch it?"
The footage was grainy and filmed from above, but what it showed made King Piccolo's previously indifferent gaze sharpen.
In the ring, Tien and Raditz were engaged in a fierce battle. They traded blows at incredible speed, unleashed a massive energy wave, and finally, Tien fired the astonishing Tri-Beam.
"These two humans..." King Piccolo said in a low voice, his fingers unconsciously tapping the armrest. "They're stronger than expected."
The young man in particular caught his attention. His fighting style and control of ki both seemed distinctly unusual.
This was beyond the level of an ordinary Earth martial artist.
Pilaf chimed in at the right moment. "While collecting the Dragon Balls, we've often been hindered by someone named Sun Wukong. He should be the strongest among them."
He furtively glanced at Piccolo's expression, then added, "If they join forces, they might cause you some trouble, Great Demon King."
Join forces? King Piccolo scoffed inwardly, but caution overcame his arrogance. Having only just been revived, he hadn't yet regained his full power.
If he went to the martial artists' gathering at the tournament himself, he might run into someone who could use that disgusting technique.
The two men in the recording already seemed strong enough to threaten his strongest warrior at the time—Tambourine...
In the end, to be safe, he sent his two strongest warriors to the World Martial Arts Tournament. Their primary mission was to obtain the list of competitors, while also looking for an opportunity to seize the Dragon Ball near the venue.
However, not long afterward, Tambourine's ki suddenly vanished!
"He was killed..." A dark look flashed through King Piccolo's eyes. No ordinary martial artist could have taken Tambourine out in such a short time.
Had he been overwhelmed by multiple opponents?
King Piccolo immediately used a form of telepathic connection shared among the Demon Clan to order Cymbal, who had left ahead of him with a Dragon Ball, to return at full speed.
At the same time, he stopped waiting around and used the radar Pilaf had provided to collect the remaining Dragon Balls as quickly as possible.
He had to beat them to it! He needed to make his wish before those potential threats could react, gather together, and interfere.
Fortunately, although he had lost another subordinate while collecting the Dragon Balls, he had personally dealt with a minor nuisance along the way. Now he had six Dragon Balls in his possession.
"Soon. Very soon, I'll regain my lost youth and recover my full power."
King Piccolo set down the Dragon Ball in his hand, looked at the location on the globe, then turned to Pilaf and asked, "How much longer?"
Pilaf looked flustered and stammered, "We still have a while to go. But the signal shows an aircraft heading for the Dragon Balls' location."
"But rest assured, Great Demon King. At this speed, we'll get there before them."
"Heh heh heh. These fools have a death wish, coming here. Don't they know that I, King Piccolo, am the one collecting the Dragon Balls?" Piccolo sneered.
The huge spaceship let out a low rumble, picked up speed, and raced toward its final destination.
Master Roshi stared at the radar screen as a sense of helplessness gradually overwhelmed him.
"We won't make it..." he rasped. His tense shoulders slumped.
"Master Mutten, should we keep going?" Tien had also realized how hopeless things looked. His voice was dry.
"Keep flying. At least we have to see how it ends!" Master Roshi gritted his teeth.
The aircraft flew on for a little while longer.
Suddenly, the clear sky darkened. Then, far on the horizon ahead, a golden beam shot up from the earth and formed a gigantic azure dragon.
"Shenron... has been summoned," Master Roshi murmured, his face ashen. The worst had happened.
Raditz also gazed at the dragon, frowning slightly. Fate had changed, so would the wish change too?
But then he relaxed. The number on his Scouter slowly climbed before stopping at 290. It looked like Piccolo had still wished to become young again.
"Land," Master Roshi said, taking a deep breath. His voice had regained its composure. "Find somewhere hidden."
The aircraft landed in a rocky wasteland surrounded by enormous, weathered caves.
Everyone had just stepped out of the aircraft, still reeling from the sight of Shenron being summoned.
"Master Mutten, it looks like King Piccolo is heading this way," Raditz suddenly said, looking at the reading on his Scouter as the number drew closer.